You will study the ambivalent role of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) as an actor and forum for the human rights turn in legal discourses on migration. Your research will be part of the project entitled "Who is empowered by Strasbourg Migrants and States before the European Court of Human Rights". This is one of ten projects which together form the interdisciplinary research group "Human Rights Discourses in Migration Societies" (Menschenrechtsdiskurse in der Migrationsgesellschaft, MeDiMi). The aim of MeDiMi is to determine the scope, forms and consequences of the expansion of human rights discourse in contemporary migration societies.
Your doctoral thesis will be designed as a bi-national PhD between the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and JLU Giessen ('co-tutelle'). You will cooperate closely with the project team located at the Amsterdam Centre for Migration and Refugee Law (ACMRL) and be embedded in a cooperative research consortium with MeDiMi partner institutes in Germany.

Your duties

• learn to independently conduct high-quality research, culminating in a monographic study (PhD thesis)
• collaborate with researchers within and outside the ACMRL and the MeDiMi consortium
• conduct legal analysis of relevant judgments
• make a (small) contribution to teaching

• A law degree, or demonstrated experience with legal doctrinal analysis; experience with case law analysis is desirable
• A keen interest in migration and human rights law, legal argumentation and concepts
• A demonstrated high degree of self-discipline; excellent analytical skills and experience
• Experience and affinity with interdisciplinary research, especially political theory, philosophy or sociology
• High-level communication skills in English; excellent interpersonal and verbal communication skills; Dutch and/or German language skills are an asset

Fixed-term contract: 1 year.

A challenging position in a socially involved organization. The salary will be in accordance with university regulations for academic personnel and amounts €2.310 (scale 1) per month during the first year and increases to €2,462 (scale 3) per month during the fourth year, based on a full-time employment. The job profile: is based on the university job ranking system and is vacant for at least 1 FTE.

The appointment will initially be for 1 year. After a satisfactory evaluation of the initial appointment, the contract will be extended for a duration of 4 years.
Additionally, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam offers excellent fringe benefits and various schemes and regulations to promote a good work/life balance, such as:

• a maximum of 41 days of annual leave based on full-time employment
• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
• contribution to commuting expenses
• a wide range of sports facilities which staff may use at a modest charge

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

The ambition of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is clear: to contribute to a better world through outstanding education and ground-breaking research. We strive to be a university where personal development and commitment to society play a leading role. A university where people from different disciplines and backgrounds collaborate to achieve innovations and to generate new knowledge. Our teaching and research encompass the entire spectrum of academic endeavor - from the humanities, the social sciences and the natural sciences through to the life sciences and the medical sciences.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is home to more than 30,000 students. We employ over 5,500 individuals. The VU campus is easily accessible and located in the heart of Amsterdam's Zuidas district, a truly inspiring environment for teaching and research.

Diversity
We are an inclusive university community. Diversity is one of our most important values. We believe that engaging in international activities and welcoming students and staff from a wide variety of backgrounds enhances the quality of our education and research. We are always looking for people who can enrich our world with their own unique perspectives and experiences.

Faculty of Law
The Faculty of Law provides bachelor's degree programmes in three main fields: Law, Notarial law and Criminology. In addition, we offer an extensive range of Master's programmes as well as contract education. Our teaching and research focus on the social function and relevance of law: from contracts in the platform economy to the new way of working, from colonial injustice to medical liability, from family reunification to civil participation, from sex offenses to ransomware. Our research is often both international and multidisciplinary in character.

Working at the Faculty of Law means being engaged in an active and inspiring academic setting. Together with your colleagues, you will contribute to the quality of teaching and research in a challenging and rewarding working environment. More than 300 people work at the Faculty of Law, which is home to some 4,500 students.

About the Amsterdam Centre for Migration and Refugee Law
For the last fifteen years, the Migration Law research program of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam has been one of the most prominent programs in the field. It aims at tracking the multiplicity of complex developments in migration law that take place at the international, European and national levels.