Research Fellow / Language Researcher – Swahili & Koisan

About the role

Midlands State University is seeking qualified individuals for two research positions focused on Swahili and Koisan languages. The posts are open to candidates at the Research Assistant, Language Researcher, or Research Fellow level, depending on academic qualifications and experience.

Key responsibilities

• Conduct language research and documentation for Swahili or Koisan.
• Provide language consultancy services to internal and external clients.
• Design and submit research proposals to funding agencies.
• Supervise undergraduate (and for Fellows, postgraduate) research projects.
• Participate in departmental, institute, and university committees.
• Perform additional duties as assigned by the Executive Director or senior staff.

Required profile

• Bachelor’s degree in Swahili/Koisan Language and Literature, Linguistics, Applied Linguistics, Translation & Interpreting, or related fields (for Research Assistant).
• Master’s degree in relevant language studies (for Language Researcher).
• PhD in language documentation, corpus linguistics, language policy, or educational technology for language learning (for Research Fellow).
• Demonstrated fluency in spoken and written Swahili or Koisan.
• Relevant research or teaching experience is preferred.

Required skills

• Language research methodology.
• Proposal writing and grant application.
• Supervision of student research.
• Academic writing in English.

What we offer

• Opportunity to work within a university research institute.
• Access to funding opportunities for language projects.
• Professional development through supervision and consultancy.