Project Description

Research Subject: Real Estate and Construction

The Department of Real Estate and Construction at KTH is one of Sweden's leading environments for research and education in construction procurement and innovation.

In close collaboration with industry, society, and other universities in Sweden and internationally, KTH develops research-based knowledge to lead sustainable societal development.

The PhD candidate we are looking for will work on the project "Sustainable Transition for the Benefit of Citizens through Public Procurement and Co-Creation" and will be part of the national Graduate School for the Future of the Public Sector, FOFOS. FOFOS is a transdisciplinary and innovative graduate school that serves as a national knowledge hub for the development of new action-oriented knowledge for the transformation of the public sector. Read more here (https://www.sustaingov.se/aktuellt/2025-8/sustaingov-far-forskarskola/)

FOFOS is part of SustainGov, one of Sweden's five Impact Innovation programs initiated by the Swedish Energy Agency, Formas, and Vinnova.

The purpose of the PhD project is to increase knowledge about how public procurers and companies can co-create and drive transition through public procurement.

Supervision: Tina Karrbom Gustavsson and Per Erik Eriksson are proposed to supervise the PhD candidate. A decision will be made upon admission.

Eligibility for Admission

To be admitted to doctoral education (Chapter 7, Section 39 of the Higher Education Ordinance), the applicant must have basic eligibility:

completed a degree at an advanced level, or
fulfilled course requirements of at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 higher education credits at an advanced level, or
acquired equivalent knowledge in some other way, within or outside the country.

The degree must be in civil engineering, political science, or business administration/industrial economics. There must be significant elements of organization and management, and/or innovation management in the degree.

In addition to the above, there is also a link (https://www.kth.se/en/studies/phd/admission-requirements-1.520175).

Selection

To succeed in your doctoral studies at KTH, you need to be goal-oriented and persistent in your work. In the selection of applicants, the ability to:

independently drive your work forward,
collaborate with others,
maintain a professional approach, and
analyze and work with complex issues.
Additionally, you should have experience collaborating with individuals with various competencies and in different roles and types of organizations.
You should also have knowledge of and interest in the challenges faced by the public sector.
You should have a good ability to communicate in both Swedish and English to various target groups for daily work.

After the eligibility requirements, significant weight will be placed on personal qualities.

Target Degree: Doctorate

Information about Admission and Employment

Only those who have been admitted to doctoral education may be employed as PhD candidates. The total employment period may not exceed what corresponds to full-time doctoral education for four years. An employed PhD candidate may, to a limited extent (maximum 20%), perform certain tasks within e.g. education and administration. A new employment as a PhD candidate is valid for a maximum of one year, after which the employment may be renewed for a maximum of two years at a time. For studies that will conclude with a licentiate degree, the total employment period may not exceed what corresponds to full-time doctoral education for two years.

As a PhD candidate, you will benefit from employment benefits (https://www.kth.se/om/jobba-pa-kth/kth-en-arbetsplats-med-manga-formaner-1.467932) and receive a monthly salary according to salary structure (https://intra.kth.se/anstallning/anstallningsvillkor/lon/doktorandstegen-1.572915). Read more about doctoral studies (https://www.kth.se/studies/phd/doctoral-studies-phd-1.9318).

Union Representatives

Contact information for union representatives (https://intra.kth.se/administration/rekrytering/annonsering/fackrepresentanter-1.500898).

Doctoral Section (Student Union of the Royal Institute of Technology) Contact information for Doctoral Section (https://www.dr.kth.se/).

Application

You apply via KTH's recruitment system. As an applicant, you are primarily responsible for ensuring that your application is complete when submitted.

The application must reach KTH no later than the last application day at midnight, CET/CEST (Central European Time/Central European Summer Time).

The application should contain the following:

Copies of degree certificates and transcripts from previous university studies and certificates of fulfilled requirements (https://www.kth.se/en/studies/phd/admission-requirements-1.520175). Translations into English or Swedish if the original documents are not issued in one of these languages. Copies of originals should be verified (https://www.kth.se/student/studier/examen/vidimering-av-handlingar-1.55190).
CV with relevant professional experiences and skills.
Cover letter with a brief account of why you want to pursue doctoral studies, your academic interests, and how they relate to your previous studies and future goals. (Max 2 pages)
Representative publications or technical reports. For longer documents, please attach a summary (abstract) and a web link to the full text.

Other

For processing of personal data (https://www.kth.se/om/work-at-kth/processing-of-personal-data-in-the-recruitment-process-1.823440) in connection with recruitment.

It may occur that an employment at KTH is classified in a security class. If this is the case for this employment, a security review of the applicant will be conducted in accordance with the Security Protection Act (2018:585) after consent. In these cases, a prerequisite for employment is that the applicant is approved after the security review.

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

Become a part of KTH

KTH shapes the future through education, research, and innovation. As a leading international technical university, we play an active role in driving and participating in the transition to a sustainable society. Here, you are offered the opportunity to grow and develop in a creative and dynamic workplace with good working conditions and benefits. Gender equality, diversity, and equal opportunities are quality issues and an obvious part of KTH's values as a university and government agency.

Read more about working at KTH (https://www.kth.se/om/jobba-pa-kth)