Sciences Po is recruiting an Assistant Professor in Digital Inequalities

Sciences Po is an institution of higher education and research in the humanities and social sciences. Its permanent research community – 270 professors and researchers – is built around 12 established and internationally recognized entities and is divided into 5 academic departments (Sociology, Political Science, History, Economics, and Law). 

Job description

Full-time, Assistant Professor (tenure-track) position beginning on September 1st 2025.  

The successful candidate will be affiliated to the Center for Research on social InequalitieS (CRIS). The center is committed to theory-driven empirical research on social inequality, drawing on a diversity of qualitative and quantitative methods, adopting a variety of lenses (micro, meso, macro) and promoting interdisciplinarity for an integrated approach to the study of inequality in the social sciences. Our research program seeks to measure patterns and trends of inequality, analyze their underlying mechanisms, inform public debates and contribute to policy analysis. Our faculty members are international experts on central social inequality domains, such as education, life course dynamics, labor market and economic inequalities, social mobility, welfare states, urban segregation, migrations, discriminations, cultural consumption, digital, health, and environmental inequalities. 

This assistant professorship position is designed to reinforce and complement our expertise in the study of digital inequalities. We welcome applications from candidates with a recent PhD, a solid theoretical and methodological background and an ambitious research agenda on social stratification and inequality, targeting publications in leading disciplinary and interdisciplinary journals. All disciplinary backgrounds are welcome as far as the research has strong connections with the social sciences. 

The rapid proliferation of digital technologies - from computers, the internet and portable devices to social media, streaming devices, virtual and augmented reality, along with artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithms - has transformed modern societies. Social inequalities both shape and are shaped by digital technologies. Moreover, recent advancements in digital data and methods, ranging from digital ethnographies to computational approaches, have significantly expanded our understanding of how social inequalities are produced in the digital era.  

Several key areas of inequality research are essential for understanding the relationship between digital technologies and society. These include, but are not limited to, digital inequalities in access to and use of digital technologies, as well the consequences of digital technologies for individual’s life chances, for instance in terms of education and labor market outcomes, mobility, civic and political engagement. Another crucial area involves the use of computational methods, qualitative or mixed-methods approaches to measure and understand various patterns of social inequality. We are especially interested in research on artificial intelligence, algorithmic bias, and the impact of algorithmic recommendation systems on social inequality.  

This position will contribute to strengthening research and teaching on digital technologies in the context of the Sciences Po TIERED project (Transforming Interdisciplinary Education and Research for Evolving Democracies). Within TIERED, the Open Institute for Digital Transformations of Sciences Po aims at mobilizing and strengthening its expertise in the social sciences to help decisionmakers and the citizens of tomorrow better understand, grasp, and use digital technologies. The institute collaborates with other TIERED partners outside Sciences Po (CNRS, INSERM, INRIA, IFREMER, INED, Université Paris Cité, INALCO, and IDDRI). The successful candidate will be encouraged to develop research partnerships with the TIERED partner institutions, in particular with Université Paris Cité.  

Duties

The successful candidate will become a faculty member of CRIS and will be expected to play an active role in its collective activities: seminars, academic events, participation in research networks. The candidate should also engage in responding to national and international calls to fund research projects. The successful candidate will teach in Sciences Po’s undergraduate programs (in Paris and in other campuses of Sciences Po located outside the metropolitan area of Paris) as well as in graduate programs, in particular for the master on Social Policy and Social Innovation of the School of Public Affairs.  

Teaching load: 

• For 2025-2028: 2 courses with 24 contact hours each per year, 40 hours per year of other academic duties.  
• From 2028-onwards: 3 courses with 24 contact hours each per year, 56 hours per year of other academic duties. 

Sciences Po/CRIS is located in the city center of Paris. Knowledge of French is not required for this position. 

Recruitment process

Applications are due by March 15th, 2025. Candidates should have a PhD (or should complete it before June 30th 2025). Submissions must include: 

• The CV with a list of publications
• A short motivation letter
• A research statement with a prospective component (2-3 pages)
• The syllabus of a course on digital inequalities (2-3 pages)
• Up to two significant publications chosen by the candidate
• The names of two academic referees 

Applications should be sent to: linda.amrani@sciencespo.fr.

Shortlisted candidates will present a research paper at the job talks that will take place in Paris, in May/June 2025 (public auditions). The position is expected to start on the 1st of September, 2025.  

Sciences Po is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to balanced gender, geographical, and minority representation. We particularly welcome applications from women, minority applicants and developing countries. 

Unit of Affiliation

Centre for Research on Social Inequalities 

https://www.sciencespo.fr/osc/en.html 

CRIS is a joint Sciences Po / CNRS research Centre (UMR 7049). 

Contacts

Chair of the recruitment committee  

Carlo Barone 

Administrative contact 

Linda Amrani, CRIS General Secretary, linda.amrani@sciencespo.fr