Postdoctoral Research Fellow (Cultures of Philosophy) (Italian)

Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences

This full-time, fixed term post is available for three years from 01/08/24 – 31/07/27 and offers the opportunity for hybrid working – some time on campus and some from home.

The Faculty wishes to recruit a Postdoctoral Research Fellow (PDRF) to participate in the research project, ‘Cultures of Philosophy: Women Writing Knowledge in Early Modern Europe (CultPhil)’, led by Dr Helena Taylor in the Department of Languages, Cultures and Visual Studies. CultPhil was awarded as a European Research Council Starting Grant and is now funded by UKRI via the UK Government's 'Horizon Guarantee scheme' for EU awards.

The successful applicant will conduct desk-based, rare book, and archive research into philosophical writing by women in seventeenth-century Italy, with a view to broadening the canon by looking beyond traditional genres and well-known figures. The PDRF will analyse a range of genres (including correspondence), focusing in particular on the sub-discipline of natural philosophy, and will explore this writing in its historical context. The project will be appointing three PDRFs in total, to look at the Dutch Republic, England, and Italy respectively; they are all to start at the same time.

The duties of the post will include:

• archival and rare book research requiring international travel
• writing articles for internationally recognised journals
• presentations at academic conferences
• co-organisation of research events
• attending regular project meetings
• co-writing and co-editing publications with the project team

About you

You will:

• possess a relevant PhD or equivalent qualification/experience in a related field of study
• be a nationally recognised authority in seventeenth-century Italian culture, with specialisms in gender studies and/or the history of philosophy/science and/or literature; and possess sufficient specialist knowledge in the discipline to develop research programmes and methodologies (experience of working in archives and of palaeography is desirable)
• be able to work and publish in English
• have excellent reading knowledge of Italian (native or near native fluency is desirable)
• be able to develop research objectives, projects and proposals; identify sources of research funding and contribute to the process of securing funds and make presentations at conferences and other events
• be able to work collaboratively, supervise the work of others and act as team leader as required

Please ensure you read the Job Description and Person Specification for full details of this role by clicking on the attachment.

What we can offer you

• Freedom (and the support) to pursue your intellectual interests and to work creatively across disciplines to produce internationally exciting research;
• Support teams that understand the University wide research and teaching goals and partner with our academics accordingly
• An Innovation, Impact and Business directorate that works closely with our academics providing specialist support for external engagement and development
• Our Exeter Academic initiative supporting high performing academics to achieve their potential and develop their career

• A beautiful campus set in the heart of stunning Devon

The University of Exeter

We are a member of the prestigious Russell Group of research-intensive universities and in the top 200 universities in the world (Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024 and QS World University Ranking 2024).  We combine world-class teaching with world-class research, achieving a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework Award 2023, underpinned by Gold ratings for Student Experience and Student Outcomes.

Our world-leading research impact has grown more than any other Russell Group university in recent years, and we are home to some of the world’s most influential researchers, seeking to answer some of the most fundamental issues facing humankind today.  More than 99% of our research is of international quality and 47% is world-leading (2021 Research Excellence Framework).

We encourage proactive engagement with industry, business and community partners to enhance the impact of research and education and improve the employability of our students. Read about our world leading research – Green Futures and how we are transforming education for a changing world. We are located in a beautiful part of the country and Exeter (a fast growing tech hub) is one of only a few UK cities to have been designated as a UNESCO Creative City

Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Commitment

We are committed to ensuring reasonable adjustments are available for interviews and workplaces.

Whilst all applicants will be judged on merit alone, we particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented within our working community. 

With over 30,000 students and 7,000 staff from 150 different countries we offer a diverse and engaging environment where our diversity is celebrated and valued as a major strength. We are committed to creating an inclusive culture where all members of our community are supported to thrive; where diverse voices are heard through our engagement with evidence-based charter frameworks for gender (Athena SWAN and Project Juno for Physics), race equality (Race Equality Charter Mark), LGBTQ+ inclusion (Stonewall Diversity Champion) and as a Disability Confident employer.

For further information please contact Dr Helena Taylor, e-mail [email protected].

The closing date for completed applications is 30/01/2024.  Interviews are expected to take place shortly after.