Two Student Assistant Positions for Projects on Slave Trade in Maritime Asia - IISH

Vacancies: Two Student Assistant Positions for Projects on Slave Trade in Maritime Asia (0,4 fte) 

Job Description

The International Institute of Social History (IISH-KNAW) has vacancies for two Student Assistants (0,4 fte) for projects on slave trade in Asia for a period of one year.

The Project Global Business of Slave Trade studies the main patterns of the Dutch, Portuguese, and Spanish slave trades in the Indian Ocean, Indonesian Archipelago, and the South China Sea. It will do so by examining in detail how and by whom were these commercial flows and operations organized, who gained and lost by being involved in these activities, and what participation in these commercial streams meant for the economies of these European Empires in Asia. The database project Exploring Slave Trade in Asia (ESTA) reconstructs the historical slave trade in the wider Indian Ocean, Indonesian Archipelago and East Asia.

Funding bodies and Grants

NWO SSH Open Competition 2022 – Philosophy, Historical and Religious Science

International Institute of Social History Foundation/ Stichting Internationaal Instituut voor Sociale Geschiedenis

What will be the Student Assistant candidate tasks?

The Student Assistants will work as part of the research team to:

• Enter and curate data on slave trade, business, actors, etc. in the ESTA database.
• Collect digital source materials.
• Create ground truth transcriptions and layout for Spanish and Portuguese digital colonial archival material (to train handwritten text recognition models).
• Annotate transcriptions for entity (and event) detection.
• Assist in organizing project events and other tasks.

What are the Projects team looking for in the Student Assistants?

We are looking for two Student Assistants that would like to gain experience of working in an academic environment and learn how to work with traditional as well as more modern historical research methodologies. We are looking for two Student Assistants that are independent, motivated and social. You will work on dedicated tasks (such as data entry and transcription), but in a collaborative team setting.

You will need to have familiarity with early modern archival handwritten sources; and an affinity with social and economic history, Global and Colonial History and/or the History of slave trade and slavery. Experience with working with digital materials, as well as with Excel is a plus. Some knowledge of HTR would be desirable as well as a reasonable command of: English alongside Portuguese and/or Spanish. Command of Dutch is a plus.

What does the Project and the IISH offer?

The Student Assistants will be integrated in the Research Department of the IISH. Through the projects, the Student Assistants will be involved with various research projects, including Globalise, Voices of Resistance, Resisting Enslavement and Hub of Global Labour Conflicts.

What do we need from you?

• University students doing a BA in History, or in another discipline relevant for the core research of the projects;
• Knowledge and affinity regarding the history of slave trade and slavery; or with the history of European colonialism (especially in Asia);
• Some experience working with data, digital material handwritten text recognition.
• Independent and social working attitude;
• Good command of English and one or more of the following languages: Portuguese, Spanish or another Latin-based language.

How to apply to this vacancy?

You can apply to these Student Assistant positions by submitting the following documents:

• A Curriculum vitae
• A motivation letter
• A document with answers to the Projects’ questionnaire.

Guidelines to fill the Projects’ questionnaire:

Each answer should not exceed 100 words. 

Core questions:

• Why do you want to be a Student Assistant at the IISH?
• Why are you interested in working on these projects specifically?
• What makes you the ideal candidate for this Student Assistant position?
• What skills, competences and experiences do you have that will benefit the development of the projects and enhance the projects team?

During the selection procedure, we can also ask candidates to read and/or transcribe a source sample in early modern Portuguese, Spanish or French which can give us an insight into the candidate's Paleographical skills.

For more information about these Student Assistant vacancies, please contact Filipa Ribeiro da Silva (project leader and supervisor) at filipa.ribeirodasilva@iisg.nl. A more detailed description of the projects can be found through the links included above in this annoucement, as well as under “jobs”/“vacatures”, at https://iisg.amsterdam.

Applications can be submitted until 15 June 2025 via the “sollicitatieknop”. The interviews will most likely take place in the last week of June or first week of July 2025.

Applicants will be assessed on the following criteria: a) familiarity with the scientific field and tasks; b) job motivation; c) originality; and d) compliance with the vacancy requirements.

About the IISG
The International Institute of Social History (IISG-KNAW) is an Academy research institute. IISG is one of the most prestigious social history research institutes worldwide. It examines how work and labour relations have developed globally over time. To support its research, it collects archives and data from all over the world. The relationship between its research and its data and archive collections contributes substantially to the institute’s unique nature.

Terms of employment
Depending on education and experience the minimum salary is 2.925 and the maximum salary is 2.981 gross per month for a full-time appointment (scale SA cao Nederlandse Universiteiten/KNAW). This is exclusive of 8% vacation allowance, 8.3% year-end bonus, travel allowance, internet allowance, home working allowance and pension accrual with ABP.

The KNAW offers its staff an excellent package of secondary benefits. A package that meets the different needs of employees depending on their stage of life, lifestyle or career ambitions. For example, by working an extra two hours a week, it is possible to increase the number of days off from 29 to 41 days a year (with full-time employment).

For a complete overview of the terms of employment, please refer to the web page: werken bij de KNAW.

Applying for a Certificate of Good Conduct can be part of the employment procedure.

Diversity & Inclusion
The KNAW considers a working environment in which everyone feels welcome and appreciated of great importance. A working environment in which attention is paid to individual quality and where development opportunities are paramount. Together we strive for an inclusive culture in which we embrace differences. We would therefore like to invite candidates who want to contribute to this through their background and experience. In the event of equal suitability, preference will be given to the candidate who thus enhances diversity within the Academy.

We will not respond to any supplier enquiries based on this job advertisement.