Position
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The Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Communication, Visual and Digital Cultures Research Center is looking for a full‑time PhD student within the ERC‑funded project WALLS2BRIDGES – Media Production of Prison Communities.
The ERC project WALLS2BRIDGES investigates how prison communities produce media and how these practices reshape understanding of justice across France, Türkiye, the UK, and the US. Against the backdrop of expanding incarceration regimes and enduring racial and social inequalities, WALLS2BRIDGES examines how incarcerated people, their families, and anti‑prison activists engage in media production (from letters and newspapers to podcasts, films, and digital platforms) to contest dominant narratives and reimagine justice.
The project conceptualizes prison communities as active media producers, foregrounding the interplay between media practices, systems of surveillance, sensory experience, and struggles for justice.
Using a transnational and interdisciplinary approach, the project combines:
Archival research on prison‑produced media since the mid‑1960s;
Qualitative interviews and collaborative research with incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals, families, and activists;
Analysis of diverse media forms, including print, audiovisual, and digital content.
Your role
You will conduct in‑depth research in France, focusing on abolitionist groups and prison‑related NGOs and their media, cultural, and educational practices. You will explore how these actors establish communication with people in prison, mobilise media for advocacy, and how they intervene in public debates on incarceration and justice. You will contribute to the project’s comparative and transnational framework alongside team members working on Türkiye, the UK, and the US.
The University of Antwerp will be your home base, with extended research stays in France.
Research strands
Studying NGOs and abolitionist groups “from above”
Analysing policy frameworks, institutional structures, funding models, and public discourses shaping prison‑related media and cultural initiatives.
Studying NGOs and abolitionist groups “from below”
Examining everyday practices of NGOs, educators, artists, and activists, including their interactions with prison administrations and municipalities.
Exploring lived experience and communicative practices
Investigating how incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals engage with NGOs and abolitionist groups, media and cultural initiatives, and analysing their creative outputs (letters, films, audio, digital media), with attention to preservation, access, ethics, and afterlives.
Profile
What do we expect from you?
Master’s degree in media studies, sociology, anthropology, criminology, or a related field;
Fluency in English and French;
Familiarity with, or willingness to develop, engagement with organisations working in prison abolition, education, arts, and media in France;
Experience with qualitative research methods (e.g. interviews, ethnography, discourse analysis), and an interest in working with creative and media‑based materials;
Sensitivity to ethical questions related to working with vulnerable communities and to issues of representation, access, and consent;
You will:
Conduct independent doctoral research leading to a PhD dissertation;
Publish in peer‑reviewed academic journals and contribute to collective project outputs;
Present research at international conferences;
Contribute to the organisation of workshops and public‑facing events;
Engage in societal dissemination of research findings, particularly with NGOs and educational organisations;
Work both independently and collaboratively in an interdisciplinary and international research team.
Assets (not required, but considered an advantage)
Experience researching prisons, carceral systems, or social justice issues;
Experience working with NGOs or community‑based organisations;
Familiarity with media production or collaborative creative practices;
Interest in or experience with publishing, editing, or curating media content;
Familiarity with debates on media justice, prison abolition, or critical prison studies;
Existing networks related to prison or abolitionist work in France or Europe.
What we offer
We offer a doctoral scholarship for a period of one year. Following a positive evaluation, the scholarship can be renewed for another three years.
The planned start date is September 2026, or as soon as possible after that date.
Your monthly scholarship amount is calculated according to scholarship amounts for doctoral scholarship holders.
You will receive eco cheques, Internet‑connectivity allowance, and a bicycle allowance or a full reimbursement of public transport costs for commuting.
As a doctoral researcher, you will have access to a wide and varied range of courses and an educational credit through the Antwerp Doctoral School.
Apart from the fieldwork, you will do most of your work at the City Campus of the University of Antwerp in a dynamic and stimulating working environment.
Equal Opportunity Statement
The University of Antwerp received the European Commission’s HR Excellence in Research Award for its HR policy. We are a sustainable, family‑friendly organisation which invests in its employees’ growth. xphnsxz We encourage diversity and attach great importance to an inclusive working environment and equal opportunities, regardless of gender identity, disability, race, ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation or age. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds and with diverse characteristics to apply.
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