In collaboration with Ulrich Sieberer (University of Bamberg) and an international team of scholars, this project analyzes the causes and consequences of changes in the jurisdictions of government departments. For this purpose, the project team will collect data on the portfolio design of governments in ten Western European democracies for the period 1970 to 2020, and link these data with other data sources (e.g. the Comparative Agendas Project). The doctoral researcher will be mainly responsible for the data management (see below).

Tasks

·     Pursue a PhD thesis, preferably related to the project’s topic (e.g. government formation, coalition governance, public policy)

·      Co-author scientific publication with the project team

·   Data management: design and set up comparative datasets on portfolio design based on incoming data from the country teams, combine these data with external data sources, collect additional data on legislative activity, provide extensive data documentation, maintain the original data sources (laws, decrees, organizational charts, etc.), and organize the dissemination of the project data

·  Organization: Support the team organizing a project workshop; assist the principal investigators to prepare a book manuscript.

Your qualifications:

·       Masters degree in Political Science (or equivalent) with excellent final marks. Applications from MA students are welcome if the degree is to be expected before July 2022.

·      Interest in the analysis of political institutions, (coalition) governments, legislative studies, and/or public policy

·       Skills in advanced statistics and data management (R and/or Stata)

·       Willingness for additional methods training during the PhD

·       Excellent command of written and spoken English

What we offer:

·      Vibrant research environment wit an international project team and at the Department of Government, University of Vienna

·     Opportunity to engage in with other PhD students across disciplines in the Vienna Doctoral School of Social Sciences

·      Secure funding for additional methods training and international workshops/conferences

·       No teaching obligation but the opportunity to get teaching experience if desired

·       Work and live in Vienna, a city often ranked among the most liveable cities in the world

Application:

Please send applications with 1) a motivation letter, 2) a CV incl. at least two references (names & contact information), 3) copies of transcripts and degree certificates, and 4) a writing sample (e.g. MA thesis or a seminar paper) in one pdf file by 15 February 2022 to Thomas Meyer (thomas.meyer@univie.ac.at). Please also feel free to contact Thomas Meyer (thomas.meyer@univie.ac.at) if there are further questions.