The Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies and the Faculty of Philosophy offer a four-year scholarship to complete a PhD within a joint interdisciplinary project. The proposed PhD scholarship will be embedded in the department of Christianity and the History of Ideas at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies and in the Department of Ethics, Social and Political Philosophy at the Faculty of Philosophy and will be jointly supervised by Prof. Christoph Jedan (c.jedan@rug.nl) and Prof. Frank Hindriks (f.a.hindriks@rug.nl).

The project proposed here focuses on the social determinants of health, an approach in public health ethics which focuses on the reduction of social and economic inequalities that are considered the “causes of the causes” of health disparities (Michael Marmot).
However, substantial health differences exist even within highly affluent and relatively egalitarian societies, and some critics have attacked the philosophical underpinnings of the social determinants of health approach. The aim of this project is to develop an effective and fair alternative that engages with the rich histories of analysing poverty, inequality and (ill) health in philosophy and theology.

For a more detailed project description, see: https://www.rug.nl/research/centre-for-religious-studies/christianity-philosophy-culture/research/

The PhD student is expected:
• to have a thorough training in research skills
• to be fluent in English (both oral and written)
• to be able and willing to work in an interdisciplinary environment
• to be able to finish the PhD thesis in four years
• to enjoy planning, taking initiative, and academic writing.

Fixed-term contract: 48 months.

The successful candidate will receive a scholarship of € 2,249 gross per month. You will be required to be resident in Groningen and will initially be offered a scholarship of one year; prolongation of the scholarship for a further three years is contingent on sufficient progress in the first year.

General information about the University of Groningen’s PhD scholarship programme can be found here https://www.rug.nl/education/phd-programmes/phd-scholarship-programme/conditions-application/

The starting date is 1 December 2021.

Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies

Since its foundation in 1614, the University of Groningen has enjoyed an international reputation as a dynamic and innovative center of higher education offering high-quality teaching and research. Balanced study and career paths in a wide variety of disciplines encourage the 36.000 students and researchers to develop their own individual talents. Belonging to the best research universities in Europe and joining forces with prestigious partner universities and networks, the University of Groningen is truly an international place of knowledge. The Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies is a national leader in the subject area, with a dynamic and accomplished staff drawn from around the world (58% international), and a Graduate School with 60 PhD students. The Faculty of Philosophy is a vibrant, international community of excellent researchers and teachers. It consistently receives the highest evaluations both for research and for teaching among philosophy departments in the Netherlands.