Title of the position: Postdoctoral Fellow in Ethnographic Design
Institution: University of California San Diego
School or Division: Social Sciences
Academic Department: Communication
Disciplinary Specialty of Research:
This fellowship focuses on ethnographic design, a topic of interest to a wide spectrum of
academic disciplines. While we expect most candidates to come from the social
sciences, we will entertain applications from the arts and humanities, and other
disciplines if they demonstrate an engagement with and dedication to ethnographic
method.
Description of the Position:
The Studio for Ethnographic Design at the University of California, San Diego invites
applications for a postdoctoral fellow who will contribute to developing a new initiative for
ethnographic inquiry. This initiative, the UC Collaborative for Ethnographic Design
(CoLED), is an interdisciplinary project that is housed at UCSD and links six University of
California campuses (Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Santa Cruz, and San Diego),
tying together scholars from a wide variety of disciplinary backgrounds who are thinking
critically about the practice of ethnography as a method, and the changing conditions of
its production, forms and techniques. The collaboratory will also serve as a means to
improve pedagogical agendas for graduate student training in ethnographic practice.
The fellow’s primary responsibilities include conceptualizing, programming and
developing proposals for a public conference on the future of ethnographic research
scheduled for fall 2016. Fellows will also participate in the initiative’s ongoing schedule of
activities, which include thematic practicums elaborating various aspects of ethnography
– from initial project design and collaboration in research to critical consideration of the
publics with whom and for whom we conduct our research. Teaching is not required,
leaving the fellow with time to work on independent projects, which ideally will overlap
with the mission of the initiative. This position will afford the candidate latitude to conduct
a wide range of activities related to the practice of ethnography; it will also place the
candidate at the center of a network of scholars at the forefront of ethnographic design.
For more information on the Studio for Ethnographic Design (SED) and the UC
Collaborative for Ethnographic Design (CoLED) please visit our webpage at
http://sed.ucsd.edu/.
Qualifications Required and Preferred Academic Background:
Applicants must hold a PhD or equivalent and be able to demonstrate a sustained
engagement with innovative ethnographic methods, as both practice and object of
analytical inquiry. Useful experience might include event planning and successful grant
writing. Again, discipline is not as important as focus on ethnographic method and
design.
Salary: $42,840/yr with benefits. For information on benefits package, see
http://postdoc.ucsd.edu/benefits-and-services/index.html.
Appointment Length:
18 months with the possibility of extension. While collaboration and research would
begin on July 1, 2015, we would not expect the fellow to be in residence in San Diego
until September 1, 2015.
Application Procedure:
Send applications via email to Elana Zilberg at sedpostdoc@ucsd.edu. Please use “SED
Postdoc Application” in the subject line.
All applicants should submit:
(1) a CV (maximum five pages),
(2) a cover letter that briefly explains your research and its relationship with
ethnography, demonstrated organizational skills, and successful proposal writing
experience (maximum 3 pages),
(3) a statement discussing the practice of ethnography both as theory and as a method,
and your contributions to current innovations in advancing the method to meet the
challenges of the changing conditions of field based research (maximum 2 pages)
(4) one writing sample that demonstrates the applicant’s use of and engagement with
ethnography, and
(5) a statement detailing how their presence would contribute to diversity on UCSD’s
campus. (For information on this statement, see http://facultyexcellence.ucsd.edu/c2d/)
Letters of Recommendation: The candidate should request letters of recommendation
from two referees. These letters should be sent via email to Elana Zilberg at
sedpostdoc@ucsd.edu. Please ask your reviewers to use “Recommendation for
candidates full name” in the subject line.
Application Closing date: 05/12/2015
Job Posting Expiration: 05/12/2105