J O B   O F F E R  No.  2015 / 032

The University of Konstanz belongs to the universities in Germany whose “Future concepts for top-class research at universities” is promoted within the framework of the Excellence Initiative of the German federal and state governments.

The Zukunftskolleg is a central scientific institution of the University of Konstanz for the promotion of young researchers in the natural sciences, humanities and social sciences, and is an integral component of the institutional strategy “Model Konstanz — Towards a Culture of Creativity.” TheZukunftskolleg forms a platform for interdisciplinary discourse between distinguished researchers in Germany and abroad, and provides them with resources for obtaining extramural funding.

The Zukunftskolleg of the University of Konstanz offers up to

six (6) ZIF Marie Curie 2-year Postdoctoral Fellowships 
(any discipline represented at the University of Konstanz)
(Salary Scale 13 TV-L)

to develop and implement individual research projects. This call for applications is part of theZukunftskolleg Incoming Fellowship Program (ZIF) and is financed by the Seventh Framework Program (FP7) Marie Curie Actions – People (co-funding of regional, national and international programs), the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the University of Konstanz. The rules and ethical principles for the FP7 and the DFG guidelines apply.

Marie Curie Fellowships are available to researchers regardless of their nationality and field of research. They are intended to encourage the transnational mobility of top-level researchers in order to integrate them within the European research area.

The Fellowships will begin on February 1, 2016, and end on January 31, 2018.

The Zukunftskolleg provides a professional infrastructure and an appropriate workplace for conducting research. Fellows have the opportunity to benefit from a variety of career development measures, including the University of Konstanz’s Academic Staff Development and Research Support offices. Fellows may nominate recognized experts in their field of research as senior Fellows, who will be invited to Konstanz for a research stay of one to nine months. Each Postdoctoral Fellow receives a mobility allowance and a research allowance. Furthermore, a pool is available for funding cooperative projects, research assistants, travel, and equipment purchases. Each Fellow is a member of both a university department and the Zukunftskolleg. A Mentoring Committee supports each Fellow in her / his career development. This committee consists of an experienced researcher from the Fellow’s research field within the university department, as well as an advanced Research Fellow of the Zukunftskolleg.

The target group consists of excellent researchers at the postdoctoral level, leadership abilities and a capacity for teamwork, so that they can reasonably be expected to take up leading roles in academia.

Applicant Requirements for this Fellowship include:

• Candidates must be in possession of a doctoral degree (PhD thesis submitted and defended) at the moment of the decision within the second committee meeting – September 28-29, 2015;
• Candidates must not hold a permanent position, a professorship, or have an habilitation or equivalent (Venia legendi);
• Candidates with their own position funded by another program, which can be transferred to Konstanz, are also eligible (other EU funding is not eligible);
• Applicants must propose a research project that ties in with a discipline represented at the University of Konstanz. Applicants should contact potential mentors (Local Hosts) among the researchers at the University of Konstanz in order to ensure appropriate affiliation. Support from the department strengthens the application;
• Applicants must have had their main residence and worked outside Germany for 24 months or more during the three years prior to the application deadline (timeframe: May 19, 2012- May 18, 2015);
• All ethical issues raised by a proposed project (if applicable) must be described in the project outline. The candidate should explain how these will be addressed, so as to conform with national and Seventh Framework Program (FP7) ethical principles. For advice, please see the CORDIS website on ethics (http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ethics_en.html) and contact theZukunftskolleg If a proposed project that has passed the peer review stage raises any ethical issues, it is forwarded for review by the University of Konstanz Ethics Committee.

Fellows have an opportunity to teach. They are expected to participate actively in the regular weekly meetings of the Zukunftskolleg and to have their place of residence in Konstanz.

Fellows are selected on the basis of their academic excellence, the quality and topicality of their research project outline, personal aptitude with regard to leadership and team skills, and interdis-ciplinary interest. International experience in teaching or research, and a strong interest in inter-disciplinary topics are desirable.

Applications are evaluated in a two-stage process:

1. Eligibility check and pre-selection based on the written application;
2. Further selection based on independent peer reviews.

Candidates will be informed of the final decision and the evaluation of their own strengths and weaknesses after the second selection phase at the beginning of October 2015.

More information on the Zukunftskolleg and current Fellows, as well as a special section devoted to the application and selection process (application forms, guidelines on eligibility, evaluation criteria, the timeline and the stages of the selection process) are available on our website at:http://www.zukunftskolleg.uni-konstanz.de/ .

The University of Konstanz encourages disabled persons to apply. They will be given preference if appropriately qualified (contact + 49 (0) 7531 / 88 – 4016 und 88 – 2834).

The University of Konstanz is an equal opportunity employer that tries to increase the number of women in research and teaching.

The University of Konstanz has been certified as a family-friendly institution by the Hertie Foundation. The University is committed to further the compatibility of work and family life.

The University of Konstanz offers a “Dual Career Couples Programme“. Information is available at:http://www.familie.uni-konstanz.de/dual-career/.

All applications and supporting materials must be submitted in English via the Online Application Platform at: www.zukunftskolleg.uni-konstanz.de/online-application.
The required documents include a completed application form, a letter of motivation, research propo-sal, curriculum vitae, a writing sample, and two letters of reference.

Applicants are encouraged to check their eligibility before submitting their proposal.

The deadline for applications is May 18, 2015, 17:00h (Konstanz time).

Contact: Help Desk,  zukunftskolleg-application@uni-konstanz.de, Anda Lohan, e-mail:  a.lohan@uni-konstanz.de.