Call for Assistant Editors 2025 - 2026

The South African Journal on Human Rights (SAJHR) is currently seeking applications for the positions of Assistant Editors. An Assistant Editor position is highly suited for postgraduate law students interested in developing as researchers and writers in the areas of human rights, constitutional law, public law and social justice more broadly. Applicants should preferably be registered for postgraduate law studies at a law faculty, school or institute with access to a good library and online legal resources and materials. The position of Assistant Editor is a one-year appointment, acknowledged on the pages of the Journal, which is renewable subject to satisfactory performance.

Assistant Editors play an indispensable part in bringing each issue of the journal to life. Due to the SAJHR’s strict production schedules, Assistant Editors are expected to adhere to the highest standards of professionalism, particularly with respect to meeting often tight deadlines.

The position of Assistant Editor is designed to be full of intrinsic rewards: benefits include being an integral, and formally acknowledged part of producing a top-rated South African law journal, engaging with the work of leading scholars, and working with a professional Managing Editor. Success in this portfolio will better position Assistant Editors for future careers as academics, researchers, and public-interest lawyers.

Qualifications

You should have strong editing, research and writing skills, in addition to a demonstrated interest in human rights, constitutional law, public law and social justice more broadly. You should have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree or be near the completion of your bachelor’s degree with the view of pursuing postgraduate studies. Candidates pursuing a postgraduate qualification are strongly encouraged to apply. If you have experience working with academic journals and/or are registered at an historically disadvantaged institution (as defined by the NRF), you are especially encouraged to apply. You must have steady access to email, library/research facilities and databases for fact and citation checking purposes. You should be available to assume your positions immediately. 

Duties

Formally, Assistant Editors report primarily to the SAJHR Editor-in-Chief but will work closely with the SAJHR Managing Editor as per the requirements of each individual issue. The primary responsibilities of Assistant Editors include checking facts, citations, for plagiarism and uncredited and unethical or otherwise problematic use of artificial intelligence in accepted manuscripts and preparing these manuscripts for publication and production.

Compensation

Assistant Editors are paid a modest per-word rate for articles edited.

Application procedure

To apply, please send a letter of interest, a CV, a recent writing sample, contact information for three references and examples of past editing work (if applicable), to the Managing Editor, Dr Joey Kok (kok.joey@gmail.com), by 11 April 2025.

Short-listed applicants will be invited to review and edit a short sample article. Successful applicants will receive training before commencing their position.