PhD Position in Sport Science

Project Description:

Young people spend about three-quarters of their day sedentary, often in front of screens, which is associated with decreased physical activity and worsened mental health. In 2024, the Public Health Agency's screen time recommendation was set at 2-3 hours per day, but most young people exceed this recommendation. The proposed PhD project aims to develop and evaluate a co-created intervention (SCREENFIT) to provide youth with strategies to promote a more balanced screen use (gih.se/screenfit (https://gih.se/screenfit)). This includes balancing screen time with other activities such as physical activity, sleep, and homework, while also using the remaining screen time more mindfully – for example, by managing scrolling habits, reducing “phone pickups,” and choosing content that does not reinforce negative feelings.

The PhD work includes recruiting and coordinating participating schools and youth in the project, liaising with partners, developing an intervention through co-production, planning and conducting data collection using both qualitative and quantitative methods, analyzing results, and writing reports and scientific articles.

Eligibility for Doctoral Education

To be admitted to doctoral education in sport science, the applicant must have:

• completed a degree at the advanced level, fulfilled course requirements of at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 higher education credits at the advanced level, or acquired equivalent knowledge in some other way,
• the ability otherwise required to complete the education.

In addition to the above, there is also a mandatory requirement for English equivalent to English B/6 (Link (#)). The basic eligibility must be fulfilled at the time of admission to doctoral education, June 4, 2025.

Application

The application for admission must include the following certified documents in PDF format:

• Degree certificate or other documents that verify eligibility. A copy of the degree certificate must be attached in the original language as well as in an English translation by an authorized translator (not applicable to Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, English). If studies are not completed at the time of application, the applicant must also attach a certificate issued by the educational institution stating the expected graduation date,
• Certificate of eligibility equivalent to English B/6 (link (#)),
• Thesis at the advanced level (master's or master's thesis). Accepted languages are Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, English,
• CV with a brief written motivation for the application based on educational background and work experience,
• Suggestions for at least two references and,
• A summary of scientific literature that can form the basis for the intended research project, including a justification of its societal relevance. The summary may comprise a maximum of 4,000 characters (including spaces, excluding references).

Selection

Selection among applicants is made with regard to the ability to benefit from doctoral education. An important assessment criterion is the focus on higher education credits at the advanced level and the quality of the independent work at the advanced level. The assessment is based on the following established criteria:

• familiarity with relevant prerequisites for the dissertation topic within the field of behavioral science, public health, or related areas.
• theoretical awareness and familiarity with adequate methods,
• analytical ability,
• ability for critical thinking and problem formulation,
• written and oral communicative ability in Swedish and English, and
• familiarity with ethical issues.

For this PhD position, the following will also be considered:

• great importance is placed on personal suitability for the position, such as good collaboration skills, drive, and ability to organize work,
• great importance is placed on experience in engaging, motivating, and communicating with youth,
• significant importance is placed on experience working with behavior change methods,
• significant importance is placed on having worked as a teacher, in school health, or in other roles in a school environment,
• importance is placed on experience in leading and organizing projects, and
• importance is placed on experience in data collection.

Admission and Employment

Regulations for admission to doctoral education are governed by Chapter 7 of the Higher Education Ordinance and GIH's admission regulations. Regulations for employment as a doctoral student can be found in Chapter 5 of the Higher Education Ordinance. Only those who are admitted to doctoral education may be appointed as doctoral students. In the appointment, emphasis will primarily be placed on the degree of ability to benefit from the education.

Other Conditions

As part of preparing doctoral students for a continued professional life within higher education, GIH would like the doctoral student to allocate their employment over five years with 20 percent so-called institutional service. The institution should ensure that the doctoral student gains teaching experience and that they can credit courses within the pedagogical development area in their doctoral education.

For more information about the employment as a doctoral student and doctoral education at GIH, please refer to our webpages on doctoral education at GIH.

For information on what it means to be employed at GIH, see our staff and leadership policy.

GIH promotes diversity and equality, and we welcome applicants with diverse backgrounds and experiences.

Duration/Working Hours

Fixed-term employment for four years full-time (equivalent to 100 percent working hours) according to Chapter 5, Sections 1-7 of the Higher Education Ordinance, with a start date no later than August 11, 2025.

Salary

The salary is regulated by local collective agreements.

Application Deadline

The application must be received by GIH no later than April 14, 2025.

Claimed merits must be verifiable upon request.

GIH promotes diversity and equality in all employment categories. We therefore welcome applicants with diverse backgrounds and experiences.

We kindly request no direct contact with staffing and recruitment companies or advertisers of job postings.