doctoral students, 65% working time

doctoral students, 65% working time

Published on: 10.03.2026

The University of Bonn is an international research university with a wide education and research profile. With a 200-year history, approximately 31,500 students, more than 6,000 staff, and an excellent reputation at home and abroad, the University of Bonn is one of the most important universities in Germany and is recognized as a university of excellence1.

The DFG Emmy Noether Junior Research Group “Archival Sovereignty: Indigenous Digital Media, Language Revival and Land Defense in the Andes”, led by Dr. Maradiegue (Department of Anthropology of the Americas), is inviting applications for

Two doctoral students, 65% working time

for the period of October 1, 2026, to September 30, 2029, initially limited to 3 years according to § 2 (1) WissZeitVG with the possibility of a one year extension.

The DFG Emmy Noether Junior Research Group

The project analyzes the formation of digital archives by Indigenous groups and actors in their own epistemological ways and in connection with their ancestral lands and environments, understanding that such formation is related to agendas of language revitalization and defense of their territories. Using the original concept of "Archival sovereignty," the research group analyzes the principles, agencies, and cosmopolitics related to archival formation by Quechua Cañaris peoples, an Andean Indigenous group. This concept poses a challenge to European/Western conceptions of the archive: (i) considering an archive as a space, a practice, and a process to gather and produce knowledge; (ii) considering Indigenous archives as founded on temporalities divergent from the temporality of the archives of modernity; and (iii) inspecting how Indigenous Andean societies understand and interact with the agential capacities of contemporary digital infrastructures. Archival sovereignty emphasizes the relational reproduction of Quechua knowledges and the role of other-than-human beings in knowledge and archival production, and allows to focus on projects of digital archives preservation from the perspective of Indigenous epistemologies, having as a main case an understudied Andean community. At the same time, this project aims to understand how Quechua Cañaris activists navigate other non-Indigenous archival regimes and participate in the restitution of historical audiovisual materials preserved at university archives. More information about the project and the department can be found here.2

Deadline:

May 30th, 2026

Reference number:

2026/106

Working time model:

part time

Starting date:

October 01, 2026

Duration:

temporary

Pay grade:

TV-L EG 13

Applications to:

Your tasks

• Writing a PhD thesis,
• Conducting theoretically and ethnographically-grounded research, engaging with critical perspectives in the field of Andean studies, Indigenous studies, and the Anthropology of archives and media,
• Conducting ethnographic fieldwork in Peru on the topic of Indigenous communities, archives and epistemologies. The project includes two fieldwork stays of approx. 4 months each. Work methodologies also include elicitation of audiovisual materials, digital ethnography, and the collaborative production of a public exhibition and a multimedia website,
• Collaborating on developing a shared research framework for the research group, although personal interests can also be pursued by each PhD candidate,
• Presenting at academic conferences and other relevant fora.

We offer

• Opportunity to collaborate with international partners with diverse expertise,
• Funding for fieldwork and travel to conferences,
• Additional support for applicants with childcare responsibilities,
• Company pension scheme (VBL),
• Remuneration according to pay group 13 TV-L.

Your profil

• MSc/MA in anthropology, Indigenous studies, area studies, sociology or related subjects,
• Experience in doing ethnographic research and have strong research skills,
• Interest for sited and empirical research in sensitive contexts,
• Excellent command of oral and written skills in Spanish and English,
• Basic knowledge of the Quechua language,
• Resilient mindset in dealing with imminent fieldwork challenges,
• Reliable, structured, organized and a team player,
• Prior relevant research and work experience will be a plus.

Diversity and equal opportunity

The University of Bonn is committed to diversity and equal opportunity. It is certified as a family-friendly university. The University of Bonn seeks to increase female representation in staffing areas where women are underrepresented and provide special career support. It thus expressly encourages qualified women to apply. Applications will be handled in accordance with the NRW State Gender Equality Act (Landesgleichstellungsgesetz, LGG NRW). Applications from qualified candidates with a certified severe disability or from those of equal status are especially welcome.

Contact Links

• https://www.uni-bonn.de/en/university/about-the-university/university-of-excellence/university-of-excellence
• https://www.iak.uni-bonn.de/de/institut/abteilungen/altamerikanistik/forschung-publikation/amazonas-anden/archival-sovereignty-indigenous-digital-media-language-revival-and-land-defense-in-the-andes/tilepage
• https://www.uni-bonn.de/de/universitaet/medien-universitaet/medien-arbeiten-an-der-uni/medien-personalmanagement/pdfs-stellenausschreibungen-wiss.ma/2026_106.pdf