Professor (Sheikh Nasser al-Muhammad al-Sabah Chair) in International Relations, Regional Politics and Security

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The Department

Since its founding in 2004, the School of Government and International Affairs (SGIA) has developed into one of the UK’s leading departments in Politics and International Relations. The School combines strong core disciplinary foundations with embedded regional expertise, reflecting a long-standing commitment to integrating area studies within mainstream political science and IR scholarship. SGIA is currently ranked among the top Politics departments in the UK by the Complete University Guide and is placed within the QS World University Rankings top 100 globally for Politics and International Studies.

We offer three single honours undergraduate programmes (BA Politics, BA International Relations, and BA Politics & International Relations), alongside joint honours degrees with Philosophy and Economics, and a PPE programme. We also contribute substantially to Combined Honours in Social Sciences and Liberal Arts pathways.

At postgraduate level, we offer a diverse portfolio of taught Master’s programmes, including practitioner-oriented MSc degrees. We are home to a vibrant postgraduate community of research students and taught postgraduate students. Across all levels, our teaching is explicitly research-led and supported by a highly international academic and student body, a defining strength of the School.

Demand for our programmes remains consistently high, attracting students of outstanding calibre who progress into careers across academia, government, international organisations, the private sector and civil society. Our strategic priorities include widening participation, enhancing diversity, strengthening international partnerships, and fostering a research-led learning community that equips students to address complex global challenges.

Our longstanding strengths in Middle East politics, international relations and security studies have been complemented by strategic investment in Comparative Politics, Political Theory, International Political Economy, and Global Security. Cross-cutting institutes, including the Durham Global Security Institute (DGSI) and the Global Policy Institute (GPI), have further strengthened interdisciplinary collaboration and external engagement.

Within the School, four core research groupings structure intellectual activity including Political Theory, Comparative Politics, International Politics and Security, and International Political Economy. These are complemented by cross-cutting institutes and centres, most prominently the Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies (IMEIS), which serves as a hub for collaborative research, international partnerships, policy engagement and impact activities. Our research culture is characterised by methodological pluralism and theoretical innovation.

SGIA maintains a distinctive reputation for expertise on the Middle East, North Africa and the wider Muslim World. The School hosts several major research initiatives, including the Sheikh Nasser Bin Muhammad Al-Sabah Programme in International Relations, Regional Politics and Security. Established in 2011, the Programme has developed an internationally recognised research agenda in international relations, regional politics and security, built academic and policy partnerships in the Gulf and internationally, and hosted and sponsored a wide range of international conferences, workshops and research activities. It has established a substantial publication portfolio, including its own in-house publication series with more than 45 publications, collaborations with international academic publishers, and major externally funded collaborative research projects. The Programme therefore provides an established platform from which the incoming Chair can lead its next phase of research, collaboration and international engagement. IMEIS also hosts the annual Sir William Luce Fellowship and other prestigious visiting fellowship schemes, as well as an annual international conference with a strong emphasis on early career researcher development. The al Sabah Chair is endowed with funding to support at least one PhD student (with overseas fees) at a time as well as an annual research allowance to support its activities.

Job Description

The School of Government and International Affairs (SGIA) at Durham University seeks to appoint an exceptional scholar to the Professor (Sheikh Nasser al-Muhammad al-Sabah Chair) in International Relations, Regional Politics and Security . The successful candidate will provide intellectual and strategic leadership for the Sheikh Nasser Al-Muhammad Al-Sabah Programme in International Relations, Regional Politics and Security and will have an outstanding international profile in research and teaching relevant to the Programme's remit.

We particularly welcome applications from internationally recognised scholars working on international relations, regional politics and security, with expertise on the Middle East and the Gulf region. In keeping with the founding objectives of the Programme, areas of particular interest include the security of sovereign states, particularly smaller and more vulnerable states; international and regional security; interstate relations and conflict; external and internal security threats; crisis and security decision-making; and the roles of governments, diplomats, armed forces, international organisations and other actors in shaping regional and international security in the wider Middle East. Candidates should demonstrate the ability to pursue an ambitious and internationally significant research agenda in these areas and to contribute to a deeper understanding of the changing international and regional security environment.

A central component of the Chair will be to provide leadership for the Sheikh Nasser Al- Muhammad Al-Sabah Programme in International Relations, Regional Politics and Security. The post-holder will lead and enhance the Programme's established research agenda, strengthen its international profile, and sustain and expand its extensive academic, policy and institutional links with Kuwait and other member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The Chair will play a leading role in sustaining existing and developing new international research collaborations, conferences, symposia, publications and other activities and in further enhancing the Programme's position as an internationally recognised centre of excellence in international relations, regional politics and security. This work is supported by funds dedicated to the al Sabah Chair.

The successful candidate will be expected to provide research leadership within SGIA and contribute to strengthening the School's research community in international relations, security and Middle East politics, including through the Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies (IMEIS) and connections with other departments, institutes and centres across Durham University. They will be expected to sustain existing and develop new major national and international research collaborations and networks, pursue external research funding, and contribute to research engagement and impact with policymakers, practitioners and other non-academic communities.

The Chair will also make an important contribution to the School's postgraduate and doctoral research environment. The successful candidate will attract and supervise outstanding PhD students working in international relations, regional politics and security; mentor postgraduate students and early career researchers; and contribute to strengthening Durham's international postgraduate research community. The post-holder will also contribute excellent and research-led teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

This post offers an exceptional opportunity to lead the next phase of an established and ambitious international research programme and to make a major contribution to internationally excellent research and teaching in SGIA. It provides an opportunity for an established scholar to pursue a distinctive research agenda in international relations, regional politics and security, explore new and ambitious areas of research within the Programme's remit, and strengthen Durham's relationships with academic, policy and institutional partners in Kuwait, the Gulf and internationally.

The successful candidate will benefit from individual research support funding, access to SGIA and University-wide research funding, and will be entitled to apply for sabbatical leave in accordance with University policy. SGIA and Durham University provide high-quality administrative support to assist with applications for research funding, facilitate research-based engagement and impact with non-academic communities, and support the development and dissemination of innovative educational practice.

We strive to provide a working and teaching environment that is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate these key principles as part of the assessment process.

Professors at Durham

Professor are encouraged to focus on quality and innovation throughout your teaching and research activity. But we’ll also look to you to provide genuine leadership and citizenship - not just in your field, but across the University environment, and in the way your department functions administratively.

Academic colleagues will have the freedom to deliver teaching and pursue research that is world leading and world changing, in terms of originality, significance and rigour. And we’ll support your ambitions to publish internationally significant research in your area of interest, provide resources to enable you to attend conferences and to fund research activity.

Applicants would ideally demonstrate research excellence in the field of international and regional security, with research specifically on the Middle East and the Gulf region, with the ability to take a leading role in the development of the Department’s research and teaching, and to fully engage in the services, citizenship and values of the University.

We strive to provide a working and teaching environment that is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate these key principles as part of the assessment process.

Key responsibilities\:

• Pursue research that is world-leading, and world-changing in terms of originality, significance and rigour, showing leadership international relations, regional politics and/or security within and/or beyond the academy which is commensurate with the Department’s continuing emphasis on international excellence;
• Provide intellectual and strategic leadership for the Sheikh Nasser Al-Muhammad Al-Sabah Programme in International Relations, Regional Politics and Security and lead and enhance its established research agenda;
• Further enhance the Programme's position as an internationally recognised centre of excellence for research on international relations, regional politics and security;
• To lead the development of successful research project/fellowship proposals in pursuit of suitable national and international funding opportunities to support research and end-user engagement.
• Build on the Programme's established record of international academic conferences, symposia, workshops and other research and engagement activities;
• Build on the Programme's established publication portfolio, promote high-quality research publications and other outputs, and contribute to the dissemination and international visibility of its research;
• Deliver excellent teaching, offering lectures, seminars and tutorials at undergraduate and taught postgraduate levels.
• Demonstrate leadership and innovation in the design and delivery of high quality learning environments and curricula.
• Enhance the quality of the research environment in the Department, providing leadership of national and international research groups and networks which is recognised at an international level. Engage in the mentoring of early career researchers;
• To attract and provide excellent supervision to research students, and contribute significantly to the development of PhD programmes. Enhance the Department’s commitment to its vibrant and international postgraduate culture.
• Engage in the mentoring of postgraduate students and early career researchers and contribute to developing the next generation of scholars working on international and regional security;
• Contribute to strengthening the School's engagement with policymakers, diplomats, practitioners and other relevant stakeholders in Kuwait, the Gulf region and internationally;
• Contribute significantly to the administrative functioning and collegial environment of the Department and wider University, demonstrating sustained excellence in leadership activities which support the functioning of the Department and wider University.
• To fully engage in, champion and enhance the values of the Department;
• Carry out such other duties as specified by the Head of Department.

Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion

Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key component of the University’s Strategy and a central part of everything we do. We also live by our Purpose and Values and our Staff Code of Conduct. At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive.

We welcome and encourage applications from those who are currently under-represented in our work force, including people with disabilities and from racially minoritised ethnic groups.

If you have taken a career break or periods of leave that may have impacted on the volume and recency of your research outputs and other activities, such as maternity, adoption or parental leave, you may wish to disclose this in your application. The selection committee will take this into account when evaluating your application.

The University has been awarded the Disability Confident Leader status. If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role.