Two Assistant Professors in Public Administration

Two Assistant Professors in Public Administration

Leiden University was founded in 1575 and is one of Europe’s leading international research universities.

Applying is possible up to and including: 14 September 2026

Two Assistant Professors in Public Administration (2.0 fte)

Are you an ambitious public administration scholar with a strong commitment to research and teaching? Join one of Europe’s leading public administration institutes in The Hague and develop your own research agenda in a vibrant and internationally oriented academic community.

The Institute of Public Administration at Leiden University is looking to appoint two Assistant Professors in Public Administration (Universitair Docent Bestuurskunde). You will contribute to research, education and societal engagement across the broad domains of public administration and governance. You will teach in our Bachelor and Master programmes in Public Administration. Alongside teaching, you have or are looking to develop your own research agenda that is theoretically rooted in public administration and governance.

Your research is embedded in the institute’s research programme and you will be encouraged to develop disciplinary and interdisciplinary collaborations and acquire external research funding.

The institute consists of four sections and values intellectual diversity. The two vacancies arise from departures in the areas of States, Markets, and Civil Society; and Public Management and Organisation. Ideally, we welcome candidates with a thematic research affinity to one of these sections, and whose teaching spans core subjects of public administration education, such as public policy, multi-level governance, organisation theory, and design and methods in the social sciences.

Your key tasks are:

• Initiate and conduct an independent line of research in public administration and governance, building and developing your own scholarly profile and contributing to the institute’s research programme.
• Teach, improve and develop courses in bachelor and master programmes in Public Administration.
• Supervise bachelor’s, master’s and potentially PhD theses.
• Apply for external research funding (e.g. NWO, ERC, Horizon Europe).
• Contribute to organisational and management tasks within the institute.
• Participate in national and international academic research networks.
• Collaborate with societal stakeholders in knowledge exchange and impact activities.

The mission of the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs (FGGA)? Contributing to society. The faculty does this through high-quality interdisciplinary education and (new) scientific knowledge. Whether it is terrorism, security, artificial intelligence or a governance solution to the housing crisis, contemporary issues are comprehensively addressed at FGGA.

In the heart of The Hague, where important decisions are made, students and professionals come together to gain knowledge and skills. There is much collaboration with academic and societal partners, which ensures that students leave university with a smile and one foot in the future, ready to make a substantial contribution to society.

FGGA is one of the seven faculties of Leiden University. This young, entrepreneurial, innovative organisation has three scientific institutes, two centres, over 3,700 students and 425 staff members. For more information about the faculty,  .

The Institute of Public Administration, which is part of FGGA, is one of the largest and oldest institutes on academic research and teaching in the field of public administration in the Netherlands. The institute combines a solid international academic reputation with a central positioning among the international, national, regional, and local governance institutions in The Hague. The institute has an international profile and gets high peer reviewed ratings, both for its research and education.

More information on the Institute of Public Administration .

• We are thus looking for a talented scholar who can contribute to both the teaching and research in our Institute. We are looking for someone who can work independently. Every job is different; in the…