MSCA POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIPS AT VU FACULTY OF COMMUNICATION, DEPARTMENT OF DIGITAL CULTURES AND COMMUNICATION (digital accessibility, artificial intelligence ethics, information literacy, intellectual property rights)

Vilnius University (VU) invites motivated researchers with a strong track record to prepare joint applications for 2024 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowships (MSCA PF) call with a deadline on September 11, 2024. MSCA PF are among the flagship, most prestigious research fellowships in Europe, with the objective of supporting researchers’ careers, enhancing their creative and innovative potential, and fostering excellence in research.

• European Postdoctoral Fellowships are open to researchers of any nationality who wish to engage in R&I projects by either coming to Europe from any country in the world or moving within Europe (12-24 months).
• Global Postdoctoral Fellowships are open to European nationals or long-term residents who wish to engage in R&I projects with organisations outside EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries (12-24 months outgoing phase in a non-associated Third Country & 12 months mandatory return phase to a host organisation in Europe).
• Extra funding opportunity! If you apply for the European Postdoctoral Fellowship with the host institution located in a widening country (Lithuania), and in case your proposal is not funded under the MSCA PF call due to a lack of budget, it will be automatically resubmitted to ERA Fellowships call and will have one more opportunity to get funding.

HOST INSTITUTION AND RESEARCH GROUP

VU is one of the oldest higher education institutions in Eastern and Central Europe. It tops the ranking as the number one university in Lithuania and leads the country in education, a broad spectrum of fundamental and applied research, training and retraining programs, and consultancy services and provides research and development services to a wide range of businesses. VU offers dynamic research and training environment and is well integrated into a collaborative network of international universities.

The Department of Digital Cultures and Communication at the Faculty of Communication focuses on two main research areas: a) Examining the impact of digitality on communication, creation, meaning construction, information consumption, and interaction, as well as the emergence of new cultural forms, identities, and practices, including their ethical and political implications; b) Studying digital mediation mechanisms, especially the role of semiotics, discourse, narrative, and media/platform interplay in shaping social identities and attitudes across digital, hybrid, and non-digital contexts.

The department offers round-the-clock access to diverse software and digital media archives for data analysis, seminar and individual workspaces, and visual content recording/editing facilities. Academic supervision, research method training, and grant application support are available. It encourages interdisciplinary research in cultural studies and digital technologies and collaborates with external stakeholders like cultural institutions, community groups, and policymakers relevant to research projects.

SUPERVISOR

As an Associate Professor at the Department of Digital Cultures and Communication, Dr. Vincas Grigas is particularly interested in the intersection of digitality and scholarly communication. His focus is on understanding how digital transformations influence academic publishing, open access, and the dissemination of scholarly work in digital environments. He is keen on exploring how digital platforms and tools reshape the ways in which academic knowledge is created, shared, and consumed.

In terms of methodology, Dr. Grigas places value on empirical research methods, especially those that blend qualitative and quantitative approaches. He is also appreciating interdisciplinary approaches that combine insights from communication studies, digital media, and information science to explore the evolving landscape of digital scholarly communication. His ideal research would employ a mix of content analysis, bibliometric studies, and user behavior analysis.

PREFERRED EXPERIENCE AND PERSONAL SKILLS

• It would be advantageous for the candidate to possess knowledge in fields such as information science, digital humanities, library science, or related disciplines.
• The candidate's ability to collaborate effectively will be enhanced by proficiency in both quantitative and qualitative research methods, as well as data analysis.
• Experience with digital publishing software, content management systems, and statistical tools such as SPSS, R, or Python is also highly desirable for conducting research projects.
• The capacity for creative and innovative thinking is crucial, particularly in applying digital solutions to challenges within information science.
• Strong teamwork skills are essential, given that research in social sciences often necessitates collaboration with various stakeholders.
• Additionally, the candidate should demonstrate an ability to adapt to diverse research environments and challenges, along with a willingness to venture into new areas that fall within the department's research focus.

POSSIBLE RESEARCH TOPICS

• Ethical and accessible digital publishing. This research could examine ethical practices in digital publishing, focusing on enhancing accessibility for users with disabilities. It would explore how digital platforms can be designed to be more inclusive, particularly in the context of e-books and scholarly journals.
• Impact of AI on information literacy and ethics. This research could examine the implications of artificial intelligence in the realm of information literacy. It would include studying how AI influences the way information is accessed, evaluated, and used, along with the ethical considerations of AI-driven information systems.
• Digital divide and information accessibility in small language markets. This research could examine the digital divide in the context of small language markets, focusing on the accessibility of digital information resources. The project might investigate how digital transformation can bridge gaps in information access for minority language speakers.
• Crisis communication and information dissemination in libraries. This research could examine the role of digital libraries in crisis communication, particularly how they manage and disseminate information during global challenges like pandemics or natural disasters.
• Combatting book piracy via a soft approach. This research could explore non-technological solutions to address book piracy, especially in the context of digital publishing. It could examine the effectiveness of current anti-piracy measures and develop innovative strategies to protect intellectual property rights in the digital age without solely relying on technological solutions.
• Data sharing practices in academic research. This research could investigate the trends, challenges, and best practices in data sharing among researchers across different disciplines. It would include a focus on the ethical implications of data sharing and the development of policies to encourage open science.

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

• Supported fellows must be in possession of PhD at the call deadline (September 11, 2024).
• Have up to 8 years full-time equivalent experience in research from the date of award of the doctoral degree at the call deadline.
• Fellows must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the beneficiary (for European Postdoctoral Fellowships), or the host organisation for the outgoing phase (for Global Postdoctoral Fellowships) for more than 12 months in the 36 months before the call deadline

Detailed information on the eligibility can be found on p. 91-94 of the MSCA Work Programme 2023-2024.

HOW TO APPLY?

• Contact the supervisor Dr. Vincas Grigas (vincas.grigas@leidykla.vu.lt) directly to express your interest in making a joint application based on your research interests. Do not forget to provide the following documents (cc to research@cr.vu.lt):
  - curriculum vitae
  - list of publications 
  - proposal summary
• Request a letter from your supervisor endorsing you as a candidate, and send it to the Research Projects Office (research@cr.vu.lt). The candidates who wish to participate in VU MSCA PF Webinar are kindly requested to submit their endorsement letters by May 31, 2024.
• After receiving your supervisor’s endorsement, you can start preparing your MSCA PF project proposal. Please note that in order to prepare and submit your application on time (by September 11, 2024), you can seek support from VU Research Projects Office (research@cr.vu.lt).

For more information follow the link.