Postdoctoral Researcher

Fixed Term Contract - 29 months.

Full Time - 35 Hours Per Week.

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher for a full-time, fixed term post for 29 months from September 2024 to work as part of the Edinburgh team on the AHRC/DFG funded project “The syntax of nominal copular clauses: theoretical and empirical perspectives,” Principal Investigators: Prof. Caroline Heycock (Edinburgh); Prof. Jutta Hartmann (Bielefeld).

The Opportunity: 

The focus of your research will be on the internal structure of nominal predicates; we are very interested in including data from languages other than English, particularly those with classifier systems and/or lacking definite articles. 

You will be keeping abreast of recent theoretical work on the syntax and semantics of nominals; gathering data from the literature, from consultation with speakers of relevant languages, and from online experiments/questionnaires; developing analyses in collaboration and consultation with other members of the team, and participating fully in the work of dissemination through conference presentations and publications. 

You will work primarily with the Edinburgh PI but also in close consultation with the PI and postdoc in Bielefeld and also other members of the project team. 

The role will be based within Dugald Stewart Building (Central Campus). Opportunities for discussion on informal hybrid workplace arrangements can be discussed at the time of offer, however please note that some on campus working is required.

Your skills and attributes for success: 

• PhD in Linguistics or a related discipline (completed, or submitted and awaiting examination), with specialization in syntax; preferably also expertise in semantics (Desirable).
• Up-to-date knowledge of areas of syntactic theory relevant to the project aims, particularly the syntax of nominals.
• A track record of high-profile research outputs such as journal publications or presentations at international conferences.
• Demonstrable experience with gathering and analysing syntactic data, preferably including work on languages with nominal classifier systems and/or lacking definite articles. 
• Ability to prioritise and to work both independently and within a team with minimum supervision, and to solve problems as they arise.