Assistant Professor in Contemporary Islam (THE_02)

Working at Durham University  

A globally outstanding centre of teaching and research excellence, a warm and friendly place to work, a unique and historic setting – Durham is a university like no other.

As one of the UK’s leading universities, Durham is an incredible place to define your career. The University is located within a beautiful historic city, home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and surrounded by stunning countryside. Our talented scholars and researchers from around the world are tackling global issues and making a difference to people's lives.  

We believe that inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things in the world. Being a part of Durham is about more than just the success of the University, it’s also about contributing to the success of the city, county and community.

Our University Strategy is built on three pillars of research, education and wider student experience, but also on our keen sense of community and of inspiring others to achieve their potential. 

Our Purpose and Values

We want our University to be a place where people can be free to be themselves, no matter what their identity or background. Together, we celebrate difference, value one another and are each responsible for creating an inclusive community that is respectful and fair for all.

Find out more about the benefits of working at the University and what it is like to live and work in the Durham area on our Why Durham? information page.   

The Department 

Durham's department of Theology and Religion is one of the very best UK departments in this field, with an outstanding reputation for excellence in teaching, research and employability of our students. It is held in high esteem across the globe, as reflected in the QS World Reputation rankings, which placed Durham's department as 6th worldwide based on its most recent survey in 2023.  In the UK's Research Excellence Framework 2021, the department was ranked 4th for research power in the theology and religious studies subject area.   In January 2024, in recognition of its commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion the department was awarded the Athena Swan Silver Award by Advance HE.

The Department of Theology and Religion currently comprises of 33 academic teaching staff, 15 research staff and 10 professional support staff.  We currently have a large cohort of undergraduate students (around 75 per year group) studying on 3 programmes, including the BA in Religion, Society and Culture and over 200 postgraduate students, studying on MA, PhD and DTHM (professional doctorate in theology and ministry) programmes.

The Department has three overlapping areas of academic expertise:

• Biblical Studies (including Hebrew Bible, New Testament, early Christianity, and early Judaism);
• Christian Theology (including historical and contemporary theology, philosophy and ethics);
• Study of Religion (including the empirical study of contemporary religion and its contexts of practice).

These areas reflect the Department's legacy of academic excellence long-established in Biblical Studies and Christian Theology, which we continue to develop alongside its thriving and expanding body of expertise in the social scientific study of religion.

The Department seeks to expand further its expert staff in the study of religion by appointing a talented individual to the role of Assistant Professor in Contemporary Islam.  We welcome applications from those with research and teaching interests in the broad field of  the social scientific study of contemporary Islam - whether rooted in sociology, anthropology or religious studies - and focused on expressions of Islam in any of its geographical and cultural contexts.  The successful candidate will work alongside Prof Douglas Davies, Prof Mathew Guest, Prof Jonathan Miles-Watson and Dr Stina Quiroz in developing research and teaching in the study of religion area, focusing on contemporary Islam.       

This post offers an exciting opportunity to make a major contribution to the development of internationally excellent research and teaching while allowing unrivalled opportunities to progress and embed your career in an exciting and progressive institution. For more information, please visit our Department's pages at https://www.dur.ac.uk/departments/academic/theology-religion   

Assistant Professors at Durham 

Assistant Professors on the Education and Research track are encouraged to focus on research and teaching, but are also expected to engage in wider citizenship to enhance their own development, support their department and discipline, and contribute to the wider student experience. 

Academic colleagues are supported to publish excellent research in their area of interest with a focus on high quality outputs (including monographs and journal articles), rather than quantity. We aim to support your research needs, including practical help such as resources to attend conferences and to fund research activities, as well as a generous research leave policy and a designated mentor.  

Durham University is also committed to ensuring outstanding teaching quality, stimulating learning environments, and innovative curricula for all our students. You will be supported to develop your teaching expertise and skills. 

We are confident that our recruitment process allows us to attract and select the best talent to Durham. We, therefore, offer a reduced probation period of 1 year for our Assistant Professors and thereafter, subject to satisfactory performance, your position will be confirmed as permanent. 

Applicants must demonstrate high quality research in the field of contemporary Islam, with the ability to teach our students to an exceptional standard and to fully engage in the services, citizenship and values of the University. 

We strive to provide a working and teaching environment that is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate these key principles as part of the assessment process. 

Key responsibilities: 

• To pursue research that is high quality in terms of originality, significance and rigour.  
• To develop clear plans for the pursuit of national and international funding opportunities to support research. 
• To play a role in relevant teaching and research supervision, and contribute to ongoing curriculum development. 
• Contribute to enhancing the quality of the research environment in the Department, the wider University and beyond through collaborative research activity. 
• Demonstrate a willingness to contribute to the administrative work, citizenship and values of the Department.  
• To deliver lectures, seminars and tutorials at undergraduate and taught postgraduate levels, as well as engaging in related activity such as assessment.
• To fully engage in and enhance the values of the Department.
• To contribute to attracting and supervising research students, and to enhance the Department’s commitment to its vibrant and inclusive postgraduate culture.  
• Carry out other duties as specified by the Head of Department. 

Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion 

Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key component of the University’s Strategy and a central part of everything we do.  We also live by our Purpose and Values  and our Staff Code of Conduct.   At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. It’s important to us that all colleagues undertake activities that are aligned to both our values and commitment to EDI. 

We welcome and encourage applications from those who are currently under-represented in our work force, including people with disabilities and from racially minoritised ethnic groups.

If you have taken a career break or periods of leave that may have impacted on the volume and recency of your research outputs and other activities, such as maternity, adoption or parental leave, you may wish to disclose this in your application. The selection committee will take this into account when evaluating your application.

The University has been awarded the Disability Confident Employer status. If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role. 

Person Specification 

Candidates will have completed their PhD and should outline their experience, skills and achievements to date, which demonstrate that they meet the essential criteria.

Research  

Candidates must have the capacity for and be progressing towards the independent development of internationally excellent research that produces high-quality outcomes, including some work that is recognised as world-class or that has world-class potential.   

Essential Research Criteria

Education 

Candidates must demonstrate the development and delivery of high-quality teaching that contributes to providing a supportive and enabling learning environment and curricula which encourage students to achieve their potential.

Essential Education Criteria 

Services, Citizenship and Values

Active engagement in administrative and citizenship requirements and to fostering a respectful environment, including a demonstrable commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion.

Essential Services, Citizenship and Values Criteria

Desirable Criteria 

The desirable criteria for this post (for which candidates should provide evidence of some if not all criteria) are: 

       2.  Research Impact – evidence of or the potential to demonstrate the impact of the Candidate’s research beyond their institution.     

Contact Information 

Department contact for academic-related enquiries 

Professor Mathew Guest, Head of Department ([email protected]) 

Contact information for technical difficulties when submitting your application 

If you encounter technical difficulties when using the online application form, we prefer you send enquiries by email.  Please send your name along with a brief description of the problem you’re experiencing to [email protected]  

Alternatively, you may call 0191 334 6801 from the UK, or +44 191 334 6801 from outside the UK. This number operates during the hours of 09.00 and 17.00 Monday to Friday, UK time.  We will normally respond within one working day (Monday to Friday, excluding UK public holidays).  

How to Apply  

We prefer to receive applications online.    

Please note that in submitting your application, we will be processing your data.  We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement https://www.dur.ac.uk/ig/dp/privacy/pnjobapplicants/  which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.  

What to Submit

All applicants are asked to submit: 

• A CV  
• A covering letter which details your experience, strengths and potential in the requirements set out above. 
• Personal research plan, outlining your planned research and publications over the next five years (max 1,000 words). 
• Two of your most significant pieces of written work.  Where possible your written work should have been published or submitted since 2021, however work prior to 2020 may be submitted where candidates have had career breaks. 
• An EDI & values statement – (of no more than 500 words) which outlines work which you have been involved in which demonstrates your commitment to EDI and our values. 

  Where possible we request that you provide accessible web links to your publications, which the hiring Department will use to access your work. The application form contains fields in which to enter each of the web links.

Please note we are unable to access publications behind a paywall.  

In the event you are unable to provide accessible links to online hosting of your work, publications should be uploaded as PDFs as part of your application in our recruitment system.

Please ensure that your PDFs are not larger than 5mb. Your work may be read by colleagues from across the Department and evaluated against the current REF criteria. 

All application documents should be uploaded with your name and document type as PDF files. 

We will notify you on the status of your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system.  Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to ensure you receive all emails.  

Referees 

You should provide 3 academic referees they should not (if possible) include your PhD supervisor(s).  The majority should be from a university other than your own.

References will be requested for candidates who have been shortlisted and will be made available to the panel during the interview process. 

As part of your application, you will be asked whether you give your consent to your academic references being sought should you be invited to attend an interview. We will only request references where permission has been granted.  

Next Steps 

All applications will be considered; our usual practice is for colleagues across the Department to read the submitted work of long-listed candidates.   

Short-listed candidates will be invited to the University, either virtually or in-person and will have the opportunity to meet key members of the Department.  The assessment for the post will include a presentation to staff and students in the Department followed by an interview and we anticipate that the presentations and interviews will take place on 23rd May 2024. 

If you are unable to attend on the date offered, it may not be possible to offer you an interview on an alternative date. 

Applicant Guidance  

For further guidance on your application please see HERE