King's College London

About Us

The Department of War Studies has a large and diverse faculty. We are a theoretically and methodologically diverse Department with expertise in areas including, but not limited to, conflict resolution, contemporary and historical warfare, gender, international relations, migration and borders, security studies, strategic studies, technology and violence. The Department is located within the School of Security Studies and the Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy.

About the role

The Department of War Studies seeks to appoint a Lecturer in Security and Technology to contribute to the Department’s teaching and research capacity. We welcome applications from candidates whose research and teaching will contribute to and expand our expertise in technology and its role in war and conflict. 

The successful candidate will specialise in emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, hypersonic weapons, space-based systems and/or quantum technologies. They will have a contemporary research focus, ideally looking across regional contexts. The Department has considerable expertise in issues related to cyber security and weapons of mass destruction, and we are seeking applications from candidates with other thematic research and teaching profiles.

The successful candidate will have an emerging track record of high-quality publications and a clear research agenda at the intersection of war, conflict and emerging technologies. They will further maintain research activities and connections through a portfolio of individual and/or joint research projects and will work to secure external research funding. We offer mentorship in support of these activities. The role holder, upon completion of their probation, will be expected to supervise PhD students.

The successful candidate will also be responsible for delivering high-quality, innovative undergraduate and postgraduate teaching. The successful candidate will teach on technology-related issues but will also be well equipped to contribute to teaching in other areas of security studies. Teaching will span both compulsory and optional modules at BA and MA levels. They will work with students from a wide range of backgrounds and will be responsible for contributing to student success. The successful candidate will also play a role in the institutional and intellectual development of the Department and undertake Departmental, School, Faculty and University administrative duties as required.

This is a full-time post (35 Hours per week), and you will be offered an indefinite contract.

About You

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. PhD awarded in International Relations, Security Studies, or a related field
2. An emerging track record in research dissemination and a clear research agenda on the role of emerging technologies in contemporary war and conflict
3. Ability to deliver innovative and effective teaching to undergraduate and/or postgraduate students on emerging technologies, and security studies more broadly
4. Ability to work collaboratively as part as a team
5. Excellent communication and presentation skills and proficiency in academic writing
6. Evidence of positive contributions to research culture and community building
7. For an appointment at Grade 7, candidates must have a PhD thesis published or in press as a monograph AND at least 2 papers published/ in press in peer-reviewed journals; OR at least 5 research papers published/in press in high-quality peer reviewed journals. For an appointment at Grade 7, candidates must also show proven ability in and experience of academic leadership

Desirable criteria

1. Experience of successful grant capture
2. Experience supervising UG/PGT dissertations and/or PhD students 
3. Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) or on-track to receive fellowship in the next 1-2 years
4. A track record of wider administrative contribution to the delivery of departmental activities

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document provides information about what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further Information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’  pages.