Student Assistant

Tilburg University | Tilburg Law School is looking for a Student Assistant Department : Criminal Law Location : Tilburg Full-time equivalent : 0,2 FTE (8 hours per week). Duration of employment contract : 1 year Monthly full-time salary : € 2.925 - €2.981 gross Closing Date vacancy : 21 March 2025 Job Description TLS is seeking an enthusiastic colleague for the position of Student Assistant in the Department of Criminal Law The work primarily involves supporting the principal investigator, Ligeia Quackelbeen, in the research project Conversation with Judges. This project investigating the legal and socio-political scope of the international criminal judges role as law maker in international criminal justice. This project is an empirical study on judicial discretion in the context of international criminal law. The key goal of this research is to unravel whether there is alignment between (i) the legally constituted role of the judge as Law Maker, (ii) how the judges role as Law Maker is implemented in practice, and (iii) what the normative aspiration or direction is in terms of the role of the judge as Law Maker in the field of international criminal justice. The hypothesis is that there is misalignment between the legal limitations in force that curb judicial discretion and the role of the judge as Law Maker on the one hand and the way in which judges have in practice taken up a role as Law Maker and broadly shaped international criminal law on the other hand. This research proposes (i) to examine the legal framework through desk research, i.e. a focused literature study on judicial discretion and a case law analysis selecting jurisprudential debates to be discussed in interviews with judges; (ii) to conduct a argumentative discourse analysis (ADA) of selected policy documents in order to unravel what the dominant narrative is on the normative direction is that the ICC as a judicial institution and ICL as a field wants to take, (iii) to undertake interviews with judges that have worked in the international criminal justice sphere to provide an insider perspective on the role of the judges in this domain. This mix of methods allows to measure the alignment or misalignment in relation to the selected jurisprudential debates where the judicial discretion has played a role and judges have been said to act as Law Maker. The project seeks to reflect upon whether realignment is necessary and why. What do we ask?

• You are in the Bachelors or Masters phase of one of the Law programs within Tilburg Law School and have an interest and knowledge of the fields of International Criminal law, you have successfully completed at least the first year of your Bachelors program (at least 60 ECTS credits).
• You have excellent study results (as documented in the transcripts made available to the Selection committee).
• The project is conducted in an international setting. Good command of English is an absolute must (please provide TOEFL test result if availble) and a good command of French is an absolute plus. Please also indicate whether you know other languages (e.g. Dutch) as broad language skills are of added value.
• You have good digital skills (Word, Excel, Canvas, Teams, Zoom, etc.). The command of particularly Excell or even Atlas.ti or Nvivo is particularly useful for data collection so please indicate your level of command in these tools.
• You have good communication and social skills and are a talented organiser. As you will be sending out invitations and organizing conferences and workshops, any experience in this regard should be indicated. It is also important that you handle privacy-sensitive information with integrity, responsibility, and a critical attitude.
• You work accurately and in a structured manner.
• You work independently and are also good at judging when consultation and/or coordination is necessary.
• You are available for 8 hours per week for at least 1 year.

What do we offer? Tilburg University is committed to an open and inclusive culture, embraces diversity, and encourages the mutual integration of groups of staff and students. We create equal opportunities for all our employees and students so that everyone feels at home in our university community. We work in a vibrant and lively (working) environment on our beautiful campus, close to the forest and easily accessible by public transport. We are committed to a sustainable society and challenge you to make an active contribution to this. Tilburg University offers excellent benefits in a pleasant working environment:

• A position based on 0,2 fte (8 hours per week).
• A salary of minimum of €2.925 and maximum €2.981 gross per month for full-time employment, based on UFO profile Student Assistant and salary scale SA. Salary depending on the course year you are in.
• This is a vacancy for a Student Assistant who contributes to scientific education or research in accordance with Article 10.1 paragraph 2 CLA Dutch Universities. You will receive a temporary contract for the duration of 12 months.
• Vacation pay of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3%.
• More than 8 weeks of vacation leave.
• If you are not entitled to student grants, you are eligible for reimbursement for sustainable commuting: walking, cycling and public transportation.
• A work culture in which we embrace differences, everyone is welcome and given equal opportunities.

Information and application We invite you to apply online for this position by 21 March 2025. More information about the vacancy can be obtained from Ligeia Quackelbeen (assistant professor) l.s.c.quackelbeen@tilburguniversity.edu. We would like to receive your application, including your CV, transcripts of studies, and a motivational letter (1 page) no later than 21 March 2025. Interviews will take place on Tuesday 1 April 2025 with:

• Ligeia Quackelbeen, assistant professor

• Alice Dejean de la Bâtie, assistant professor

• Thomas Joyce, assistant professor

• Hanneke van Lindt, Manager of Departement

You will ideally start working for Tilburg University on 1 April 2025 or shortly after. Organization Tilburg Universitys motto is "Understanding Society. Based on this vision, our nearly 2,800 employees conduct research, inspire more than 19,000 students of 110 nationalities, and bring together people from different disciplines and organizations to learn from each other. In this way, we want to contribute to solving complex social issues. In doing so, we work from the fields of economics, business studies and entrepreneurship, social and behavioral sciences, law and public administration, humanities and digital sciences, and theology. We seek to connect across disciplines to find solutions to the big issues we face as a society. Our students are trained to become responsible and entrepreneurial thinkers, driven by solidarity, a sense of responsibility, and empathy, who are able to influence and give direction a rapidly changing society in an innovative way. Tilburg University has a culture of collaboration and co-creation, at local, regional, national, and international levels. Since its founding in 1963, Tilburg Law School has become one of the leading law schools in Europe. Through top-notch research and offering high-quality university education, the School contributes to society. Tilburg Law School is organized into five Departments: Public Law and Governance; Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society; Private, Business and Labour Law; the Fiscal Institute Tilburg; and Criminal Law. The mission of the School is to understand and improve the role of law and public administration in addressing the social problems of today and tomorrow. Through research and education, our scholars contribute to that mission. More than 4,000 students pursue a Bachelors, pre-Masters, or Masters degree at Tilburg Law School. Through this education, we train students in law, public administration, and data science. The Tilburg Educational Profile (TEP) is unique in the Netherlands. Central to it are three core concepts: knowledge, skills, and character. A university education provides students with the latest substantive knowledge and trains them to be critical thinkers and resilient professionals. In addition, the School is committed to innovative educational concepts and, partly in response to the coronavirus crisis, has invested heavily in the quality of online education and in innovative didactic tools to make and keep students inquisitive. Tilburg Law Schools research is highly regarded nationally and internationally. Tilburg Law Schools Departments work closely together in their research in four signature research programs: 1) Global Law and Governance; 2) Law and Security; 3) Connecting Responsible Organizations; and 4) Regulating Socio-Technical Change. The Department of Criminal Law has a multidisciplinary composition in which both criminal (procedural) law and social science approaches to crime and victimization have a place, and it provides education and research in the fields of criminal justice, criminology, victimology, and forensic psychiatry. Currently, the Department has about 30 permanent staff members. Particular value is placed on collaboration, both within the Department and with colleagues within Tilburg Law School and other Schools. The Department has an informal culture, in which equality and providing an inspiring and safe working environment are paramount. Providing excellent education and conducting challenging research are seen as two main tasks that can only be accomplished together. Recruitment code Tilburg University applies the recruitmentcode of the Dutch Association for Personnel Management & Organization Development (NVP). Disclaimer The text of this vacancy advertisement is copyright-protected property of Tilburg University. Use, distribution and further disclosure of the advertisement without express permission from Tilburg University is not allowed, and this applies explicitly to use by recruitment and selection agencies which do not act directly on the instructions of Tilburg University. Responses resulting from recruitment by non-contractors of Tilburg Universities will not be handled.