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Dear all,

Please see below for a job advert: we are looking for a postdoc to work
with us in Brussels on a research project that investigates the diversity
of work in the creative and cultural industries.


best,
Bas


*Postdoc: Diversity of Work in the Creative and Cultural Industries*

Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Université Libre de Bruxelles and Université
Saint-Louis Bruxelles

Location: Brussels, Belgium

Starting period: October 2015

*About the research project:*

The research project *The Diversity of Work in the Creative and Cultural
Industries: Making it Work for Brussels* aims to understand, by means of a
multi-layered matrix of theoretical and methodological perspectives, the
interrelations between creative and cultural careers (both formal and
informal), fields of activities or sectors and their socio-spatial logic
within the larger framework of the Brussels-Capital Region. Focusing on the
complex yet challenging interrelations between work, culture/creativity and
urban processes, the project focuses on three main axes of analysis that
each involve a variety of methods (statistical data analysis and survey,
ethnographic methods, qualitative in-depth interviews) and lines of
questioning:

1) An axis of analysis that focuses on the sectors of CC production,
because CC production is profoundly shaped by the ways in which its sectors
are organised and how each sector is connected to the wider dynamics of
formal education, public administration and subsidies, and commercial
opportunity.

2) An axis that investigates the territories and spatial localisation of CC
production because these industries heavily rely on agglomeration
economies, tacit knowledge and informal networks that are situated in place.

3) A more transversal axis that highlights the position of workers in the
world of CC production in the hope to better understand workers
biographies, the obstacles they confront, the resources (especially public)
on which they can rely, and the transitions and borders between informal CC
work and the professional CC industries.

*Job description:*

The postdoctoral researcher will conduct research and assist in
coordination of this project on the creative and cultural industries in the
Brussels-Capital Region. The main research task of the postdoc is to
conduct a sectoral analysis of a number of creative and cultural industries
sectors in the Brussels-Capital Region (in principle, theatre, music and
architecture) and to analyse the specific position of workers within these
sectoral value chains in order to gain an understanding of how diversity is
linked to existing stratifications, hierarchies and in/exclusions within
each sector. Additionally, the postdoc is expected to conduct a series of
in-depth interviews with key actors in the creative and cultural industries
in order to establish a typology of work biographies and to understand the
relations between these biographies and broader socio-economic factors such
as education, income and cultural capital. Previous experience with
in-depth interviews and qualitative data analysis is therefore a
requirement for this position.

*Job profile:*

The researcher should have a PhD in a domain relevant to the project (i.e.
urban studies, creative and cultural industries, cultural policy, labour
sociology). Ideally, the researcher is fluent in French and Dutch and has
excellent communication and writing skills in English. Knowledge of the
cultural landscape of Brussels is considered favourably in the selection
process.

*Conditions of employment:*

The postdoctoral researcher will be hired as postdoc bursary or regular
employee, depending on nationality and work experience. International
candidates (non-Belgian nationality, no previous work experience in
Belgium, and PhD degree from a non-Belgian university) can be hired
full-time (1.0 FTE, 38 hours per week) on a bursary scheme. Others will be
hired as regular employees for approximately 0.7 FTE (exact FTE percentage
depending on previous qualifications and work experience). The researcher
will be hired for the period October 2015 – December 2016 (phase 1: 15
months) with expected extension until June 2018 (phase 2: 18 months).

*Information and application:*

For more information about the project and position, please contact Bas van
Heur ([log in to unmask]) and Karel Vanhaesebrouck ([log in to unmask]). To
apply, please e-mail a motivation letter and CV, including list of
publications, to Bas van Heur and Karel Vanhaesebrouck before 10 July 2015.
Interviews with postdoc candidates are scheduled for Wednesday 26 August.

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