The Centre for the Study of the Afrikaans Language and South Africa (GAZ, Ghent University) is seeking two candidates to occupy the South Africa Chair: Languages, Literatures, Culture and Society. This involves a six-week stay at Ghent University during the first semester of the 2025–2026 academic year (two appointment periods: September–October 2025 and November–December 2025). One Chairholder will be appointed for each of these periods.
The visiting scholar will spend six weeks at Ghent University, advising (PhD) students on their research and contributing to the development of research projects. During the stay, the scholar will give at least one public lecture and/or an inaugural lecture (on their research) and will participate in activities organized by GAZ.
Eligibility Criteria
- The candidate must hold a PhD in linguistics, literature, translation studies, history, art, music or theatre studies, sociology, or political science, and have at least five years of teaching and research experience.
- Selection will be based on the applicant’s research field, expertise, and proposal for the lecture series (targeted at MA students of Languages and Literatures of South Africa). A guest lecture or lecture for BA students in Afrikaans: Language and Literature is also planned.
- The candidate must clearly state why they are specifically interested in holding the academic Chair at Ghent University.
Application Procedure
If you are interested, please submit your application (in English, Afrikaans, or Dutch) by 20 May 2025. Your application should include the following documents:
- A short motivation letter explaining your area of expertise;
- A curriculum vitae;
- Indication of which of the two appointment periods you are applying for;
- A written proposal for a lecture series of a minimum of four and a maximum of ten sessions for the course Languages and Literatures of South Africa (see above; max. 1.5 pages);
- Optional proposals for additional guest lectures (1–2 sessions of 90 minutes) or short multi-week modules (4–6 sessions) in other study programmes offered by the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy (e.g., History, African Languages and Cultures, English Language and Literature, Translation Studies and Applied Linguistics, Art, Music and Theatre Studies, Gender & Diversity Studies, Philosophy).
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