PhD Students in Culture and Society

We are looking for two PhD candidates in the research environment “Culture and Society” with a focus on Digital Society, Infrastructure, Legacies.

Your work assignments

We are advertising two PhD positions in the interdisciplinary research environment “Culture and Society” to develop research on themes relevant to the thematic area “Digital Society, Infrastructure, Legacies”. This thematic area advances research on the changing material conditions of media, technology, culture and heritage, and how they intersect with environmental, institutional, industrial, and social conditions. Research in this area is interdisciplinary, societally engaged and in dialogue with relevant societal actors within and outside the university.

Examples of ongoing research within this thematic area include:  

• sustainable media and internet infrastructure
• computing cultures and materialities as heritage
• values and economies in algorithmic/data cultures
• social and cultural perspectives on dismantling communication networks 
• emerging legacies of digital society in museums
• regulatory aspects and property regimes in digital societies

The PhD candidate is expected to develop their own research project that connects to one or several of the keywords Digital Society, Infrastructure, Legacies. We welcome proposals that engage contemporary, critical, historical and/or global perspectives.

As a PhD student in Culture and Society, you devote most of your time to doctoral studies. This includes independent work as well as regular engagement in research seminars, social and intellectual activities in the research environment. The PhD programme includes course work amounting to 75 ECTS as well as PhD thesis work.

Your qualifications

The holder of the position must meet the requirements for both general and specific eligibility for admission to doctoral studies. General eligibility requires a completed master’s level degree, or coursework amounting to at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 must be at the second‑cycle level. Alternatively, you have gained essentially corresponding knowledge in another way.

We also require that applicants have knowledge equivalent to 90 higher education credits in a subject in the humanities and social sciences of central relevance to the Culture and Society research environment, or who have acquired equivalent knowledge abroad or through an earlier degree.

Previous engagement with themes that concern media, digital technology, internet infrastructure, heritage, algorithmic culture, materiality, or legacies of past social, political, or economic formations that continue to shape the present, from cultural or critical perspectives is an advantage.

This employment requires fluency in English, both spoken and written. Given the available teaching assignments and the research potential for public outreach, it is an advantage if you also have skills in Swedish or another Scandinavian language. Successful candidates who do not yet have such skills are expected to take the university’s Swedish language courses for staff, and support will be provided for this.

We expect the holder of the PhD position to be present on Campus Norrköping and engaged in the research environment. You contribute to collegial work practices, and to a positive social environment. You are creative and open to new ideas and approaches. You are self-motivated, initiate activities and achieve results. Furthermore, you are structured and persistent; you can plan, organize, and prioritize your work to drive your processes toward both short- and long-term goals.

As an academic community we value original ideas and the intellectual property of others. We assume that you share these values and that all the work that you submit as part of this application is your own original work.

Please submit as part of your application the following documents:

• A letter of intent for the position (maximum 1 page long)
• BA and MA theses
• Certificates for completion of degrees at masters and bachelor levels
• Proof of English proficiency
• Proof and examples of any other merits relevant to the application
• Any published work (scientific or other), if available
• A research project proposal, in English, of approximately 2,000 words excluding references. The research proposal should outline a possible PhD research project within the thematic area “Digital Society, Infrastructure, Legacies” and suggest: What questions are relevant to ask, and why? What case studies/materials would be conceivable or interesting for you to examine? Which theoretical approaches could inspire your work? Which methods might be suitable? How does the project timeline look over 4 years?

Your workplace

The research environment Culture and Society is located at the Division of Culture, Society, Design and Media (KSFM) which is part of the Department of Culture and Society (IKOS) at Linköping University. We are located on Campus Norrköping. Culture and society (Tema Q) - Linköping University

The research environment advances critical perspectives on culture and society.

We approach culture as living processes of continuity and discontinuity that are entangled with material, economic, affective and political processes at different scales and aspects of life. Questions that we examine revolve around the shifting material and environmental conditions for media, heritage, knowledge and cultural production. We study power and resistance in everyday life, as well as institutions and spaces that foster democracy and humanitarian values.

Our expertise derives from a range of fields including media and communication studies, heritage studies, visual culture, anthropology, literature, history, intellectual property, peace and development studies, landscape architecture, and science and technology studies. We embrace inter- and multidisciplinary approaches to research in conversation with other disciplines, fields and practices. We share an interest in innovative and visual methods, global perspectives, intersectional perspectives as well as collaborations with artists, media producers and cultural institutions.

 The environment also houses two bachelor’s programmes in Communication, Society, and Media Production, and Global Studies. These programmes are taught in Swedish. Teaching is also conducted in the form of various single subject courses in the aesthetic field and in Craft Education. The division also participates in the interfaculty collaboration Form, sloyd, practical-aesthetic learning and design.

The employment

When taking up the post, you will be admitted to the program for doctoral studies. More information about the doctoral studies at each faculty is available at Doctoral studies at Linköping University

The employment has a duration of normally four years’ full-time equivalent. Extension of employment up to five years is based on the degree of teaching and institutional assignment. Further extensions may be granted in exceptional circumstances. You will initially be employed for one year, after which your employment will be renewed for a maximum of two years at a time, depending on your progress through the study plan. 

Starting date 1 September 2026.

Salary and employment benefits

The salary of PhD students is determined according to a locally negotiated salary progression.

More information about employment benefits at Linköping University is available here.

Union representatives

Information about union representatives, see Help for applicants.

Application procedure

Apply for the position by clicking the “Apply” button below. Your application must reach Linköping University no later than 10 April.

Applications and documents received after the date above will not be considered.