University of Zurich

The Department of Communication and Media Research at the University of Zurich (IKMZ) has a vacancy for a postdoctoral researcher in the division of Prof. Dr. Thomas Friemel. The IKMZ is one of the largest communication research institutes in Europe with about 80 employees and provides an excellent infrastructure for research and teaching, an inspiring academic environment as well as excellent employment conditions. The University of Zurich also offers numerous opportunities for continuing education as well as a wide range of interdisciplinary cooperation possibilities.

The Division of Media Use and Effects (www.mediennutzung.ch) focuses its research and teaching on the social context of media use and effects from a social science perspective. This includes classical mass media as well as new media and various forms of interpersonal communication. In addition to communication science, references to social psychology, sociology, and social network analysis are therefore particularly important for our work. The position is part of the research project "Covid-Norms", which is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) as part of the National Research Program "Covid-19" (NRP78). The project examines social norms as well as the public discourse on key measures to mitigate the Covid-19 pandemic (www.covid-norms.ch/en). This job posting is related to the subproject that focuses on surveying social norms and media use in the general population. Accordingly, in-depth knowledge of standardized survey and analysis methods is an important requirement for this position.

Requirements profile

• Very good doctoral degree in communication and media research or a related research field that is of direct relevance to the outlined research project
• Prior knowledge of or high interest in media use and media effects research
• Very good knowledge of communication science theories
• Very good knowledge of quantitative research methods
• Very good knowledge of German or English (passive knowledge of German or another national language of Switzerland are an advantage)
• Strong organizational and communication skills, commitment and ability to work in a team

Working focus

• Development of survey instruments
• Analysis of collected data
• Internal coordination tasks to manage the subprojects
• Communication with the Federal Office of Public Health and other cooperation partners
• Conference participation and publications 
• Collaboration in other work within the division (research, teaching, administration)

Conditions of employment

The employment will be on an 80% basis. A reduction or increase is possible after consultation and in dependence of the available resources and duties (e.g., teaching assignments). The position will initially run until 31.8.2022. Further employment as a postdoctoral researcher or Senior Teaching and Research Associate at UZH is possible but subject to the availability of appropriate resources (maximum of six years).

Application documents

Please submit the following documents to Valeria Rieser via the application button on the UZH job portal (www.uzh.ch/jobs):

• Letter of motivation (1-2 pages)
• Curriculum vitae in tabular form incl. copies of certificates
• Doctoral thesis
• A selected publication (e.g., journal article)

Application and selection process

Applications will be reviewed on an ongoing basis, and the call will remain open until a suitable candidate has been found. For questions regarding this job offer, please contact Dr. Sarah Geber, s.geber@ikmz.uzh.ch.