项目介绍

2026年7月4日

The Swedish School of Social Sciences of the University of Helsinki invites applications for the position of 
 
DOCTORAL RESEARCHER IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES 
 
for a fixed term period of 3,5 years, starting on 1 October 2026.  
 
The position is part of the project MAPS: Mapping Fragmented Labour in the Platformised Service Sector through Migrant Epistemologies, funded by the Research Council of Finland and led by Dr. Olivia Maury.  

RESEARCH PROJECT 

MAPS aims to understand the pervasive influence of digital platforms in transforming service labour through a migration perspective. It stems from the need to better grasp how digital platforms seep into everyday life and reshape ways of working. Thus, the project is situated in a context of the transformation of work towards fragmented patterns of temporary employment, multiple job holding, ‘taskification’ of work into short gigs, and obscured lines between paid and unpaid labour. By highlighting migrants’ experiences, the project challenges conventional, nationally circumscribed perspectives and the assumption of permanent employment, allowing for a renewed understanding of how platformisation plays out in the service sector. The research draws on ethnography among migrant workers and in the platform ecosystem in Finland to examine how labour evolves in a transformed landscape of data-driven realities, how hierarchical power structures influence labour agency and how platformisation engenders new forms of exploitation and extraction. 

ABOUT THE POST 

We are looking for a doctoral researcher who will undertake a doctoral project within the framework of the wider research project. While we expect the research plan to align with the key themes of the research project, applicants are encouraged to implement approaches to the topic relevant to their own expertise and scholarly interest.  
 
The main task of the appointed doctoral researcher is to conduct independent research at the intersection of critical migration studies, sociology of work and platform labour studies in Finland. The doctoral researcher will have the opportunity to be part of developing novel ethnographically oriented methods to study the platformisation of service labour in Finland from both the perspective of migrant workers’ lived experiences and from the perspective of the finance-technology nexus of platform companies.   
 
The appointee will play a key role in project implementation and will be expected to complete an article-based PhD based on the empirical material produced, as well as to participating in project communications, organising project events and other tasks relating to the project. Duties will also include teaching (up to 5% of annual working time). 

QUALIFICATIONS AND SELECTION CRITERIA 

1. Applicants should hold a Master’s degree in a field that is relevant to the research topic (e.g. sociology, human geography, cultural studies, social and cultural anthropology). 
      

2. The candidate should have proven ability, motivation and independence, demonstrated through previous degree studies or otherwise, to pursue postgraduate studies. 

3. The appointee will need to have secured the right to pursue a doctoral degree at the University of Helsinki by the start of the appointment, or must apply for the right and obtain it within the six-month probationary period. Further information can be obtained online. 

We appreciate expertise by the candidate in one or several of the following research fields: 

• tech-finance, platformisation, and digitalisation  

• critical migration studies and decolonial theory 

• migration and labour from the perspective of legal theory/ law 

 
Applicants’ skills and motivation to conduct research on this project will be evaluated on the basis of their application documents and an interview. The successful candidate will have excellent analytic and writing skills in English and will be able and motivated to conduct independent work on the platformisation of service labour in Finland. The appointee will be expected to reside in Finland while employed by the University of Helsinki. 

Standard Finnish pension benefits and occupational health care are provided for university employees. Further information can be obtained online. The employment contract will include a probationary period of six months. 

HOW TO APPLY 

Please submit your application, together with the required attachments, through the University of Helsinki Recruitment System via the “Apply now” button below. Use your current email address to register with the Recruitment System. Internal applicants (i.e. current employees of the University of Helsinki) may submit applications using the “Employee Login” button.   

The closing date for applications is 10 August, 2026 (at 23:59 Helsinki time). 
 
Please include with your application the following documents as PDF files: 

 
1. A letter of motivation describing your interest in, background and suitability for the project (max. 1 page). 
2.    A research plan (max. 2 pages, including bibliography) 
3.    A curriculum vitae  
 
Detailed information on the CV can be obtained online. 

 
Shortlisted candidates will be interviewed during August. 
 
FURTHER INFORMATION 
 
For queries regarding the position, please contact Dr. Olivia Maury, olivia.maury@helsinki.fi  

A diverse and equitable study and work culture is important to us. That is why we do our best to promote an inclusive university community. We encourage all qualified applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply for our positions. 

 
Click this link to read about accessibility and inclusivity at our University. 

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