PhDstudent in Media & Communication Studies with a focus on Northern Sweden - Befattningen är under tillsättning eller redan tillsatt, och det är inte längre möjligt att lämna in en ansökan

The Faculty of Arts at Umeå University develops the Humanities and invests in future Areas of Excellence.  

The Department of Culture and Media Studies invites applications for the doctoral training program in Media and Communication studies with a focus on Northern Sweden and sustainability.

The Department of Culture and Media Studies belongs to Umeå University´s Faculty and has about 70 employees. A unique combination of subject areas makes the department a creative environment at the intersection of art, culture, literature, and media. The department conducts internationally recognized research of high quality. For more information, please visit: https://www.umu.se/en/department-of-culture-and-media-studies/

Media and communications studies is an interdisciplinary field that deals with mediated communication in all its forms in traditional, as well as digital and social media. Our forms of communication are today in rapid change, due to a radically altered media landscape and the ongoing digitization of society and culture. At the department, around 20 researchers, teachers and PhD students in media and communication and journalism studies work with different types of research projects in areas such as media history, digital media, environmental, journalism and strategic communication. The research is extensive and varied and holds many different theoretical perspectives and empirical fields.

The Artic graduate school
As a PhD-student you will be part in an interdisciplinary research environment, connected both to your subject area, as well as in the Artic graduate school on sustainable development at Umeå University. All engaged PhD-students are expected to participate in the joint activities of the graduate school and are offered program-specific courses complementing the subject-specific syllabus. For mor information about the graduate school at Arcum, read more here: https://www.umu.se/en/arctic-centre/education/gradschool/

This PhD-position is part of the project "Media Discourses of a Sustainable North: journalism, places and practices in transition" which has a focus on the media industry’s on-going mobilisation in the North of Sweden due to the so-called green re-industrialisation. The media’s possibilities to be a transformative power in the transition towards more sustainable societies are studied here. The democratic role of journalism, and the national media’s renewed interest in Norrland, are of particular interest for empirical research and critical analysis, which is why we welcome research proposals with such profiles.

Qualifications

General requirements 
To be admitted to studies at the third-cycle level, the applicant must meet both general and specific eligibility requirements. General requirements: a Master’s or equivalent degree in a relevant field, having completed course requirements worth at least 240 credits, of which at least 60 credits must be at second-cycle level, or in some other way – either in Sweden or abroad – having acquired equivalent knowledge. 

Specific requirements 
In order to meet the specific eligibility requirements for admission to studies in Media and Communication studies at third cycle level, the applicant must have completed at least 30 credits in Media and Communication studies at second-cycle level - or the equivalent in other subjects or areas of relevance for this position. This position presupposes good language skills in Swedish and English in both speech and writing. 

See general study plan: https://www.umu.se/en/faculty-of-arts/education/doctoral-studies/general-syllabi/

Assessment criteria

Applicants are ranked with reference to their capacity to benefit from and complete the program. The assessment is based primarily on prior study results, with particular consideration given to essays, and the quality of the research plan and its relevance for the subject area. The assessment is also based on references and interviews, and possibly additional evaluations of the main candidates.

The degree must be completed at the latest at the end of the application period. 

Terms of employment

PhD students will mainly devote themselves to their own education at third-cycle level. Employment as a PhD student will be for the time deemed necessary for the completion of research studies at a normal rate of study, which corresponds to a full-time position for four years. An initial contract of 12 months is extended with up to two years at a time provided that the individual study plan is followed. A PhD student may to a limited extent also work with teaching and administration up to a maximum of 20 percent of full-time. The period of employment may thus be extended up to a maximum of five years. The entry level salary is 29,000 SEK and rises in three steps to 33,600 SEK. 

Additional information

All admitted PhD students at the Faculty of Arts are affiliated with a doctoral collage and in this case the Artic graduate school. The studies are coordinated with the PhD training program at the Department of Culture and Media Studies. The PhD studies begin at the start of the autumn semester, 29 August, 2022. The place of work is Umeå University. The PhD students are expected to actively contribute to the research environment.  

According to The Higher Education Ordinance, chapter 12 §2, a decision of appointment for a PhD student position may not be appealed. 

Application

An application should contain:

• A degree certificate, transcript from the Ladok student registry, and/or equivalent attested copies of your academic transcripts proving that general and specific requirements are met.
• Curriculum vitae, including name and contact information of two reference persons.
• Copies of relevant BA and MA theses and other relevant publications.
• A letter that states your motivation for undertaking research training leading to a PhD, and that specifies what expertise at the Department is needed for carrying out your research.
• Research plan – should normally not exceed 30,000 characters including spaces – that contains a description of the proposed project’s:  
  - purpose and research problem 
  - previous research 
  - implementation, that is, method, material and theory 
  - relevance 
  - time plan 

Your application must be registered in Umeå University’s e-recruitment system no later than 31 May, 2022. 

Please note: the Swedish version is the official version of this advertisement. In the case of any differences in information between this and the official version, it is the official version that is the legally correct version of the advertisement for these PhD positions. 

We look forward to receiving your application!