PhD Position in Accounting, Amsterdam Business School

The project is entitled: The Construction of Assurance Expertise on Sustainability

The past decade has seen the emergence of practice in assurance on sustainability reports (‘sustainability assurance’) with high profile professional accountancy bodies such as the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, placing the development of a sustainability assurance standard near the top of its strategic agenda. This in-depth longitudinal field study aims to enhance our theoretical and empirical understanding of the processes surrounding the emergence of sustainability assurance. Empirically, the study will examine the role and focus of key actors in the emergence of assurance concentrating on: how competing claims to professional expertise in sustainability assurance have been constructed and legitimised; the dominant and shifting assurance discourses; and how target audiences have reacted to these discourses. Theoretically, the study will draw on frameworks derived from Actor Network Theory and neo-institutional theory. The study calls for a broad range of research methods competencies, particularly in qualitative methods, an excellent ability think conceptually, competence in research liaison with organizations and high level individuals, and excellent external presentation skills.

Requirements

• Master’s (MSc) in the area of accounting (or equivalent) with excellent examination results in both course work and the MSc thesis component;
• Interest and experience in field research (for example, in the MSc thesis);
• Demonstrated Mastery of both written and spoken English;
• Conviction to complete the requirements toward a PhD degree within four years.

Further information

Applicants who require further information should contact Professor Brendan O’Dwyer (email: b.g.d.odwyer@uva.nl (preferable); tel. 31 20 525 4260.

For more information on the Amsterdam Business School and its accounting section, please visit www.abs.uva.nl and www.abs.uva.nl/accounting.

Appointment

The appointment will initially be for 18 months, to be extended to a total of 4 years upon excellent performance (an evaluation will be held after 14 months). The salary will be in accordance with the University regulations for academic personnel, and will range from € 2,000 (first year) up to a maximum of € 2,558 (final year) gross per month. The collective employment agreement of the Dutch universities will be applicable. The PhD thesis should be finalised within four years. In this period, the candidate will also be expected to do some teaching (20% of the time).

Job application

Applicants should submit a cover letter of intent that details their research interest, motivation and related experience, a curriculum vitae that includes relevant coursework and grades attained, a brief research proposal broadly aligned to the project outlined above, the contact information of three reference persons and, if possible, a web link to manuscripts that demonstrate their writing skills in English (e.g. MSc thesis, Bachelor thesis, conference papers). The application package should be sent via email to applications-feb@uva.nl. Please include the job reference number (08-5037) and your name in the subject line, and submit all documents as attachments. Although we prefer applications via email, they may also be mailed to: University of Amsterdam, Personnel Department, Attn Bernadette Clemens, Roetersstraat 11, 1018 WB Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The closing date for applications is 21 November 2008. Early application is recommended.