Research Assistantships and Fellowship

Transforming the City from the Favelas and Colonias Populares: Women and Embodied Urbanizations in Latin America

Information on research assistant positions

\Work schedule: Variable, part-time. Approximately 25 hours per semester or 100 hours per year, depending on availability and needs.

Wage: At the masters’ level: $25.51/hour. At the PhD level: $27.73/hour. Rates are determined by those currently at UQAM.

Duration: One semester or 15 weeks, depending on the start date.

Renewal possibilities: Renewable for three additional semesters (for a total of one year). Possibility of renewal for a second year.

Number of positions to be filled: 3 research assistant positions (2 for master’s students, 1 for doctoral students). 1 fellowship.

Work location: Remote

** Please note that a unique opportunity for a fellowship accompanies this offer of research assistant positions. This fellowship is for a student whose research is related to the present project. **

Description of research project

This research focuses on the role of the body and emotions in urbanization processes in Latin America, using the cases of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Mexico City, Mexico. More specifically, it looks at the phenomenon of peripheral urbanization from the perspective and protagonism of women.

The questions guiding the research process are: (1) how do women in Latin America’s urban peripheries contribute to redrawing the affective map of their cities; (2) how are these transformations translated into urban space; and (3) what are the impacts of this redrawing on the transformation of social relations of gender, race and class?

To answer these questions, this comparative research will draw on ethnographic and collaborative approaches in favelas and colonias populares to enable the co-production of sensitive knowledge to construct more just and feminist urban futures.

Position description

In line with the research activities planned for Year 1, the main task of the research assistants will be to produce literature reviews related to the case studies and the geography of emotions.

Should the contract be renewed for a second year, the auxiliaries could also be tasked with note-taking, producing meeting summaries, transcription of interviews and exploratory walks, qualitative data analysis, and participation in writing research reports and/or scientific papers.

Qualifications and eligibility for research assistant positions

• Be a full-time student in a Canadian university at the graduate level (master’s or doctoral).
• Be enrolled in a social science program, preferably in geography, urban studies, urban planning, anthropology, sociology or political science.
• Excellent proficiency in Spanish and/or Portuguese (written, oral and reading).
• Have completed, or be in the process of completing, courses or a concentration (minor) in feminist studies (asset).

Qualification and eligibility for the fellowship

In addition to meeting the above criteria, candidates wishing to obtain the research grant, worth $8500 per year (for a maximum of 2 years), must demonstrate the link between their dissertation or thesis and the questions posed by this research project, as well as a timetable for completion of their research work.

How to apply

To apply for one of the research assistant positions, submit a cover letter (1 to 2 pages) and curriculum vitae by e-mail (veillette.anne-marie@uqam.ca).

For candidates who also wish to apply for the fellowship, their cover letter should include an additional 1-2 pages establishing their qualifications and eligibility for the fellowship based on the above criteria. In addition, they should attach a transcript of their grades (unofficial) in their current program of study or in their previous program if no grades for the current program have yet been obtained.

Application deadline: August 8, 2024, 11:59 p.m.

Interview date (by Zoom or in person): week of August 12, 2024.

Start date: August 19, 2024.

For further information, please contact the principal investigator, Anne-Marie Veillette, at the following email address:
veillette.anne-marie@uqam.ca