Food for thought. The science of blockades, 1914-1918 and 1939-1945

The Amsterdam School for Historical Studies (ASH) invites applications for a fully-funded PhD position (4 years 1.0 FTE). This position is part of the ERC Synergy-funded research project BLOCKADE which explores the global blockades of the First and Second World Wars and their aftermaths. A cooperation between the universities of Trondheim Hamburg Freiburg and Amsterdam BLOCKADE sets out to prove that these blockades are crucial to understanding not only how the world wars were fought but also their globality and totality their immediate effects and their long-term global repercussions. More information can be found on the project website: our team!

Social science demography and nutritional science played key roles during the blockades of the First and Second World Wars especially where they related to food. This PhD project will analyse the interplay between the development of social political and nutritional science and the particular it will study how when and why war-related experiences funding flows and policy impacted scientific developments related to food consumption and production and their social and cultural environs and vice versa. Key sources for the study of the interplay between blockade and (scientific) knowledge are scientific journals publications conference proceedings and ego documents (in English French and German) as well as select materials from local or state agencies in belligerent and/or neutral countries related to either the prosecution of or increasing resilience to the effects of blockade.

Samuël Kruizinga and Ingrid de Zwarte will be your PhD supervisors Lisa Haushofer will co-supervise.

This is what you will be doing

• Submission of a PhD thesis within the period of appointment;
• Presenting intermediate research results at workshops and conferences;
• Participation in the Research School and Faculty of Humanities PhD training programmes;
• Participating in and contributing to seminars workshops and conferences of the BLOCKADE research group and contribute to its shared source base;
• (Co-)teaching courses at BA-level in the second and third year of the appointment (maximum 0.2 FTE per year).

This is what we ask of you

• A completed Masters degree in History or a related discipline;
• Solid knowledge of European and/or international history in the period 1914-1945;
• Good research skills demonstrated by a completed Masters thesis;
• Solid knowledge of qualitative research methods;
• (Passive) language skills that allow you to read source materials relevant to your research;
• A strong cooperative attitude and willingness to engage in collaborative research;
• Enthusiasm for communicating academic research to non-academic audiences;
• Good command of English both written and spoken.

Please note that if you already hold a doctorate/PhD or are working towards obtaining a similar degree elsewhere you will not be admitted to a doctoral programme at the UvA.

This is what we offer you

• We offer a temporary employment contract for the period of 48 months. The first contract will be for 16 months with an extension for the following 32 months contingent on a positive performance evaluation within the first 12 months. The preferred starting date is between 1 June and 1 July 2026.
• Based on a full-time appointment (38 hours per week) the gross monthly salary will range from 3.059 in the first year to 3.881 (scale P) in the last year. This does not include 8% holiday allowance and 83% year-end allowance. The UFO profile PhD candidate is applicable. TheCollective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlandsis applicable.
• PhD candidates receive a tuition fee waiver.
• PhD candidates have free access to courses offered by theGraduate School of Humanities and the Dutch National Research Schools.

We also offer:

• Generous funding for research and conference visits.
• Opportunities for intellectual growth and career advancement including a wide variety of training mentoring and professional development offerings available at the university.
• Open inclusive and supportive work environment with committed colleagues.
• Excellent possibilities for further professional development and education.
• An inspiring academic and international work environment in the heart of Amsterdam;
• The opportunity to collaborate with leading researchers at research institutes that - partly as a result of their interdisciplinary approach - are world renowned.

This is where youll be working

At the Amsterdam School of Historical Studies (ASH) of the University of Amsterdam you will benefit from an international creative and independent work environment as well as excellent terms of employment. Your place of work will be the vibrant city centre of Amsterdam as part of an internationally orientated history department.

The project you will be working on is an essential part of the wider BLOCKADE project bringing together four universities 19 project members and 4 Principal Investigators in an interdisciplinary working environment with the ambitious goal to rewrite the history of the World Wars and their aftermaths.

If you recognize yourself in the profile and are interested in the position we look forward to receiving your application. We welcome and encourage applicants from all backgrounds particularly ones that are currently underrepresented within the BLOCKADE project and within the Amsterdam School for Historical Studies.

As part of your application please submit:

• A letter of motivation detailing your prior experience and your fit for the project (1 page max.);
• A research plan for your PhD including a provisional four-year work plan (2-4 pages);
• Your CV;
• A transcript of grades received during your MA studies;
• Names and contact information for two referees who will be contacted should your application proceed to the interview stage.

The vacancy closes on. The first round of (online) interviews will take place in early-mid May 2026.

For questions about the position or department you can contact us during office hours at:

• Samuël KruizingaProject leader and PhD supervisor