Organizer Information
The opportunity is hosted by Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, one of Germany’s leading universities of applied sciences with a strong focus on socially engaged research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and practice-based education. Located in Frankfurt’s Nordend district, the university brings together more than 15,000 students and approximately 1,000 academic and administrative staff across a broad range of disciplines, including social work, health, design, media, engineering, and cultural studies.
As part of its institutional mission, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences emphasizes sustainability, social responsibility, international exchange, and applied research methodologies. The university is also part of the European university alliance U!REKA, which promotes collaborative international education and research initiatives among European higher education institutions.
This position is embedded within Faculty 4: Social Work and Health and developed in collaboration with the Hessian Theatre Academy. The programme “Art as Social Practice” is initiated and funded by the Crespo Foundation, a major German cultural foundation known for supporting innovative artistic, educational, and socially engaged cultural projects.
The initiative positions artistic practice not simply as a communication tool, but as an active form of social inquiry and knowledge production. Through long-term artistic-research projects embedded in social contexts, the programme explores how artistic interventions can contribute to cultural education, public discourse, social transformation, and collective forms of learning.
Title & Description
Research Assistant in the Third-Party Funded Project “Art as Social Practice” (f/m/d)
Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences is currently seeking applications for a three-year artistic-scientific research position within the interdisciplinary programme “Art as Social Practice.” The position invites artists, cultural practitioners, researchers, and socially engaged creatives to develop independent research-based artistic projects situated within real social contexts, preferably in the Rhine-Main region of Germany.
The programme investigates how artistic practices function within communities and public life, and how they can create new forms of knowledge, participation, collective imagination, and transformation. Rather than using art merely as a method for communicating existing ideas, the programme encourages applicants to propose artistic processes that actively engage with social realities as material for experimentation, collaboration, and intervention.
Selected candidates will develop and realize long-term artistic-research projects that address contemporary societal challenges such as social isolation, resilience-building, sustainability, ecological transformation, collective participation, and post-migrant social dynamics. The projects are expected to combine artistic experimentation with reflexive and documentary approaches that critically examine how artistic processes operate and affect communities.
Applicants may apply under one of three thematic research areas:
- Materializing the Political – artistic practice as a form of political and social knowledge production.
- Inventing Learning – artistic approaches to collective and open-ended learning processes.
- Shaping Social Conditions – artistic interventions as tools for sustainable social transformation and community engagement.
The programme also supports the development of doctoral research connected to the Doctoral Centre for Social Work or networks within the Hessian Theatre Academy.
The Role Overview
- Position Title: Research Assistant in the Third-Party Funded Project “Art as Social Practice”
- Institution: Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences
- Contract Duration: Limited-term contract for 3 years
- Employment Scope: 75% position (30 hours per week)
- Reference Number: 708/2026
- Salary: Pay Group 13 TV-Hessen
- Programme: Art as Social Practice
- Funding Body: Crespo Foundation
- Project Type: Artistic-scientific research and cultural education
- Reporting Structure: Project management within Faculty 4 Social Work and Health
- Starting Date: As soon as possible
- Work Environment: Interdisciplinary academic and artistic collaboration
Position & Tasks
Selected candidates will develop an independent artistic-scientific research project embedded in a concrete social environment and carried out in collaboration with local actors and communities.
Responsibilities include:
- Developing and implementing an artistic research project connected to a social context.
- Designing reflexive, documentary, and research-oriented methods accompanying the artistic process.
- Producing analytical and artistic outputs such as texts, presentations, publications, or documentation.
- Teaching practical and theoretical skills within cultural education programmes.
- Contributing to the KASP continuing education programme and other university courses.
- Supervising student projects and academic theses.
- Participating in planning meetings, coordination processes, and administrative collaboration.
- Supporting the broader development of the “Art as Social Practice” programme.
The position combines artistic production, academic research, teaching, and socially engaged cultural practice.
Categories
- Visual Art
- Performance Art
- Theatre
- Dance
- Social Practice Art
- Participatory Art
- Cultural Education
- Artistic Research
- Community-Based Art
- Media Art
- Interdisciplinary Art
- Cultural Studies
- Socially Engaged Practice
- Public Art
- Experimental Pedagogy
Eligibility
The opportunity is open to applicants who meet the following criteria:
- International and national applicants are eligible.
- Applicants must hold a completed university degree (Master’s or equivalent diploma).
- Relevant fields include:
- Cultural Education
- Cultural Studies
- Theatre Studies
- Dance Studies
- Artistic Disciplines
- Social Work
- Comparable interdisciplinary programmes
- Applicants should demonstrate:
- Artistic and pedagogical competence
- Experience working with social actors or communities
- Strong communication and organizational skills
- Ability to work collaboratively
- Very good English language skills are required.
- Good German language skills are expected.
- Applicants with international academic degrees are welcome.
- The institution strongly encourages applications from women and people with international family histories.
- Applicants with disabilities receive preference in cases of equal qualification.
Program Benefits
Participants and selected researchers will benefit from:
- A funded three-year artistic research position.
- Integration into a major interdisciplinary artistic-research programme.
- Access to academic and artistic mentorship.
- Opportunities to develop doctoral research.
- Collaboration with the Hessian Theatre Academy network.
- Access to continuing education and university training opportunities.
- Flexible working arrangements and mobile working options.
- 30 vacation days annually plus additional holiday leave.
- Free Hesse state transportation ticket.
- Access to university cultural, sports, and campus activities.
- International networking opportunities through the U!REKA alliance.
- Institutional support for implementing socially engaged artistic projects.
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
- Online application form
- CV / résumé
- Degree certificates
- Exposé of an artistic-scientific research project
- Description of a concrete social context for the proposed project (preferably in the Rhine-Main region)
- Supporting documentation of artistic and professional experience
- Additional documents requested through the application portal
Applicants with degrees obtained outside Germany are requested to include a certificate evaluation.
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 12 June 2026
- Contract Duration: 3 years
- Starting Date: As soon as possible after selection
Location
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Additional Details
The programme places particular emphasis on socially engaged artistic methodologies that investigate collective experience, transformation processes, and public participation. Applicants are encouraged to think beyond conventional institutional art production and instead propose projects that actively interact with communities, social structures, and contemporary societal challenges.
The research framework combines artistic experimentation with critical reflection and documentation, making the programme particularly relevant for practitioners interested in artistic research, public pedagogy, cultural democracy, and participatory social processes.
The institution explicitly supports diversity, inclusion, and family-friendly working structures. The possibility of combining the position with doctoral research makes this opportunity especially attractive for emerging researcher-artists seeking long-term academic and artistic development.