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latrobe.edu.au>University or Organization: La Trobe University Department: Research Centre for Linguistic Typology Rank of Job: Researcher Specialty Areas: Anthropological Linguistics, Language Description, Typology, Preferably Papuan or South American languages Description: Applicants should have a PhD in linguistics or be close to the award of a PhD (they will have to have submitted their dissertation before taking up this position). They should have experience of linguistic fieldwork and will, ideally, have already completed a grammatical description of some previously undescribed language (not their native language) in terms of basic linguistic theory. The successful applicant will work as part of a team with Professor R.M.W. Dixon, Professor Alexandra Y. Aikhenvald, and other members of the Research Centre, on a topic relating to languages preferably from either South America or the New Guinea region (primarily relating to Papuan languages). They will undertake extensive fieldwork and will either (i) produce a comprehensive description of some previously undescribed language; or (ii) pursue an in-depth study of a language contact situation. Option (ii) will be suitable for someone who already has good knowledge of one or more of the languages involved in a suitable contact situation. The choice of project will be made after discussion between the successful applicant and Professors Dixon and Aikhenvald. The Research Centre for Linguistic Typology consists, at any one time, of about twenty scholars, working on a variety of languages. Besides the permanent staff we have an array of Research Fellows and PhD students; each year a number of senior scholars from across the world spend from three to six months with us as Visiting Fellows. Our personnel this year includes specialists on spoken languages from the following families or areas: Tsimshian, Mayan, Athapaskan, Eskimo-Aleut, Arawak, Araw�, Tacanan, Indo-European, Chukchee, Afroasiatic, Niger-Congo, Khoisan, Tai-Kadai, Tibeto-Burman, Austroasiatic, Papuan, Austronesian and Australian, in addition to sign languages. Further information about RCLT will be found at our website: http://www.latrobe.edu.au/rclt (see, in particular, our February 2003 newsletter). An allowance will be made to cover travelling expenses to and from Melbourne at the beginning and end of the period of employment. A suitable allowance will be made to cover the expenses of linguistic fieldwork, in South America or in the New Guinea (or in some other approved) region. Selection Criteria 1. Thorough professional training in linguistics, with special reference to language description and linguistic typology. 2. Applicants should either already have a PhD or be in the final stages of a Doctoral Program (the dissertation must be submitted before taking up the appointment), with their dissertation dealing with a topic in descriptive linguistics in terms of basic linguistic theory (not in terms of any non-basic formalism). 3. Ability to work, under direction, as a member of a research team. 4. Ability to work to a timetable, and produce results on time. 5. Ideally, to have produced a description of a language, preferably (a) a language for which there had previously been no good description; and (b) a language other than that of which they are native speaker. 6. Ideally, some training in anthropology. Applicants must obtain a Position Description and details of how to apply by visiting the Personnel website at http://www.latrobe.edu.au/personnel/jobs.html or email linguistics.typologyMail to author|Respond to list|Read more issues|LINGUIST home page|Top of issue