Post-doctoral position ANR OCEANLINKS (M/F)

CNRS - National Center for Scientific Research; France; On-site; EUR 36,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

CNRS - National Center for Scientific Research invites applications for a postdoctoral position in humanities and social sciences as part of the ANR OCEANLINKS project. Based with UMR Géographie-Cités at the Condorcet campus in Aubervilliers, the successful candidate will analyse teaching staff, syllabuses, dissertations and student mobility from the DEA programme established by the 1964 decree.

The role involves digitising archives, constructing data tables for cohort analyses, mapping regional

Qualifications

• PhD in humanities and social sciences, geography or science studies preferred.
• Strong knowledge of humanities/social science research methods.
• Experience with archive digitisation and data handling is required.
• Knowledge of databases and bibliometric approaches is advantageous.
• Ability to conduct independent research with at least one related publication.
• Excellent writing skills; fluent French is essential.

Responsibilities

• Digitise archive documents related to the DEA programme.
• Organise digitised data into tables for cohort analyses and statistics.
• Analyze student mobility and career paths, incl. marine stations affiliations.
• Produce distribution maps showing regional research coverage.
• Collaborate on data release after aggregation and anonymisation.
• Contribute to research articles or book chapters with the project team.

Skills

Research methods in humanities/socials

Archive digitisation

OCR tools

Data processing & visualization

Databases & bibliometrics

Independent research demonstrated by a

French fluency

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Education

PhD in humanities and social sciences

Tools

OCR tools

Job description

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Géographie-cités Research Field Geography Architecture Sociology Researcher Profile Recognised Researcher (R2) Application Deadline 29 Oct 2026 - 23:59 (UTC) Country France Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 1 Dec 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

A call for applications for a postdoctoral positionin humanities and social sciences is launched as part of the ANR OCEANLINKS project [Bound by Seas and the Ocean: Coastal Anchoring and Networks of the International Scientific Community]. Within this project, the postdoc will contribute to the task entitled 'Tracking the Cohorts of the Sorbonne's Master's in Oceanography Program'.

OCEANLINKS is a research project in the geography of science field bringing together researchers and lecturers from the UMR Géographie-Cités, a Lecturer from the University of Western Brittany and a Professor from the University of Edinburgh.

The aim of this postdoctoral position is to study, using the archives of this DEA programme established by the 1964 decree, the composition of teaching staff, changes in syllabuses, dissertation and thesis topics, student mobility between marine stations, and the global distribution of their areas of study. This postgraduate qualification did indeed produce new generations of scientists who were trained at various marine biology stations and who, through their student mobility, helped to strengthen links between marine stations at different spatial scales.

This contract will enable the successful candidate to join a collective research programme (ANR) and a research unit specialised in geography and planning research, UMR Géographie-Cités (UMR 8504), located on the Condorcet campus in Aubervilliers.

She/he will be supported by all members of the team throughout her/his participation in the project. Scientific supervision will be provided by Marion Maisonobe (Research Fellow at the CNRS), Denis Eckert (Research Director at the CNRS) and Clarisse Didelon-Loiseau (Professor at the Paris 1 – Panthéon Sorbonne University).

The research activity will include:

• The digitisation of archive documents relating to the DEA
• The organisation of the digitised data into tables suitable for cohort analyses and statistical analyses
• An analysis of student mobility and career paths – with a particular focus on students who went on to take up a post at a marine research station, either in France or abroad
• The production of distribution maps highlighting the regional distribution of the various research areas covered by the DEA students' dissertations and theses
• A comparison with data from the ATEG Geography DEA programme, which has already been the subject of research coordinated by Clarisse Didelon-Loiseau
• A collaborative project with Mayline Strouk, a postdoctoral researcher working on the OCEANLINKS project, who is studying the contemporary dynamics of the Master's in Marine Science at Sorbonne University using an ethnographic approach
• The release of spatial data once it has been aggregated and anonymised
• The production, in collaboration with the project team involved in this task, of a research article or chapter
• A presentation to mark the programme's anniversary, to be held in June 2027

The postdoctoral position is part of a collaborative research project (ANR PRME project) within the UMR Géographie-cités. More broadly, it is part of a series of research projects conducted over several years on the geography of scientific collaborations and marine stations: 'Roscoff: a small town and science' - POPSU Territoire project (2019-2021, coord. J. Tallec); 'geography of scientific collaborations' - GEOCOLLAB Project (2022-2024, coord. N. Vermeulen, M. Maisonobe, M. Meyer) and 'Marine Science Collaborations in Oban' - MASCICO Project (2024-2025, coord. Josselin Tallec). Within the UMR Géographie-cités, the ANR project brings together the TERMS and PARIS teams.

On a scientific level, the post-doctoral research will contribute to advancing knowledge on the drivers that structure the international scientific community around global issues. This research will contribute to recent methodological advances in the study of science and the socio-history of higher education.

The working environment (workstation, field missions, etc.) will be provided by the UMR Géographie-Cités, Campus Condorcet.

The candidate must hold a PhD in humanities and social sciences, preferably in geography or science studies.

• A good knowledge of research methods in humanities and social sciences, particularly in digital humanities, is required.
• Proficiency in archive digitisation techniques, optical character recognition tools, and data processing and visualisation is required.
• Knowledge of databases and bibliometric approaches is welcome. Knowledge of thematic mapping and geomatics would be an advantage.
• The ability to conduct research independently must be demonstrated by at least one publication related to the theme and activities of the project described above.
• Good writing skills and fluency in spoken French are essential.
• The ability to work in a collective and interdisciplinary environment is key.

Additional comments

The application file must include the following documents (in French or English)

• A detailed CV
• One or two publications related to the postdoctoral research topic
• A cover letter (maximum 3 pages) detailing how the candidate intends to integrate into the programme and meet the objectives