Institution/Organization: Georg August Universität Göttingen
Web Address: https://www.uni-goettingen.de/de/644546.html?details=3049

Level: MA / MSc

Duties: Research, Project Work

Specialty Areas: Pragmatics; Psycholinguistics; Semantics; Syntax; Typology
Required Language(s): English (eng)

Description:

4 PhD positions at Georg August Universität Göttingen (Zeijlstra's ERC project UNPAG)

The Department of English Philology at the Georg-August University Göttingen is offering 4 PhD positions (f/m/d) with 65% of the regular weekly working hours (currently 25,87 hours/week) for a limited period of 3 years starting on October 1st, 2025. Remuneration is according to the German public salary scale TV-L 13.

Your tasks
Your task is to carry out research within the ERC Advanced Grant ‘Unpacking Paradigmatic Gaps (UNPAG)’ recently awarded to Prof. Hedde Zeijlstra. This project aims at understanding why certain logically accessible concepts (like ‘not all’) appear never to be lexicalized across languages. More information about UNPAG can be found on [www.unpag.eu]. Each PhD student will work on one of the four pillars that are part of UNPAG.

Your profile
Applicants are expected to have a completed academic degree in linguistics or a related subject, with a focus on semantics, syntax, or pragmatics. They are expected to hold a Master’s degree (or equivalent). In addition, advanced command of the English language is required. Experience with either crosslinguistic or experimental semantics is desirable, but not necessary. Candidates who have not finished their MA program by the date of the submission should deliver a declaration by their supervisor(s) that the degree will be obtained prior to the start of the position.

Application process
Applicants should send, in a single PDF file named “PhD UNPAG + family name of applicant”, an application containing:

- A letter of motivation, in which they elaborate their ambitions, scientific interests and how they consider fitting in UNPAG’s overall research goals and the scientific community in Göttingen in general. In this letter, the applicants should also indicate which of the four pillars of the project they intend to work on
- An academic CV
- Scans of the documents indicating academic degrees (or the supervisor declaration)
- A copy of the Master’s thesis (or a representative chapter of the thesis or a paper)
- The contact details of two academic referees

The University of Göttingen is an equal opportunities employer and places particular emphasis on fostering career opportunities for women. Qualified women are therefore strongly encouraged to apply in fields in which they are underrepresented. The University has committed itself to being a family-friendly institution and supports their employees in balancing work and family life. The mission of the University is to employ a greater number of severely disabled persons. Applications from severely disabled persons with equivalent qualifications will be given preference.

This single PDF file should be sent by April 11, 2025 to [[email protected]].

If you have any questions, please contact Jéssica Viana Mendes, e-mail: [[email protected]].

With submission of your application, you accept the processing of your applicant data in terms of data-protection law. Further information on the legal basis and data usage is provided in the Hinweisblatt zur Datenschutzgrundverordnung (DSGVO) [https://www.uni-goettingen.de/hinweisdsgvo].

Application Deadline: 11-Apr-2025

Web Address for Applications: https://www.uni-goettingen.de/de/644546.html?details=3049
Email Address for Applications: [email protected]

Contact Information:
Jéssica Viana Mendes