Justice vacancies
PhD Position: How Automation is Changing Asylum Decision-making and Contestation in the Netherlands and EU
Tilburg University
The use of new automated decision-making systems (ADS) such as iBorderCtrl in migration and asylum processes by the EU and its member states raises questions about the ways in which such systems are changing the provision of justice, and particularly due process, in the migration domain. This is taking place on several different levels: international migration control, at country borders, and on the bureaucratic level within countries. This project will focus on how the ADS used to scale up migration processing are changing the information available to both migrants, and to the individuals and institutions responsible for legal decision-making about migration and asylum. The introduction of these ADS poses an urgent problem in terms of understanding how actors in the legal system understand the systems in question; how much understanding migrants and migrant associations can have of how technologically assisted decision-making is taking place; and what this means for those who make and support migrants’ claims. This project will be primarily empirically based and will involve ethnographic research on migrants’ experiences as well as those of their representatives and those involved in processing and adjudicating asylum claims.
Profile of the candidate
The candidate for this position has a (research) master’s degree in sociology, political science, migration studies, public administration or a related field. The candidate has a strong affinity with the above topics and in working together with a team of people from different disciplines including an interest to learn and work with empirical and computational social science or digital methods.
Furthermore you have:
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Proven academic interest in questions regarding algorithmic applications and digital society;
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Interest in working in a very interdisciplinary, cross-university environment;
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Interest in contributing to and helping to create the broader algosoc research community;
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An excellent written and spoken command of English (written and spoken command of other languages, including Dutch, French, and/or German is a plus);
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Affinity with organising workshops, lecture series, and similar events.
If the vacancy appeals to you, but you are doubting whether you might be THE person we are looking for, please do apply. We encourage all qualified applicants, including minorities, women, people with disabilities, and members of other groups underrepresented in academia to apply. We wish to create a consortium that consists of persons who each contribute in their unique way to the team. Complementarity and not homogeneity is what we are looking for.
Developing a societal vision on automated decision making concerns us all. We believe that a diversity of perspectives in our consortium will be important in developing an inclusive societal vision and strive therefore also in our hiring policy for encouraging applicants from diverse backgrounds. We are committed to creating an environment of mutual respect, inclusiveness, equal opportunities with room for situated experiences, diverse perspectives, and ideas to flourish. This commitment applies to our research, organisation, room for flexibility, training, and community activities as well as our hiring strategy.