项目介绍

2025年2月28日

The University of Gothenburg tackles society’s challenges with diverse knowledge. 56 000 students and 6 600 employees make the university a large and inspiring place to work and study. Strong research and attractive study programmes attract researchers and students from around the world. With new knowledge and new perspectives, the University contributes to a better future.

Doctoral position in theoretical philosophy    

We welcome applicants with diverse backgrounds and experiences. The University works actively to achieve a working environment with equal conditions and values the qualities that diversity brings to its operations. 

We offer

The University of Gothenburg is a state authority, which means excellent employment benefits such as wellness time during working hours, compensation for medical visits, a base vacation of 28 days, and an occupational pension. You can read more about our employment benefits here. 

At the Department of Philosophy, Linguistics, and Theory of Science (FLoV) within the Faculty of Humanities, we have around 120 employees and a teaching volume that includes around 350 full-year students. We are engaged in numerous large international and interdisciplinary research projects in areas such as theoretical and practical philosophy, logic, linguistics, computational linguistics, language technology, and theory of science. Our research has many applications and collaborations with other scientific fields, including biology, computer science, economics, history of ideas, law, medicine, psychology, religion, political science, and engineering. We educate philosophers, logicians, linguists, language technologists, theorists of science, and teachers of philosophy. The department also conducts doctoral education and development work within its various academic domains. If you are interested in working in an international, dynamic and collaborative environment, FLoV offers an inspiring setting for research and education. Read more about us here. 

Our department offers postgraduate education in six subjects. Our research environment is international, with several recognised research projects and our staff representing over twenty countries. Read more about our postgraduate education here.

Like most Swedish philosophy Departments, we distinguish between practical and theoretical philosophy, with courses taught separately and awarding separate degrees. Theoretical philosophy is usually taken to comprise at least the following subjects: epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, and philosophy of science. At FLoV, most of these areas are represented in the research we do. Note that the teaching and research in philosophy conducted at this department is in analytic philosophy.

Project description

This PhD position is jointly funded by and related to two ongoing research projects at the department: “Between knowledge and ignorance: epistemic possibilities in inquiry” led by Ylwa Sjölin Wirling, and “Reconsidering social demarcation” led by Jack Wright. In this particular call, we therefore welcome applications within epistemology and/or philosophy of science, broadly construed. We especially welcome projects related to one or more of the following subject areas (though projects on other topics in epistemology or philosophy of science will also be considered): aim(s) of inquiry, aim(s) of science and the demarcation of science, epistemology of disagreement, epistemology of expertise, epistemology of scientific modeling, epistemology of understanding, intellectual virtues and vices, metaphilosophy, norms of inquiry and its social conditions, philosophy of the social sciences (including economics), political epistemology, political philosophy of science, social epistemology.

Duties   

The doctoral student’s main responsibilities will be to write a doctoral dissertation, and to complete obligatory course work.

The doctoral student is expected to conduct their work in Gothenburg and to participate in the department’s activities, such as workshops, seminars and conferences. In particular, the student is expected to be an active member of the department’s relevant research environments – in this case, in theoretical philosophy and, to some extent, in theory of science.

Doctoral studies comprise four years of full-time study, and leads to a doctoral degree.  As part of your employment as a doctoral student, you may have departmental duties corresponding to up to 20 % of full-time employment, distributed throughout your study period. These are compensated by extension of the employment as a doctoral student, corresponding to the time spent on departmental duties. Departmental duties usually consist of teaching at first- and second-cycle levels, but may also include research and administration.  

Eligibility   

Doctoral education requires general eligibility and, where appropriate, specific eligibility as set out in the general syllabus for the subject.  

The general eligibility requirements for doctoral studies are:    

1. having completed a degree at second-cycle (masters) level, or
2. the fulfilment of course requirements totaling at least 240 credits, of which at least 60 credits must be at second-cycle level, or  
3. the acquisition of equivalent knowledge in some other way, either in Sweden or abroad. 

Specific entry requirements for theoretical philosophy, according to the general syllabus, are:

1. 30 higher education credits in theoretical philosophy as a second-cycle subject, at least 15 of which must be from a degree project or equivalent knowledge.
2. A necessary performance criterion for the successful candidate is to have the English skills needed to benefit from compulsory courses, supervision, and to be able to actively participate in seminars and similar activities.

For further information about the general and specific requirements please refer to the general study syllabus you will find through the following webpage.

Assessment criteria   

The selection of applicants who meet the basic and specific eligibility requirements will be based on their projected ability to benefit from and complete the doctoral studies.   

The recruitment group will base this assessment primarily on the following:

1. Two writing samples. Normally these will be a Bachelor’s thesis and a Master’s thesis (or equivalent degree projects). These are assessed based on the following five quality criteria, where the last two are assigned special importance:

• Suitable delimitation of the subject and relevance of the research question(s)
• Suitable command of the subject and structuring of the thesis
• Suitable use of language and formalities
• Academic quality

2. A project draft no more than 3000 words in which the applicant stipulates a research area that he/she would like to develop, justifies its relevance, states what it can be expected to contribute to ongoing research on the topic, and discusses which theories, methods and materials would be relevant. The draft should also include a rough time plan indicating how the work will be structured during the four years. The project draft is assessed on the basis of the following criteria: whether the research displays familiarity with previous and current research, whether the research questions are viable and grounded in current research, whether the draft is judged to be realistic, as regards its implementation at third-cycle level and whether the draft shows that it is likely the applicant will make a valuable contribution to research in the field. 
3. Fit with the relevant research projects and with the available supervisory resources.

Admission may also include an interview in addition to a review of qualifications submitted. Admission decisions are made by the Head of Department following preparation at the Department.

Admission and employment   

Once you have been admitted to doctoral studies, you will be employed as a doctoral student at the University of Gothenburg.

The provisions for employment as a doctoral student can be found in ordinance SFS 1993:100.  A doctoral student may be employed as a doctoral student for a maximum of eight years, but the total period of employment may not be longer than the equivalent of full-time education at doctoral level for four years. Usually, the initial employment as a doctoral student is for one year, and the employment is then renewed by a maximum of two years at a time. 

Please note, doctoral studies at FLoV require physical presence to conduct the studies. If the admitted applicant needs a residence permit for higher education to pursue studies in Sweden, the department has the right to revoke the admission decision if the applicant cannot present a valid residence permit no later than at the start of the studies.

Type of employment: Fixed-term employment, HF 5 kap 7§
Extent: 100 %
Location: Department of Philosophy, Linguistics and Theory of Science, Gothenburg
First day of employment: 1^st of September 2025 or by agreement.

The University applies a local agreement on salaries for doctoral students. The agreement is only available in Swedish, please contact us if you would like to know more.

Selection process   

Selection, interviews, and assessments are conducted by the recruitment group at the department.

You can find more information regarding the University’s recruitment process on this web page.   

Contact information 

For questions about our third-cycle studies please contact Associate head of third cycle studies, Alva Stråge, alva.strage@gu.se +46 (0)31-786 5963

For questions about theoretical philosophy at the University of Gothenburg and/or about the relevant research projects to which this position is tied, please contact Ylwa Sjölin Wirling, (ylwa.sjolin.wirling@gu.se) and/or Jack Wright (jack.wright@gu.se).

For questions regarding the application, recruitment process, or employment conditions, please contact HR-officer Jennifer Stråle, jennifer.strale@gu.se+46 (0)31-786 4570

Unions 

Union representatives at the University of Gothenburg can be found here (scroll down to the FAQ).   

Application   

You can apply to be admitted to doctoral education via the University of Gothenburg’s recruitment portal. It is your responsibility to ensure that the application is complete as per this notice, and that the University receives it by the final application deadline. Selection of candidates is based on their qualifications registered in the application. Any documents which cannot be submitted electronically should be sent in two copies to the following address and marked with the reference number of this vacancy notice. University of Gothenburg, Att: FLoV HR-administrator, Box 200, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, SWEDEN. The documents should be delivered no later than three workdays after the last day for online applications, or the sender should be able to show the documents have been mailed no later than the last day for online applications.

It is preferable if your application is written in English since the recruitment group has English as their working language.

The application should have the following content (for the application to be considered complete it must include 1-5 below):

1. An introductory letter of 500 words maximum (approx. 1 page). The letter should consist of four paragraphs in the following order: a) a short presentation of yourself, b) a short presentation of your merits, c) a short presentation of the intended research project and d) a short account for why the Department of Philosophy, Linguistics and Theory of Science and this doctoral position is of interest to you.
2. A CV, including a list of publications (if applicable).
3. Two writing samples. Normally these will be a Bachelor’s thesis and a master’s thesis (or other equivalent degree projects), but they can also be (if applicable) e.g. book chapters or journal articles. At least one of the writing samples must be single-authored by the applicant.
4. A project draft no more than 3000 words (not including the bibliography) in which the applicant stipulates a research area that s/he would like to develop, justifies its relevance, states what it can be expected to contribute to ongoing research on the topic, and discusses which theories, methods and materials would be relevant. The draft should also include a rough time plan indicating how the work will be structured during the 4 years.
5. Certificates of degrees and/or higher-education qualifications.
6. Other documents (optional).

Please do not attach any letters of recommendation! Contact details for references will be requested separately from the candidates who proceed to the interview stage.

Applications must be received by: April 10^th, 2025

Information for International Applicants 

Choosing a career in a foreign country is a big step. Thus, to give you a general idea of what we and Gothenburg have to offer in terms of benefits and life in general for you and your family/spouse/partner please visit: 

https://www.gu.se/en/about-the-university/welcome-services 
https://www.movetogothenburg.com/