Department of Sociology and Social Research, University of Trento, Italy

Faculty Positions: Call for Expression of Interest

The Department, regularly ranked among the top social science departments in Italy, is
establishing a new Center for Social and Political Research Methods funded by a 5 year, €6.2m
grant from the ‘Departments of Excellence Scheme’ of the Ministry for University and
Scientific Research-MIUR. It will be advertising new faculty positions in Sociology and in
Political Science, in both cases with a profile on research methods. Depending on the
candidates’ qualifications, these appointments can be offered at the Lecturer B (Ricercatore a
tempo determinato B) level or at the Associate Professor (Professore Associato) level.
Scholars with a good research and teaching record are invited to express their interest in these
positions by contacting the Departmental Chair, Professor Mario Diani (please email both
mario.diani@unitn .it AND [email protected]).

The Candidates’ Profile

Candidates should have a significant experience in research methodology, combined with a
substantive social scientific focus. While open to consider any methodological approach, the
Department is particularly interested in candidates with expertise in one or more of the following
methods:

• agent-based modelling (ABM) approaches
• field experiments
• qualitative comparative analysis-QCA and related methods for the analysis of small Ns
• statistical methods for the analysis of relational data, such as exponential random graph
models-ERGM
• methods for spatial research such as geographic information systems-GIS
• mixed methods for the analysis of textual and narrative data, combining qualitative and
quantitative approaches

The Department will particularly welcome candidates combining methodological expertise with
research interests in one or more of the following:
• environmental and territorial processes
• the social organization of cultural production
• public communication
• the structure of scientific communities, professional groups, and communities of practice
• public policy
• multilevel governance
• political behavior and public opinion
• political change and cleavage structures

• forms and mechanisms of cooperation and conflict

Candidates will have a doctoral degree and at least three years of postdoctoral research
experience at reputable institutions. An international outlook is desirable, as well as proof of
skills involved in fund-raising from national and EU sources. Candidates should have good
interpersonal and communication skills, and the ability to work as part of a team. In addition to a
full command of the English language, candidates will be expected to be able to teach in Italian
within three years from the start of their appointment.
The Department is committed to equal opportunities in recruitment and career progression.

The positions

Lecturer B (Ricercatore a tempo determinato B) is a tenure track position, to be converted into an
Associate Professorship after three years, following favorable evaluations from the Department
and the University Recruitment Committee, and the award of the National Habilitation as
Associate Professor from a National Evaluation Committee.

Associate Professor is a permanent, tenured position. Candidates will need either a National
Habilitation from the Italian National Committee, or to be in an equivalent position to Associate
Professor in their current employment. Equivalence of academic position abroad is defined
according to standards provided by the Italian Ministry of University and Research.
The successful candidates will play a key role in the setting up of the new Center for Social and
Political Research Methods (see below). They will teach at undergraduate, master, and doctoral
level, carrying a teaching load of 120 hours per academic year for the Associate Professor, and
90 hours for the Lecturer B. They will also supervise student dissertations at all levels. The
positions will carry some administrative duties, commensurate to rank. Candidates will be
expected to be resident in the Trento province.
About the Department of Sociology and Social Research and the Center for Social and Political
Research Methods
The Department of Sociology and Social Research continues the tradition of the Faculty of
Sociology, established in 1962 as the first HE institution in Italy devoted to social science
research. The Department currently hosts 55 academic staff (about 60% sociologists, 20%
political scientists, and the other 20% from disciplines including anthropology, economics,
history, mathematics, philosophy, and statistics). Researchers based in the department have
achieved international recognition in several areas including comparative and European politics
and policy, consumerism, cultural processes, family and the life course, inequality, labor market,
migration, multilevel governance, organization studies, public opinion, science studies, social
forecasting and anticipation studies, social movements and collective action, social work,
sociological theory, welfare organizations and social services.

The Department recruits about 400 students every year to its three undergraduate programs in
Sociology, International Studies and Social Work. It offers Master programs in Sociology &
Social Research, Organizational and Territorial Dynamics, and Management of Social Services,
and collaborates with the Master’s programs of the School of International Studies. The
department is currently launching a new Master’s degree in Data Science in cooperation with
other departments of the university. The Doctoral Program in Sociology, part of the Doctoral
School of Social Sciences, is one of the oldest and arguably the most prestigious PhD program in
Sociology in the country.
The Department is regularly ranked among the top social science departments in Italy in
periodical assessments of the quality of research in the country. A new Center for Social and
Political Research Methods is being established with the following aims and objectives:
• to improve the methodological quality of the research conducted in the department
• to work towards the integration of quantitative and qualitative methods
• to coordinate teaching activities on research methods in the department
• to assist both staff and students in the development of their projects
• to offer training opportunities on state-of-the-art methodologies both to the broad
scientific community as well as to researchers in public agencies or business
• to stimulate awareness of the potential misuses of social science data in public debates

How to express your interest
Interested academics should send an up to date CV and a letter outlining their research
foci and methodological skills, to the Departmental Chair Professor Mario Diani ((please
email both mario.diani@unitn .it AND [email protected]). Based on the quality of the
expressions of interest received, a formal Call for Applications may be issued, in
conformity with Italian regulations. The Department hopes to issue such call by May 2018
at the latest.