As part of a continuing programme of expansion, the Department of Politics and International Relations is seeking to appoint a Chair in the field of Comparative Politics, broadly defined to include area studies. The Department of Politics and International Relations is a dynamic, thriving and expanding department. This post is part of a significant new investment. It follows the appointment of three readers and two lectureships in the past three years. The Department is one of the most popular in the UK in terms of student satisfaction. In addition to our undergraduate programmes, on which over 300 students were enrolled in 2012-13, the department offers an established range of campus-based MA awards, a highly successful MA Distance Learning programme, and hosts an expanding community of PhD students. The Department currently has 20 full-time academic staff - including two professors, three readers and four senior lecturers – as well as two emeritus professors and six administrative staff. Research within the Department is organised within three research clusters, centring on (i) parties, participation and public opinion (PPPO), (ii) political theory and global ethics and (iii) intelligence, security and strategic studies. The successful candidate will join the PPPO research cluster (http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/politics/research/research-clusters/government), where there is particular staff expertise in areas such as: the Conservative Party; the centre-right in British politics; the question of Europe in British politics; the politics of immigration; political participation; public opinion; comparative political parties; governmental responsiveness to public opinion; post-Communist democratisation in Eastern Europe; US government and politics; South African politics; the politics of Northern Ireland; and the European Parliament. The faculty in the PPPO research cluster are quite successful in obtaining research funding, and some examples of funded research projects are:

- The European Research Council Starting Grant "Democratic Responsiveness in Comparative Perspective: How Do Democratic Governments Respond to Different Expressions of Public Opinion (RESPONSIVEGOV)", led by Dr Laura Morales. 

 - The Leverhulme Trust project "Competing on the centre right: An examination of party strategy in Britain", led by Dr Philip Lynch and Dr Richard Whitaker.

- The EU-funded projects "Voting in the UK: Voting Advice Application for Polish and Lithuanian Immigrants" and "Governance, Corruption and Anti-Corruption Policies: The EU and members states, candidate and third countries", led by Dr Simona Guerra. We are seeking candidates that will complement and enhance the current research and teaching programme of the Department, and we will consider applications from candidates with research expertise in any field of comparative politics, broadly defined. An ability to contribute to the training of postgraduates in quantitative methods would be desirable. The successful candidate will demonstrate world leading research qualities, have a record of securing grant income in their particular area of expertise, and will have the ability to play a leading role in developing this area of the Department’s research agenda Salaries at the professorial level are competitive and commensurate with experience. Informal enquiries about the PPPO cluster, and the teaching and research environment in the area of Comparative Politics are welcome and can be directed to me (laura.morales@leicester.ac.uk).

Informal enquiries about the selection process, the Department as a whole, the expectations of the role, and other such matters can be directed to the Head of Department, Professor Robert Garner (rwg2@leicester.ac.uk). The deadline for applications is midnight on 17 January 2013. Application instructions, further particulars to the post, and forms can be found through this link: http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/AFR719/chair-in-comparative-politics/