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Do you want to work with digital work environment in education, supported by competent and friendly colleagues in an international setting? Do you want an employer that invests in sustainable employee engagement and offers secure, favorable working conditions? Welcome to apply for a PhD position at Uppsala University.

You will be one of nine PhD candidates in the graduate school LärA-AI (The Work Environment of the Teaching Profession in an AI-Transformed School) funded by the Swedish Research Council. The graduate school's focus is on investigating how generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) affects teachers' work environment and professional role. When GenAI systems are used in planning, assessment, and decision-making, both teachers' tasks and how the work is experienced change. At the same time, research shows that many teachers already have a pressured work situation with high workload and increased administrative demands. Therefore, new knowledge is needed about how GenAI affects working conditions, responsibilities, and competence needs.

Job Description

As a PhD candidate within the LärA-AI graduate school, you will conduct practice-based and theoretically grounded research on how AI is used in teachers' daily work in higher education, with a particular focus on planning, assessment, and professional judgment. The work is based on the project “Who Decides? Teachers’ Autonomy in AI-Integrated Teaching Systems. How decision-making power and professional control change when teaching is affected by AI functionalities, with attention to how gendered expectations and norms shape experiences of autonomy and professional authority”. The project aims to investigate how university teachers' professional judgment, autonomy, and responsibility are renegotiated in the encounter with AI-based systems and how gendered norms and digital working conditions affect experiences of professional authority and decision-making in higher education.

The PhD work includes conducting literature reviews as well as qualitative and quantitative empirical studies. The qualitative studies may consist of interviews, observations, and analysis of work practices in school environments, focusing on how teachers' autonomy, professional judgment, and responsibility are affected by AI-based tools for planning and assessment regarding the distribution of responsibilities and teacher identity when using AI. The quantitative study aims to broaden and deepen the understanding of these issues and will likely be conducted in collaboration with other PhD candidates within the graduate school.

You are expected to actively participate in the graduate school's joint activities, such as courses, seminars, workshops, and international summer schools, as well as contribute to the research environment through joint discussions and collaboration.

The position includes approximately 70 credits of courses within the doctoral education and 20% of the position will be dedicated to teaching or other institutional assignments. The work is carried out in close collaboration with supervisors, other PhD candidates, and stakeholders in higher education, and also involves communicating research results through scientific publications, conferences, and other relevant forums.

Qualifications

Basic eligibility for doctoral education is met by those who:

• have obtained a master's degree in human-computer interaction, computer science, information systems, business administration, cognitive science, work science, or another closely related relevant subject area, or
• have completed at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 higher education credits at the advanced level including an independent project of at least 15 higher education credits, or
• have acquired equivalent knowledge in some other way.

The university may grant exceptions to the basic eligibility requirement for an individual applicant if there are special reasons. (Chapter 7, Section 39 of the Higher Education Act). For specific eligibility, see here (https://www.uu.se/medarbetare/fakultet/teknisk-naturvetenskapliga/utbildning-och-undervisning/utbildning-pa-forskarniva/amnen-och-studieplaner/amnen/datavetenskap-med-inriktning-mot-manniska-datorinteraktion).

In addition, the following is required:

• Excellent written ability, with documented ability to formulate and structure academic texts in English.
• Ability to work independently as well as collaborate with others, plan and drive a research project forward within given time frames.
• High motivation and good work capacity, with the ability to work purposefully and persistently with complex research tasks.
• Very good knowledge of Swedish, both spoken and written, as data collection, analysis, and collaboration take place in a Swedish-speaking context.

Desirable/meritorious qualifications

• Studies of digital work environment, digital work engagement, and similar within work environment
• Studies of professional judgment or decision-making
• Studies of the relationship between humans and technology and its distribution of responsibilities
• Studies of teachers' pedagogical practice
• Studies of gendered norms
• Teaching experience

Regulations for doctoral students can be found in the Higher Education Ordinance Chapter 5, Sections 1-7 as well as here (https://regler.uu.se/?languageId=3).

About the Position

The position is temporary, according to Chapter 5, Section 7 of the Higher Education Act. The extent is full-time. Start date May 1, 2026, or by agreement. Place of employment: Uppsala.

For inquiries about the position, please contact: Jessica Lindblom, phone: 018-471 78 48, email: [email protected].

Welcome with your application by February 23, 2026, UFV-PA 2026/295.

Uppsala University is a broad research university with a strong international position. The ultimate goal is to conduct education and research of the highest quality and relevance to make a difference in society. Our most important asset is all 7,600 employees and 53,000 students who, with curiosity and commitment, make Uppsala University one of the most exciting workplaces in the country.

Read more about our benefits and what it is like to work at Uppsala University here (https://uu.se/om-uu/jobba-hos-oss/).

The position may be subject to security screening. A prerequisite for employment during security screening is that the applicant is approved.

We kindly decline offers of recruitment and advertising assistance.

Applications are received in Uppsala University's recruitment system.

Union representatives: Saco-S - [email protected], Seko - [email protected], ST (OFR/S) - [email protected]