Postdoctoral fellow in Economic History / Historical Demography with a focus on Longitudinal Microdata Analysis (one or more) - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The Centre for Economic Demography is an interdisciplinary unit at the Lund University School of Economics and Management with researchers from Economic History, Economics, Social Medicine, Social Work, Sociology, and Statistics. It is administered by the Department of Economic History and involves about thirty scholars and twenty PhD students. A large fraction of the research at the Centre is carried out in international collaborations. For more information, see www.ed.lu.se

Postdoctoral fellow in Economic History / Historical Demography with a focus on Longitudinal Microdata Analysis (one or more)

Centre for Economic Demography, Department of Economic History, Lund First day of employment: January 1, 2018 or by appointment

Subject area

Economic History and Historical Demography

Job assignments

The holder will work in the research program The Landskrona Population Study, with demographic analyses of longitudinal individual-level data during the period 1900-2010. The program is based on socioeconomic and demographic micro data, with information on various demographic outcomes, occupation and income for about 350,000 unique individuals in the city of Landskrona and surrounding rural areas. Work tasks involve empirical analyses of different demographic processes (health and mortality, gender and family, socioeconomic stratification and mobility) including writing academic papers for publication, independently and in collaboration with other members of the research team. The postdoctoral fellow should be willing to interact with students and to participate actively in the common activities at the Centre for Economic Demography. The position may involve a limited amount of teaching and/or supervision of Bachelor and Master's Theses.

The Rise and Fall of the Industrial City: The Landskrona Population Study

The aim of this research program is to analyze long-term demographic processes connected to industrialization, modern economic growth and the profound societal transformation of the 20th century. These changes have completely altered living conditions across the developed world, not only in terms of nutrition, consumption and overall quality of life, but also in loosening many of the demographic constraints that dominated people’s lives for so long. The broad outline of these processes is well known through research at the macro level but we still know very little about the micro-level foundations, which is of great value to fully understand and explain the processes. Within the Landskrona Population Study (LPS) we study these vital economic and demographic changes in Sweden through the lens of an industrial city which has experienced this transformation. The LPS is based on a unique data infrastructure, the Scanian Demographic Database, containing economic and demographic longitudinal data at the individual level for the full 20th century (ca 350,000 individuals). It focuses on four fundamental and interrelated economic-demographic processes: (1) Inequality in health and mortality, (2) Changing family patterns and gender relations, (3) Social and economic mobility, and (4) Immigration and integration.

For more information about the program, contact the PI professor Martin Dribe (martin.dribe@ekh.lu.se).

Basis of Assessment

Scholarly proficiency is the main requirement for employment.

The holder of the position should be competent and experienced enough to be able to carry out independent research in historical demography using state-of-the-art econometric models and demographic methods. Documented experience in working with historical population databases and statistical analysis are requirements. The post-doctoral fellow must hold a PhD in a field related to historical demography (e.g. Economic History, History, Demography, Economics, Sociology, Geography), received no more than three years ago (unless the applicant has been on parental leave or leave due to illness). Applications will also be accepted from persons who have not yet completed their PhD, but this condition must be satisfied at the time of employment.

For appointment, the candidate must have demonstrated a high degree of research expertise as manifested in the quality of the PhD dissertation and other publications. Documented skills in quantitative analysis and data management are required. The main software used in the research program is STATA, and high-level skills in using this software is a merit. We also look for high-level communicative skills, good time management, and the ability to interact with the research community and building networks.

The application must include a research plan where the applicant presents her/his own ideas for research to be conducted.

In addition to the above, the following set of criteria will be applied in the assessment of candidates:

• international experience
• other results and distinctions which attest to the applicant's ability to do research
• ability to engage and inform society at large about research

The evaluation will take personal qualities, such as academic independence, willingness to collaborate, and communication skills, into consideration.

Applications should be written in English and must include:

1. Cover letter
2. Curriculum Vitae
3. Research plan (indication of research area and possible research questions in relation to the program)
4. Publications including publication list
5. Certificates, references, etc

Lund University promotes an equal opportunities code. We encourage both men and women to apply for this position.