Postdoctoral researcher (m/f/x) in semantics & philosophy of memory (SEER project, 3 years)

Introduction

Faculty of Philosophy and Educational Research :
Institute for Philosophy II • Philosophy of Information and Communication
In order to fill a fixed-term position in full-time (39,83= 100%) by September 1, 2026, we are looking for a

Postdoctoral researcher (m/f/x) in semantics & philosophy of memory (SEER project, 3 years)

The research group Philosophy of Information and Communication (Chair: Kristina Liefke) applies concepts and tools from formal semantics and the philosophy of language to the philosophical study of information and communication. Its recent work has focused on non-propositional information, pictorial representation, and episodic memory.

The successful candidate (m/f/x) will be working in the Bochum team of the Agence Nationale de la Recherche- (ANR) and DFG-funded project 'SEER: The Semantics of Episodic Representations' (French PI: Kourken Michaelian; https://www.pe.rub.de/philosophie/ii/phil-inf/seer/).

The Ruhr-Universität Bochum is one of Germany’s leading research universities, addressing the whole range of academic disciplines. A highly dynamic setting enables researchers and students to work across the traditional boundaries of academic subjects and faculties. To create knowledge networks within and beyond the university is Ruhr-Universität Bochum’s declared aim.

Your tasks:

He/she/they will conduct collaborative research, publish papers, and co-organize workshops with the other SEER team members.

• Study episodic representations [= memory representations of personally experienced past events] through tools from semantics/philosophy of language
• Apply findings to issues in contemporary philosophy of memory (esp. the compositional (re-)combination of episodic representations, WP5)
• Publish articles on the project theme
• Collaborate with the other SEER team members
• Present SEER results at international conferences and workshops
• Contribute to the organization and scientific content of project-related events

Your profile:

• PhD in philosophy (or a related discipline, like linguistics or cognitive science)
• Expertise in intensional semantics and/or philosophy of language (incl. familiarity with state-of-the-art work on compositionality, propositional attitudes, and Super Semantics)
• Background (or at least strong interest) in philosophy of mind
• Publication record in international journals and volumes
• Willingness to dive into new research topics, and to engage with work in other disciplines

To familiarize themselves with SEER, candidates are referred to Liefke’s “Mnemic scenarios as pictures' and Michaelian’s “True, authentic, faithful: Accuracy in memory for dreams”.

We offer

Scope: full-time
Duration: fixed-term, 3 years
Start: by September 1, 2026

We offer:

• Challenging and varied tasks with a high level of independence
• Employment at one of the largest universities in Germany within the University Alliance Ruhr
• A job in the heart of the lively Ruhr metropolitan region with its diverse cultural offerings
• A stimulating, international research environment
• Work at one of the leading interdisciplinary research units on episodic memory
• Frequent seminars, visitors, workshops, and other scientific events
• Generous funding for participation in international conferences and workshops
• A one-month stay at the SEER partner institution (Centre for Philosophy of Memory, Université Grenoble Alpes)

Further information:

The position is salaried and based on the collective agreement of the Länder (TV-L).If the personal and collective agreement requirements are met, the employee will receive pay grade E 13 TV-L.

Further information can be found at https://oeffentlicher-dienst.info/ (in German).

The place of work is Ruhr University Bochum.
If the position is funded by third-party funds the employee has no teaching obligation.

RUB sees itself as a university with an international presence. The campus languages are German and English. Competence in at least one of the two languages and the willingness to learn the other are a prerequisite. RUB provides corresponding free courses for employees.
German language courses are offered by the University Language Center (ZFA) in the field of German as a Foreign Language (DaF).https://www.daf.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/sbgk/index.html.en
The Staff Council has the right to participate in all selection interviews. At the request of a candidate (m/f/x), it will ensure its participation in the entire procedure.

The Ruhr-Universität Bochum stands for diversity and equal opportunities. For this reason, we favour a working environment composed of heterogeneous teams, and seek to promote the careers of individuals who are underrepresented in our respective professional areas. The Ruhr-Universität Bochum expressly requests job applications from women. In areas in which they are underrepresented they will be given preference in the case of equivalent qualifications with male candidates. Applications from individuals with disabilities are most welcome.

Contact

Apply by:
2026-04-01

Please submit the following application documents:

• CV
• Letter of motivation
• A writing sample that reflects the applicant's approach/methods
• Contact information of 2 references

*** Interviews (on Zoom) will be conducted on Friday, 10 April 2026. Applicants (m/f/x) are requested to keep this date free until further notice.

Please contact [email protected].

Contact persons for further information:

Jun.-Prof. Dr. Kristina Liefke Tel.: +49 234 3223237
Christiane Dahl (Secretary) Tel.: +49 234 3226739 (Secretary)

Travel costs, accommodation costs and loss of earnings or other application costs for job interviews can unfortunately not be reimbursed.

We look forward to receiving your application via our online application portal by 2026-04-01. Please make sure to mention the reference number ANR 5341.