PhD Student in Political Science with Orientation towards Environmental Politics

at the Department of Political Science. Closing date: 23 June 2023.

The Department of Political Science is a dynamic and strong education and research department at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Stockholm University. The Department aims to be nationally leading and internationally prominent within its field of research and education.

The Department of Political Science announces one vacant position in the doctoral program with an orientation towards Environmental Politics. The Ph.D. position is fully funded for 4 years and positioned at the Department of Political Science. The planned entry date is 28 August 2023.

Subject area
The aim of the doctoral programme is to give the student specialised knowledge within the field of political science, a thorough training in research methods, and a good understanding of the problems occurring in research and in the practical application of results.

The programme familiarises the student with different structures of society and ideas, and gives a broad orientation of the research development within the subject, with the purpose of making the student a critical and independent researcher with the ability to plan and develop scientific projects. There are two main blocks in the programme: course work (75 credits) and work in connection with the Ph.D. dissertation (165 credits). For further information about the structure of the programme, see the department’s website.

The PhD position will be part of a research project Causes and Consequences of Environmental Protests: The Global Environmental Contestation and Civic Mobilization Observatory (GECCO), which is funded by FORMAS (Dnr. 2022-01678). The aim of the GECCO project is to analyze large-scale patterns of social mobilization around increasingly contested environmental problems.

The project employs machine-learning techniques to build a novel global dataset of georeferenced environmental protest events for the period 1990-2025. Together with global datasets on climate change and biodiversity loss, this data is analyzed using spatial regression methods and agent-based modelling to explore the impact of global environmental change on the likelihood of social mobilization and contestation, if and how protests impact public opinion, and leads to goal attainment and policy change.

Qualification requirements
In order to meet the general entry requirements, the applicant must have completed a second-cycle degree, completed courses equivalent to at least 240 higher education credits, of which 60 credits must be in the second cycle, or have otherwise acquired equivalent knowledge in Sweden or elsewhere.

In order to meet the specific entry requirements, the general syllabus for doctoral studies in Political Science at Stockholm University, the applicant must have:

• completed higher education equivalent to 150 Swedish university credits, including studies at the advanced level (master’s level) of at least 60 Swedish university credits in the political science subject, or the equivalent education,
• a completed written academic, independent work with a least the grade ’pass’, equivalent to at least 15 Swedish university credits in the political science subject,
• completed additional 90 Swedish university credits, or the equivalent, of higher education in subjects relevant to the graduate programme, and

proficiency in English corresponding to at least 550 credits on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).

Understanding Swedish is not a requirement at the time of admission. The applicant should, however, be prepared within a couple of years to carry out teaching and administrative tasks that require knowledge and usage of the Swedish language.

The qualification requirements must be met by the deadline for applications.

Selection
The selection is based on the applicant’s ability to successfully pursue the research education. Selection criteria and admission regulations for Doctoral Studies at Stockholm University are available at: www.su.se/rules and regulations and are specified further in the General Syllabus for PhD studies in Political Science, available at the department’s website: www.su.se/department-of-political-science/education/courses-and-programmes/phd-studies-1.545305.

Terms of study funding
Only a person who will be or has already been admitted to a third-cycle programme may be appointed to a doctoral studentship.

The term of the initial contract may not exceed one year. The employment may be extended for a maximum of two years at a time. However, the total period of employment may not exceed the equivalent of four years of full-time study.

Doctoral students should primarily devote themselves to their own education, but may engage in teaching, research, and administration corresponding to a maximum of 20 % of a full-time position.

Please note that admission decisions cannot be appealed.

Stockholm University strives to be a workplace free from discrimination and with equal opportunities for all.

Contact
For further information or details concerning the application procedure, please contact the administrator, antagning.forskarutbildning@statsvet.su.se, or the GECCO project leader Prof. Andreas Duit, andreas.duit@statsvet.su.se.

Union representatives
Ingrid Lander (Saco-S), telephone: +46 708 16 26 64, saco@saco.su.se, Alejandra Pizarro Carrasco (Fackförbundet ST/OFR), telephone: +46 8 16 34 89, alejandra@st.su.se, seko@seko.su.se (SEKO), and PhD student representative, doktorandombud@sus.su.se.

Application
Apply for the PhD student position at Stockholm University’s recruitment system. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application is complete in accordance with the instructions in the advertisement, and that it is submitted before the deadline.

Please include the following information with your application

• Your contact details and personal data
• Your highest degree
• Your language skills
• Contact details for 2 references

and, in addition, please include the following documents

• Cover letter – describe briefly your research interests, who you are, why you are motivated to become a PhD candidate in political science (no more than 1,5 pages).
• CV – degrees and other completed courses, work experience and a list of degree projects/theses
• Degree certificates and grades confirming that you meet the general and specific entry requirements (no more than 6 files)
• Certificate in English corresponding to at least 550 credits on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). This criterion does not apply for students who have completed their education at a Swedish university, where English proficiency is a general eligibility requirement. You can read more about the English requirements at Stockholm University here: www.su.se/english/education/how-to-apply/entry-requirements/english-requirements-1.446798
• Degree projects/theses (no more than 3 files).

The instructions for applicants are available at: How to apply for a position.

You are welcome to apply!

Stockholm University contributes to the development of sustainable democratic society through knowledge, enlightenment and the pursuit of truth.