Job Opening: Contemporary Japanese Literature and Culture

Posted on September 21, 2013 by Paula

job opening - 5Institution: Haverford College, East Asian Studies
Location:   Pennsylvania, United States
Position:   Assistant Professor, modern/contemporary Japanese literature and
culture

Haverford College
Haverford College is seeking a tenure-track Assistant Professor in modern or contemporary Japanese literature and culture, to begin AY 2014-15. This position is in the Bi-College (Haverford and Bryn Mawr)
Department of East Asian Studies.  While the specific research specialty is open, the search committee will be most interested in applicants able to offer courses that place Japanese culture in broad historical and comparative context.  An ability to teach both visual and literary materials is an asset. The successful candidate will possess a professional command of Japanese, with a proven record of excellence in teaching and research and a commitment to the principles of a liberal arts education.   Applicants should be willing to contribute to interdisciplinary programs relevant to their specialty (e.g. Comparative Literature, Visual Culture, Gender and Sexuality) and must have the PhD in hand at the time of appointment. We particularly encourage inquiries from candidates who will enrich and contribute to the cultural and ethnic diversity of our college.

Applicants should submit a letter of application, statement on teaching experience and philosophy, CV, and writing sample, and arrange to have three letters of recommendation submitted via Interfolio at https://secure.interfolio.com/apply/22082, or sent via email to Corrinne Fahl, Faculty Dossier Coordinator, Haverford College, 370 Lancaster Avenue, Haverford, PA 19041 at hc-eassearch@haverford.edu. For more information, go to http://www.haverford.edu/humanresources. Applications are due by November 1, 2013, and will be reviewed as they arrive.

Haverford is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer with a longstanding commitment to diversity rooted in values of inclusion, social justice, peacemaking and conflict resolution. Women and members of underrepresented minority groups are strongly encouraged to apply.

Contact:
Corrinne Fahl, Faculty Dossier Coordinator, hc-eassearch@haverford.edu

Website:
http://www.haverford.edu/catalog/files/2013-14/East-Asian-Studies.pdf

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Job Opening: Japanese History, University at Albany, Assistant Professor

Posted on September 19, 2013 by Paula

job opening - 5Institution :   University at Albany
Location:   New York, United States
Position:   Assistant Professor in Japanese History (tenure track)

The Department of East Asian Studies at the University at Albany, State University of New York, seeks candidates for a tenure track assistant professor position in Japanese History to begin Fall 2014. The successful candidate is expected to 1) teach five lower and upper division courses on pre-modern and modern Japan per year; 2) pursue an active program of research; and 3) participate in service responsibilities, including undergraduate advising.

Ph.D. in hand from a university accredited by a U.S. Department of Education or an internationally recognized accrediting organization is required. Preference is given to historians of post-war Japan and those with near-native fluency in both English and Japanese. Applicants must address in their applications their ability to work with and instruct a culturally diverse population.

Candidates should apply through the Interview Exchange portal at http://albany.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdetails.jsp?JOBID=41643.

Deadline for applications is December 31, 2013. Email queries:
easian@albany.edu. Position is contingent on final budget approval.

The University at Albany is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative
Action/IRCA/ADA Employer.

Apply Here
http://albany.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdetails.jsp;jsessionid=968E8D20A9F59
BF83556EDF46914143C?JOBID=41643&jtsrc=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eh%2Dnet%2Eorg%2Fjobs%2F
&jtsrcid=6085&jtrfr=

Contact:
Apply Here

Website: http://www.Click2Apply.net/drs9wgf

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Job Opening: PhD/PostDoc Fellows, Interdisciplinary East Asian Studies

Posted on September 19, 2013 by Paula

job opening - 5Institution:   Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Interdisciplinary Centre of East Asian Studies
Location:   Germany
Position:   Doctoral Fellow, Post-Doctoral Fellow

Beginning in January 2014, the Interdisciplinary Centre of East Asian Studies (IZO) at Goethe University Frankfurt/Main will launch a new research project Protecting the weak with support from the Volkswagen
Foundations initiative Key Issues for Academia and Society. The project investigates how new public claims for the protection of weak groups and interests in contemporary Japan and China are gaining social acceptance against the historical backdrop of East Asian constructions of modernity. Based on four
comparative case studies devoted to (1) disaster victims, (2) employee wellbeing, (3) cultural heritage and (4) animal welfare, the project members will analyze the interactive processes of protecting the weak at the intersections of international and domestic spheres (for details: www.izo.uni-frankfurt.de/44349637/Protecting-the-Weak).

Within the framework of this interdisciplinary research project, the faculties of law (FB01), economics (FB02), social sciences (FB03) and linguistics, cultures, and arts (FB09) at Goethe University are searching for candidates to fill

8 Ph.D./Post Doc Positions
(E13 TV-G-U, part-time)

subject to receiving funding by VolkswagenStiftung, initially for three years

The successful Post Doc/PhD applicants are expected to investigate one of the topics (1)  (4) mentioned above with regard either to Japan or China.

1 Post Doc Position
(E 13 TV-G-U, fulltime)

subject to receiving funding by VolkswagenStiftung , initially for three years

The successful candidate will do research on the history of the reception and appropriation of foreign ideas on protecting the weak in late 19th and early 20th century Japan and China. He or she will also examine the question of how the emergence of modern practices of protection is related to indigenous traditions of philanthropy and religious beliefs.

Eligibility: Candidates must hold an excellent masters (Post Doc: doctoral) degree or equivalent in Chinese studies, Japanese studies, history, law, economics/management, political sciences, sociology or
other relevant disciplines. Proficiency in English as well as Japanese and/or Chinese is essential.  All candidates must be willing and able to regularly participate in the activities of the integrative research project.

We offer an inspiring interdisciplinary research environment, a thriving international network, and special funds for research in Japan or China.
To apply, send your cover letter, curriculum vitae, academic transcripts, sample of publications and/or a short summary of your Master thesis/outline of your Ph.D. dissertation as well as names and contact details of two referees until 30.09.2013 via email to Prof. Dr. Heike Holbig (Holbig@soz.uni-frankfurt.de).Goethe University Frankfurt is an equal opportunity/affirmative-action employer. In case of equality of qualification and suitability of applicants, the applications made by female researchers will be given preferential consideration. We also encourage and welcome applications from disabled persons.

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Heike Holbig

Holbig@soz.uni-frankfurt.de

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Resource: Portal Site of Official Statistics of Japan

Posted on September 18, 2013 by tnguyen3729

Are you a numbers junkie and interested in learning all about Japan? Look no further and explore the Portal Site of Official Statistics of Japan.

Statistics

About

The Portal Site of Official Statistics of Japan, also known as e-Stat, first launched in 2008 and promises to act as the “one-stop service for official statistics of the Japanese government” managed and maintained by the National Statistics Center. The site aims to gather information from statistical departments of Ministries and Agencies, and provide the general public with statistical data.  Content available on the site is presented both in Japanese and English.

Content & Usage

At first glance, you can see that the site is divided into 3 major sections, Search for Statistics of Japan, Easy Access to Main Statistics, Learn Metadata. Let’s look at each section.

search statsSearch Statistics of Japan would probably be the part that anyone who has little time to explore the site would go to first. It provides the uninitiated to data driven sites, the Google feel that many would gravitate towards if you had an inkling of what you were interested in researching. Considering the US Census American FactFinder and the CIA World Factbook, I took into consideration that as my initial statistical search data.

The most common thing that I could consider searching is Population. When I typed that in the search box, I discovered something kind of weird, the first hit brought up Statistics About Road Traffic while the correct Population Census came up second. If you look at the Population Census, you can see that they have population census data available from as early as 1925 to 2010. The left side bar allows you to utilize facets in order to narrow results if you do get too many results to refine your results based on government statistics, ministries, statistical area, or period.

Selecting the 2010 Population Census, I changed my view of results from a hierarchy format to a list view. This allowed me to see how that data would be presented if downloaded, Excel, CSV, or PDF. (If you’re unfamiliar with CSV files, they can be read in a spreadsheet program.) After downloading the Excel file I was able to access the preliminary counts of the population and households. What’s helpful is knowing that you can simply click on the “Source” button to find out where the dataset originated. This would also be helpful when citing the data if writing for a paper.

I know that many folks aren’t interested in looking scrolling through datasets and reading Excel files in Japanese to read information. With that in mind, I turned to Easy Access to main statistics. At first glance, I saw that this area was divided into Japan in Figures and Graphs, Main Economic and Financial Statistics, Statistical Compendia, Regional Statistics, and Thematic Map. The graphs and datasets presented are mostly in Japanese so if you’re reading levels are a bit rusty (like me), you’ll need to use a Japanese-English dictionary to make sure what you’re reading is correct. However, there are a number of graphs, charts, and maps available here to interest any Japanese sociologist or modern history scholar.

search option

The Learn Metadata section is only available in Japanese. However, you’ll be able to develop a better understanding of statistical classifications, area codes, and the survey item database in this section.

Observations

There’s a lot of potential if using the English portion to the site. While it would be helpful for the datasets, charts, etc. to also be translated into English, I can understand why it wasn’t done. It’s quite expensive to pay someone, even an eager intern, to translate the enormous amounts of data available on this site. Data junkies will definitely enjoy the site and find some comfort in scrolling through many charts and graphs.

Overall, the site does offer a lot of promise. I think what would completely win me over with the site is a compilation of data in the Easy Access to Main Statistics page similar to the CIA World Factbook on Japan. Simply organized and compiled data from the country of origin. I’m uncertain as to how popular this site is as you need to have moderate to strong fluency in both Japanese and English to navigate and utilize the data.

I encourage you to explore the Portal Site of Official Statistics of Japan and share your own impressions of this database.

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Job Opening: East Asian Library Supervisor, Princeton University

Posted on September 16, 2013 by LM

job opening - 5
Institution: Princeton University
Location: Princeton, NJ
Education: Associate’s required, BA preferred
Posted: 09/06/2013
Application Due: 09/20/2013
Type: Full Time

Position Summary: The East Asian Library at Princeton University is seeking a diligent, motivated, and independent individual to be the Library Supervisor of its Public Services unit.

This is an important position in a unique library at Princeton due to its extensive and specialized collections, space limitations, and independent interlibrary loan and technical services operations. The East Asian Library, one of the largest and busiest branch libraries on the Princeton Campus, is one of the most famous collections of its kind in the United States, serving not only faculty, graduate, and undergraduate students at Princeton on all kinds of research on China, Japan and Korea but also, visiting scholars from across the globe.

This position is responsible for many aspects of the daily operations of the East Asian Library’s Public Services Unit, while balancing regular interruptions from the public. This includes, but is not limited to circulation, shelving, and the physical upkeep of the library, as well as a full range of supervisory duties: the hiring, training and evaluation of 2 part-time staff members and 20-25 students and applying relevant policies regarding patrons.

The incumbent will manage the print and electronic reserves and interlibrary Loan services of the East Asian Library, and is responsible for the Document Delivery and Borrow Direct functions of the EAL. He/she is also responsible for the receiving and maintenance of Western-language material at the EAL. As with all aspects of library services, change and the demand for new skills are constants.

The tasks assigned to the incumbent of this position are particularly challenging because the EAL offers a wide array of services, yet has very few permanent employees in Public Services. More than half of the EAL’s physical collection is stored in off-site storage, thus the number of skills needed to fulfill and prioritize these tasks (some daily, some seasonal) is large. Responsibility for all these tasks assumes complete knowledge of library policies, procedures, and the responsibilities of other units within the library. In addition, since patron interaction is one of its core functions, creativity and tact are essential. Maintenance of the physical appearance of this very full library involves the constant rearrangement of spaces and other creative responses to congested areas.

Essential Qualifications: Position Requires:

  • Associates or other two-year degree
  • At least 1 to 3 years of practical work with supervisory experience, including training of staff
  • At least one year of academic, research or corporate library work
  • Ability to make decisions and work independently, as well as working well as a team leader
  • Strong organizational and excellent service-oriented interpersonal skills
  • An ability to prioritize workflows and respond creatively to rapidly changing circumstances, on a daily, seasonal and yearly basis
  • Ability to deal with pressure, deadlines, and multitasking
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills in English
  • Basic to intermediate computer skills (Microsoft Office), and the demonstrated ability to learn new computer programs as needed
  • Must be able to lift and shelve books (using stepladders) and handle large book trucks holding approximately 300 books (other physical tasks may involve careful handling of heavy and dusty books)
  • Aptitude for working with bibliographic citations in several languages
  • Education Required: Associate’s Degree

Preferred Qualifications: Preferred:

  • B.A. degree
  • Extensive experience in a similar educational (academic), preferably, library position (and involving the supervision of students, interaction with faculty and patrons) beyond the one year requirement
  • Knowledge of MARC record structures and catalog systems in general, and of Ex Libris’s Voyager integrated library system and OCLC (WorldCat?) in particular
  • Knowledge of ILLiad, ORRS or similar (back-end reserves processing software), Blackboard or similar course management system, the Electronic Reserve Application (database) or similar software, Ariel, and Adobe Acrobat
  • Some experience with and knowledge of East Asia (languages, cultures, literature, etc.)

Full details on HigherEdJobs.

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Book Announcement: Mabiki: Infanticide and Population Growth in Eastern Japan, 1660-1950

Posted on September 15, 2013 by Paula

mabikiTitle: Mabiki: Infanticide and Population Growth in Eastern Japan, 1660-1950 (UC Press, May 2013)

Author: Fabian Drixler

Summary:
This book tells the story of a society reversing deeply held worldviews and revolutionizing its demography. In parts of eighteenth-century Japan, couples raised only two or three children. As villages shrank and domain headcounts dwindled, posters of child-murdering she-devils began to appear, and governments offered to pay their subjects to have more children. In these pages, the long conflict over the meaning of
infanticide comes to life once again. Those who killed babies saw themselves as responsible parents to their chosen children. Those who opposed infanticide redrew the boundaries of humanity so as to encompass newborn infants and exclude those who would not raise them. In Eastern Japan, the focus of this book, population growth resumed in the nineteenth century. According to its village registers, more and more parents reared all their children. Others persisted in the old ways, leaving traces of hundreds of thousands of infanticides in the statistics of the modern Japanese state. Nonetheless, by 1925, total fertility rates approached six children per women in the very lands where raising four had once been considered profligate. This reverse fertility transition suggests that the demographic history of the world
is more interesting than paradigms of unidirectional change would have us believe, and that the future of fertility and population growth may yet hold many surprises.

More information (including a link to a related video interview) is at
http://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520272439

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Job Opening: Public Services and Collections Specialist II, Gelman Library, George Washington University [part-time]

Posted on September 14, 2013 by LM

job opening - 5

Institution: George Washington University
Location: Washington, DC
Posted: 08/28/2013
Type: Part-Time/Adjunct
Education: Associate’s required, BA preferred
Open under filled

Job Description Summary:
Provides in-depth research assistance, and assists librarians in evaluating, acquiring and maintaining GRC resources in both English-language and vernacular-languages. Participates in outreach activities. Trains and reviews the work of wage hour and other employees.

Minimum Qualifications:
Associate’s degree in an appropriate area of specialization plus 2 years of relevant experience. Degree requirements may be substituted with an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience.

Desired Qualifications:
* Bachelor’s degree in an area relating to the study of International Affairs, including area studies, political science, policy studies, economics, or an equivalent combination of training and experience.
* Fluency in Arabic, Korean or Japanese.

* Ability to successfully analyze and resolve problems.

* Ability to work in a team-based environment.

* Proficiency in the use of computers.

* Familiarity with online exhibit & web editing software.

JOB DUTIES

  • Provides in-depth research assistance to all patron groups, but primarily faculty, graduate students and visiting researchers.
  • Assists in evaluating potential acquisitions to determine relevance and applicability to existing and potential research projects, and for addition to the Global Resources Center collections. Potential acquisitions include primary research material, published and unpublished data and related content, grey literature, open access materials, and related resources that support the university’s research and teaching agenda. Content may appear in a multiplicity of formats including digital, audio0visual and print publications (monographic and serial), and in a variety of languages including English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Russian, Persian, and Turkish. Assists in tracking and evaluating both foreign and domestic trends.
  • Trains other GRC employees, and oversees and ensures completion of collections processing, and maintenance and acquisitions of associated supplies.
  • Participates in outreach activities including making presentations to classes and graduate student orientations, composes and designs marketing materials, and researching, writing and designing physical and online exhibits and displays.
  • Assists in surveying and organizing primary research collections and provides both intellectual and physical control, including finding aids in EAD format, and performs all processing activities.
  • Performs other work related duties as assigned. The omission of specific duties does not preclude the supervisor from assigning duties that are logically related to the position.

Application details on HigherEdJobs.com.

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Job Opening: Outreach Coordinator, The Asia Institute, University of Virginia

Posted on September 14, 2013 by LM

job opening - 5Institution: University of Virginia
Location: Charlottesville, VA
Education: BA required, MA preferred
Deadline: Open until filled
Posting Date: 08-27-2013

Posting Summary
The Asia Institute of the College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is seeking an Outreach Coordinator to organize and oversee its programmatic affairs. The duties include overseeing outreach activities internal and external to the University. The incumbent is responsible for facilitating on Grounds lectures, workshops, conferences, film screenings, arts events and informational events, and event planning; and off Grounds, to organize, plan and carry out in-service training for K-12 educators and learning opportunities for public school students. The incumbent will also compose and edit center newsletters in conjunction with graduate student workers, maintain and update center websites and help track UVA alumni who have minored or majored in either East Asia or South Asia studies, with the help of graduate student workers. The position reports to the Director of the Asia Institute.

Education:

A Bachelor’s degree with some focus on Asia, or a Master’s Degree in similar field is preferred.

Required Experience:
Some – up to 4 years

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: Demonstrated ability to communicate with faculty, students and the public. Demonstrated passion for advancing knowledge and understanding of world cultures. Excellent written and oral communication skills. Ability to learn quickly. Ability to prioritize and reprioritize in a rapidly changing environment and the ability to multi-task. Skilled in research procedures, analysis and documentation.

Preferred Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: Knowledge of the requirements and standards of professional grant proposals preferred. Coordinating grant-funded activities and events is preferred. Ability to learn and work within grant conditions and restrictions. Ability to work with educators, most of whom possess advanced degrees.
COMPUTER APPLICATIONS
Required Computer Applications: A working knowledge of Microsoft Office suite of applications is required.
Preferred Computer Applications: HTML and web page creation preferred.

Apply at UVA’s website. Via HigherEdJobs.com.

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Fun Link Friday: Inakadate Rice Field Art

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Paula

Have you guys seen the latest rice field art this year? It looks spectacular! It takes about 1,200 people from the community to bring projects like this together every year, but man, what a fantastic payoff! I love seeing the iconic images from Japanese art and religion (just look at that Fudō myōō below!).

Tanbo

If you want to see some more images of the fields, check them out at the original article here: Stunning Inakadate Tanbo Rice Field Art.

PS: Did you guys remember that our first ever Fun Link Friday was Rice Field Art? 🙂

Happy Friday!

 

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Job Opening: East Asian History, Assistant Professor (tenure-track)

Posted on September 12, 2013 by Paula

job opening - 5Institution: Denison University
Location:   Ohio, United States
Position:   Tenure Track Faculty, Assistant Professor, East Asian History

The History Department at Denison University, a highly selective liberal arts college, invites applications for a tenure-track position in East Asian history within any area and period of specialization in the history of China or Japan.  Teaching responsibilities in a 3/2 load include a two-semester introductory course sequence in East Asian history (from traditional to modern) and upper-level courses in the candidates areas of expertise.  Ph.D. and teaching experience preferred; minimum requirement is Ph.D. completed by appointment at the assistant professor level on August 28, 2014.  Interviews will be conducted at the meeting of the American Historical Association in Washington, D.C., January 2-5, 2014.  Applications must be submitted by November 4, 2013, and must include a letter of application, C.V., sample syllabi, an article-length writing sample, an unofficial transcript, and 3 letters of recommendation. (Note that only after an application has been submitted online will an email trigger automatically be sent to recommenders or a dossier service, requesting that letters be submitted (letters will be accepted until Nov. 25). Denison University is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer. Minorities and women are especially encouraged to apply. All application materials must be submitted online at https://employment.denison.edu.

Contact: https://employment.denison.edu

Website: https://employment.denison.edu

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