Durham University’s School of Government and International Affairs (SGIA) is hiring an Assistant Professor in International Political Economy. The Durham University Assistant Professor in International Political Economy job is permanent and full time, with a salary of £48,337 to £57,666 a year. Durham wants someone whose research deals with changes in global capitalism, with particular interest in development and the Global South, historical political economy, and present challenges such as climate, health and technology.
The jobs.ac.uk advert gives the closing time as 11:59pm on 6 January 2027 (job reference 26001417); the THE Unijobs listing shows 7 January 2027. Below I set out the role, the salary in context of the UK pay spine, what the advert says and doesn’t say about visas, how to apply, and how to write a cover letter and research statement for a permanent politics post at a Russell Group university.
Durham Assistant Professor in International Political Economy: key facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Employer | Durham University |
| Department | School of Government and International Affairs (SGIA) |
| Job title | Assistant Professor in International Political Economy |
| Contract | Permanent, full time |
| Salary | £48,337 to £57,666 a year |
| Job reference | 26001417 |
| Start date | Not stated in the advert |
| Visa sponsorship | Not mentioned in the advert |
| How to apply | Online, through the link on the jobs.ac.uk or THE Unijobs advert (Durham’s Aplitrak system) |
| Advert posted | 21 October 2026 |
| Deadline | 6 January 2027, 11:59pm (THE lists 7 January 2027) |
What the role involves
The advert describes a standard UK teaching and research contract. You would be expected to:
- Produce internationally excellent research in International Political Economy (IPE).
- Teach undergraduate and postgraduate students and supervise PhD candidates.
- Contribute to IPE research at Durham, including links with other departments and institutions.
- Develop your teaching practice.
- Contribute to SGIA’s curriculum diversification project, which the school runs as part of its equality, diversity and inclusion work.
SGIA is particularly interested in research on three themes:
- The political economy of development and/or the Global South
- Historical approaches to political economy
- Contemporary challenges to global capitalism, such as climate change, health or technological change
The advert also welcomes innovative or critical approaches to IPE. Durham has a Critical Political Economy Group in SGIA, so read its page and see whose work overlaps with yours. If you work on Africa, South Asia, Latin America or another part of the Global South, this post is a better fit than most UK IPE openings.
Requirements
The THE and jobs.ac.uk adverts do not print a full person specification. Durham normally publishes one with the job on its own recruitment system, so read it there before you write. From the advert text, the panel will be looking for:
| What the advert asks for | What that usually means in practice |
|---|---|
| Research and teaching expertise in IPE | A PhD in politics, IR, political economy or a close field, normally completed by the start date |
| Internationally excellent research | Peer-reviewed articles or a monograph in good IPE or development journals and presses, plus a clear pipeline |
| Teaching at all levels including PhD | Experience leading seminars or modules, and readiness to supervise |
| Work on transformations in global capitalism | A research agenda that fits at least one of the three themes above |
| Curriculum diversification | Evidence of teaching or reading lists that bring in scholarship from outside the usual Euro-American canon |
The right-hand column is my reading of a standard UK assistant professor search, not text from Durham’s specification. Check the official person specification for the exact essential and desirable criteria.
Durham Assistant Professor salary
The advertised salary is £48,337 to £57,666 a year. Those two figures match points 37 and 43 of the UK higher education national pay spine at 2026/27 values, if the employers’ recommended 2% uplift is applied. That is context from the national spine, not Durham’s own grade document. New staff usually start near the bottom of the range and move up one point a year.
Benefits listed in the advert:
- Individual research support funding
- Access to school and university-wide research funds
- Eligibility for sabbatical leave, at one term of leave for every seven terms of service
- Administrative support for funding applications, engagement and impact work, and new teaching practice
Like most UK universities, Durham offers a pension scheme for academic staff; ask HR for current contribution rates.
Visa sponsorship
Neither the THE listing nor the jobs.ac.uk advert says anything about visa sponsorship. If you need a visa to work in the UK, ask Durham HR before the closing date. A permanent academic post at this salary is the kind of job UK universities commonly sponsor through the Skilled Worker route, but only Durham can confirm it for this vacancy. Senior or promising academics may also qualify for the Global Talent visa, which is endorsed for social sciences by the British Academy.
About Durham University and the city
Durham is a collegiate university in north-east England and a member of the Russell Group. It is ranked 85th in the QS World University Rankings 2027, up nine places on the previous year, according to the university. Its castle and cathedral form a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the city centre. SGIA teaches politics, international relations and Middle East studies, among others.
Durham is a small city. Housing and daily costs are usually lower than in London or the south of England, although demand from students pushes up rents close to the centre. Newcastle is a short train ride away, and many staff live there or in the nearby towns.
How to apply for the Durham IPE Assistant Professor job
- Read the full particulars: follow the apply link on the THE Unijobs listing or the jobs.ac.uk advert (reference 26001417) to Durham’s recruitment system and download the job description and person specification.
- Read SGIA’s pages: look at the Critical Political Economy Group and current module lists.
- Prepare documents: follow the list on Durham’s system. UK politics departments usually ask for a CV, a cover letter that addresses the criteria, and sometimes a research or teaching statement and a writing sample.
- Line up referees: have names and contact details for your referees ready, and warn them a request may come.
- Submit online: complete the form before 11:59pm UK time on 6 January 2027.
- Ask questions early: the advert names no contact, so use the contact details in Durham’s particulars, and do it before the holiday break.
Deadline
The closing time is 11:59pm UK time on 6 January 2027. Universities are closed over Christmas and New Year, so any questions should go to Durham by mid-December.
How to write the cover letter and research statement
UK panels mark against the person specification, point by point. The cover letter does most of the work. A layout that suits this post:
- Who you are: your current post, your PhD and your IPE specialism in two or three sentences.
- Research: your main publications and what they argue, then your next project and where it will be published. Name which of SGIA’s three themes it fits.
- Funding: grants won or planned, for example from UKRI, the British Academy or international funders.
- Teaching: modules you have taught, modules you could take on at SGIA, and one new module you could propose.
- Curriculum diversification: a concrete example, such as a reading list you rebuilt around scholars from the Global South.
- Citizenship in the school: seminars you have organised, supervision, outreach or impact work.
Sample opening, for illustration only: “My research traces how sovereign debt restructuring has reshaped state capacity in West Africa since the 1980s, using archival and interview evidence, and it speaks directly to SGIA’s interest in historical and Global South political economy.” Write your own version about your own research.
What the selection process looks like
Durham has not published interview dates in the advert. UK assistant professor searches usually involve a longlist and shortlist, then an interview day with a research presentation or a teaching session, and a panel interview. With a January closing date, interviews in February or March are common for posts like this, but treat that as a guide only.
Common mistakes
- Not addressing the criteria: UK panels score against the person specification. A general letter loses marks.
- Ignoring the three themes: if your research fits one, say which one in the first paragraph.
- Treating diversification as a box to tick: give a specific example from your teaching.
- Thin teaching evidence: list modules, levels and student numbers.
- Assuming visa sponsorship: the advert doesn’t mention it; ask.
- Waiting until January: Durham’s offices are closed over the holidays, so last-minute help is not available.
Who should apply and who shouldn’t
You should apply if you have a PhD in IPE or a close field, a publication record that fits development, history or contemporary capitalism, and teaching experience. Scholars from African, Asian and Latin American universities who work on their own regions have a real angle here, given SGIA’s stated interests.
You probably shouldn’t apply if your PhD is still far from completion, or your work is in comparative politics or security with little political economy. Researchers who prefer a research-only post should look at postdoctoral fellowships; our guides to the KWI International Fellowships and the Harvard Radcliffe Fellowship are two options.
Similar academic jobs to compare
| Role | Institution and location | Contract | Salary as advertised | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assistant Professor in International Political Economy | Durham University, UK | Permanent | £48,337 to £57,666 | 6 January 2027 |
| Associate Professor or Professor of Economics | NYU Abu Dhabi, UAE | Tenured | Not stated | 27 November 2026 |
| Lecturer in Finance | Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand | Fixed term | NZD 88,000 to 94,000 | 11 November 2026 |
| Lecturer in Bioveterinary Sciences | University of Surrey, UK | Fixed term | £38,448 to £46,970 | 22 November 2026 |
The Surrey row is a different field, but it shows how Durham’s pay compares with another UK lecturer post this season. For a tidy academic CV, see our Europass CV guide.
FAQs about the Durham IPE Assistant Professor job
What is the salary for the Durham Assistant Professor in International Political Economy?
The advertised salary is £48,337 to £57,666 a year for a permanent, full-time post.
When does the Durham IPE job close?
Applications close at 11:59pm UK time on 6 January 2027, according to the jobs.ac.uk advert. The THE listing shows 7 January.
Does Durham University sponsor visas for this job?
The advert does not mention sponsorship. Ask Durham HR before applying if you need a UK work visa.
Is an Assistant Professor at Durham the same as a Lecturer?
Yes. Durham uses the title Assistant Professor for what most UK universities call a Lecturer, the first permanent academic grade.
Sources and updates
I checked this job on 29 October 2026 against the Times Higher Education Unijobs listing 416810 and the jobs.ac.uk advert (Durham job reference 26001417), which give the salary, contract, research themes, benefits and closing time. Durham’s QS 2027 position comes from the university’s June 2026 news release. The pay spine comparison uses the 2026/27 spine values published with the employers’ 2% recommendation. The advert does not give a start date, named contacts or a visa statement. If Durham changes the closing date, I will update this page.
I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.
