Job: PhD Student, CIPHER: Hip Hop Interpellation, Cork
PhD Studentship
Closing Date for Applications: 28 Apr 2020
School: School of Film, Music and Theatre
College: College of Arts, Celtic Studies and Social Sciences
Contract Type: Fixed Term Whole-Time
Job Type: Research
Salary: See advert for details
CIPHER: Hip Hop Interpellation Research Team
One PhD Studentship in Hip Hop Studies is available at the Department of Music in the School of Film, Music, and Theatre at University College Cork. The position is funded by the European Research Council and associated with the research project CIPHER: Hip Hop Interpellation. This study of global hip hop knowledge flows will synergize ethnographic and computational methods to examine how hip hop “unlocks the global through the local.” The principal investigator of the project is Professor J. Griffith Rollefson.
The CIPHER Team looks to take on a PhD Student Researcher with a specialization in the hip hop cultures of North America. Researchers with research interests and/or specialisms examining transnational connections to North American (broadly conceived) hip hop communities and scenes are also welcome.
CIPHER’s study of global hip hop knowledge flows will synergize ethnographic and computational methods to examine how we might conceive of hip hop as a form of “bottom-up globalization.” The successful candidates may have a disciplinary background rooted in any of the four traditional “elements” of hip hop (DJing/turntablism, MCing/rapping, graffiti/street art, bboy/bgirl dance) or any university discipline, but must demonstrate a deep knowledge of and commitment to hip hop’s “fifth element”: knowledge (of self). The PhD student researcher will also demonstrate an interest in the theory and methods of ethnographic fieldwork and/or community engaged scholarship. The successful candidate will have research interests in one or more geographic communities and an ability to do community-engaged work across various cultural sites and scenes. In their project proposal, applicants are expected to outline how their research record, interests, and skills align with the CIPHER initiative, namely, how they might explore hip hop’s localizations in their field(s) of cultural specialization. Citing specific “gems” of local hip hop knowledge in the context of the proposal will be particularly advantageous.
The PhD student researcher will be supervised by J. Griffith Rollefson, and work with postdoctoral researchers, a team of computational analysts, and an advisory board of established global hip hop scholars. The successful candidate will receive a monthly stipend, have access to dedicated funds for ethnographic research and conference travel, and assist with the organization of CIPHER’s international conferences and publications.
The successful candidate is expected to live in Cork, Ireland and become part of the research environment/network of the university and contribute to its development. The PhD student will be expected to work with the CIPHER team, present research papers at workshops and conferences, and contribute to popular dissemination of the research results.
In the evaluation of the applications, emphasis will be placed on:
- the candidate’s scholarly merit, research-related relevance, and innovation
- demonstrated knowledge of hip hop music and culture in local and global perspective
- demonstrated experience in ethnographic and/or community-engaged research in one or more cultural, geographic, or linguistic field sites
- good co-operative skills, and the ability to successfully join in academic collaboration within and across disciplines
CIPHER is a part of the UCC’s School of Film, Music, and Theatre and is located in the new Wandesford Quay Research Centre in Cork’s city centre.
For more information on CIPHER, please see the links below.
https://www.ucc.ie/en/cipher/
https://europeanhiphop.org/
Studentships are open immediately for application.
Applicants should hold a Masters degree in a relevant research area (related to one of the four traditional elements of hip hop or in a relevant university discipline). Ideally applicants will be able to demonstrate an interest in both theoretical and methodological skills of hip hop studies, with a keen interest in hip hop community and knowledge flows.
The successful applicants will each receive total stipend funding of €16,000 per annum for a minimum of three years and an annual contribution of €5,770 to cover EU tuition fees. Non-EU candidates are encouraged to apply and eligible for the full stipend but, if successful, will need to cover non-EU fees (totalling ca. €7,230) themselves.
General enquires about the PhD positions can be made to Prof. J. Griffith Rollefson at cipher @ ucc.ie
To Apply:
Applications by email to cipher@ucc.ie and must include "CIPHER PhD Studentship” in the subject line.
Applications must include, in a single PDF document:
one-page (max, single spaced) cover letter describing your relevant experience and interest in the post; two-page (max, single spaced) PhD research proposal: 1.) outlining research questions, theory, methods, and research site(s); and 2.) explaining how the research relates to the CIPHER initiative by offering examples of “gems of hip hop knowledge” (lyrical, sonic, performative, etc.) from your research site(s); full CV; transcripts of results for all university level modules and courses (BA and MA).
Submission Deadline date: 28 April 2020.
Start date: Studentships start from September 2020.