Last application date Dec 15, 2026 23:59
Department LW06 - Department of Linguistics
Degree PhD
Occupancy rate 100%
Vacancy type Research staff
ABOUT GHENT UNIVERSITY
Ghent University is a world of its own. Employing more than 15.000 people, it is actively involved in education and research, management and administration, as well as technical and social service provision on a daily basis. It is one of the largest, most exciting employers in the area and offers great career opportunities. With its 11 faculties and more than 85 departments offering state-of-the-art study programmes grounded in research in a wide range of academic fields, Ghent University is a logical choice for its staff and students.
YOUR TASKS
The job involves formal semantic and pragmatic modeling of Information Structure-related phenomena from a diachronic perspective in Germanic and Romance languages. Information Structure-related phenomena are to be broadly understood, including but not limited to pragmatic reflexes of syntactic movements, semantics & pragmatics of pronouns, determiners, and quantifiers. The selection of phenomena to be investigated depends on the candidate's background and will be discussed and determined during the hiring interview and at the time of hire.
The Postdoctoral position is offered within the context of the ERC-funded project CAUSALITY (https://research.flw.ugent.be/en/projects/causality). The goal of the project is to investigate causes of language change and conservativity using formal theoretical modeling, artificial agent simulations, and empirical data from historical treebanks of West Germanic languages. The position starts from February 2027 and is offered for one year, extendable for one more year following a positive evaluation.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
- A thesis-based doctorate in theoretical or computational linguistics
- A strong background in formal semantics/pragmatics as witnessed by publications
- Demonstrated experience in statistical analysis of linguistic data
- Interest in language variation and change
- Experience using Game Theory to model natural language use is an asset, but not a prerequisite
WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU
We offer a full-time position as a postdoctoral fellow, with a minimum period of 12 month which can be extended once following a positive evaluation.
The grant amount is equal to the net salary of a doctoral assistant (AAP 5) with the same level of education and seniority and based on the same family situation as the doctoral assistant. The supervisor may deviate from this and assign a higher level based on acquired experience, professional career and demonstrated competences. The grant amount will not be revised in the current year except in case of indexation.
All Ghent University staff members enjoy a number of benefits, such as a wide range of training and education opportunities, 36 days of holiday leave (on an annual basis for a full-time job) supplemented by annual fixed bridge days, bicycle allowance and eco vouchers.
INTERESTED?
An application package involving the following documents is to be sent to Alexandra Simonenko (alexandra.simonenko@ugent.be) by December 15 2026.
- A CV
- PhD transcripts
- A letter of interest describing your academic background and interests in relation to the job opening and mentioning the (prospective) date of you PhD degree
- 2 publications
In addition, candidates should arrange for 2 reference letters to be sent by the referees directly to the contact e-mail address by the application deadline.
