UC Berkeley Shinjo Ito Postdoctoral Fellowship in Japanese Buddhism

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2025-2027 Application Period is Now Open

INTRODUCTION

With the generous support of the Shinnyo-en Foundation, the Center for Japanese Studies at UC Berkeley is pleased to invite applications for a full-time postdoctoral research fellowship with the possibility of teaching. The anticipated term of the appointment is August 1, 2025, to July 31, 2027.

The Fellowship is intended to foster the academic careers of recent Ph.D.'s, providing time to pursue their research along with the opportunity to take part in regular events and workshops offered by the Centers for Japanese and Buddhist Studies. The fellow will deliver a public lecture on their research as part of the Center for Japanese Studies Colloquium Series. Subject to the availability, the fellow will also have the opportunity to teach one course each year. The base salary provided is $66,000–$71,000 per annum with health benefits, but this may increase depending on teaching experience. In addition, the fellow will be provided with shared office space and library privileges, as well as a $2500 per annum for conference travel and research.

Applicants must have Ph.D. or equivalent degree in hand by their start date. At the time of application, the basic minimum qualification is the completion of all degree requirements other than the dissertation, in Japanese Buddhist Studies or a closely related field.

Applicants whose teaching and primary research interests are Buddhism in general should apply to the Shinjo Ito Postdoctoral Fellowship in Buddhist Studies, administered through the Center for Buddhist Studies at UC Berkeley, rather than to the Shinjo Ito Fellowship in Japanese Buddhism.

QUALIFICATIONS

Basic Qualifications (required at the time of application):

  • PhD (or equivalent international degree) or enrolled in a PhD (or equivalent international degree) program

Additional Qualifications (required by start date):

  • PhD or equivalent international degree
  • No more than three years of post-PhD research experience

Preferred Qualifications:

  • PhD or equivalent international degree in Japanese Buddhist Studies or a closely related field

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

Applicants should submit the following materials through AP Recruit (https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF04859)

Document requirements

  • Curriculum Vitae - Your most recently updated C.V. listing degrees, any publications, and teaching experience

  • Cover Letter (Optional)

  • Statement of Research - A personal statement of no more than 2000 words outlining previous research (including dissertation), the research the applicant will undertake during the term of the fellowship, future professional goals, as well as any other information deemed relevant to the application

  • Statement of Teaching (Optional)

  • Graduate School Transcipts

  • Writing Sample

  • Schedule of Completion - Candidates who do not yet hold a Ph.D but expect to by June 30, 2025, should supply a letter from their home institution confirming their schedule to completion.
    (Optional)

  • Statement on Contributions to Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - Statement on your contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion, including information about your understanding of these topics, your record of activities to date, and your specific plans and goals for advancing equity and inclusion if hired at Berkeley (for additional information go to https://ofew.berkeley.edu/recruitment/contributions-diversity). (Optional)

Reference requirements
  • 3 letters of reference required

Applicants will be asked to name references, and the applicants must request letters to compete their application.

Apply link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF04859

Help contact: jsharpe@berkeley.edu

Application Period
Open date: February 13, 2025
Next review date: April 15, 2025 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.
Final date: Friday, Apr 30, 2025 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)

Applications will continue to be accepted until this date, but those received after the review date will only be considered if the position has not yet been filled.

HOUSING

There is no University-provided housing designated for postdoctoral fellows. Postdoctoral fellows who are married or partnered and/or have children may apply to University Family Student housing for the slight chance to be assigned an apartment in University Village Albany after all eligible enrolled UC Berkeley students are housed. For information and an application, please visit the following website: https://housing.berkeley.edu/explore-housing-options/housing-by-user-type/visiting-scholar-post-doc-faculty-staff/.

Additional housing information, as well as links to local resources, can be found on our Visiting Scholar page. 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Postdoctoral Fellow, J-1 Visa, and general information

About the city of Berkeley (in Japanese)

Postdoctoral Fellows with Children

Computer/internet-related sites

Cars and Transportation

FORMER FELLOWS

Marta Sanvido, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow
Appointment Dates: Srping 2021-Spring 2023
Ph.D. Institution: Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
Dissertation: “Universes of the Mind, Geographies of the Body, Logics of the World. Five-positions Epistemology (Goi 五位) in Premodern Sōtō School”

Andrea Castiglioni, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow
Appointment Dates: 08/01/2018–03/31/2019
Ph.D. Institution: Columbia University
Dissertation: Ascesis and Devotion: The Mount Yudono Cult in Early Modern Japan

Erez Joskovich, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow
Appointment Dates: 09/01/2016-08/31/2018
Ph.D. Institution: Tel-Aviv University in cooperation with the University of Tokyo
Dissertation: Laypeople's Zen in Contemporary Japan The case of the Ningen Zen Association

Michaela Mross, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow
Appointment Dates: 08/31/2014–08/30/2015
Ph.D. Institution: Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich
Dissertation: A Local History of Buddhist Rituals in Japan: Kōshiki at the Sōtō Zen Temple Sōjiji from the Seventeenth through Nineteenth Centuries

Dominick Scarangello, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow
Appointment Dates: 09/01/2013–08/31/2014
Ph.D. Institution: University of Virginia
Dissertation: Embodying the Deities: A Study of the Formation of a Modern Japanese Deity Cult

Jessica Starling, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow 
Appointment Dates: 08/01/2012–07/31/2013
Ph.D. Institution: University of Virginia
Dissertation: A Family of Clerics: Temple Wives, Tradition and Change in Contemporary Shin Buddhism

Benedetta Lomi, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow
Appointment Dates: 08/01/2011–07/31/2012
Home Institution: SOAS, University of London
Dissertation: The Precious Steed of the Buddhist Pantheon: Ritual, Faith and Images of Bato Kannon in Japan

Regan E. Murphy, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow
Appointment Dates: 08/01/2010–07/31/2011
Home Institution: Harvard University
Dissertation: The Urgency of History: Language and Ritual in Japanese Nativism and Buddhism