Three PhD position in Education with a focus on educational equity and school segregation

The Department of Education (EDU) provides research and study programs at doctoral, undergraduate, and postgraduate levels, as well as contract education, in the research subjects of Curriculum Studies, Education, and Sociology of Education. EDU also offers several Master’s programs. EDU has around 250 employees, of which 175 are teachers/researchers, 45 are doctoral students and 30 are administrators. More information about the department is available at https://www.uu.se/en/department/education.

The science of Education aims to develop knowledge of the processes, both formal and informal, through which children, young people, and adults are formed and change in different social, cultural, and institutional contexts, such as preschool, school, family, leisure time, working life, and higher education. Education is concerned with varying aspects of upbringing, socialization, education, learning, and teaching, as well as the prerequisites for and implementation of other social processes. Questions investigated include, for example, how and why different forms of values, knowledge, and skills are produced, sustained, and changed within and across generations, groups, and individuals.

The Department of Education hereby announces three doctoral positions within the framework of the research school STEPS (see below) in the subject area of Education. Further information about the subject is available here: https://www.uu.se/en/department/education/research/education

The STEPS Research School

The doctoral positions are funded by the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet), grant number 2025–07018, Strengthening Teacher Education for Equitable Practice in Swedish Schools (STEPS). The research school is coordinated by the University of Gothenburg in collaboration with Uppsala University and Stockholm University.

The overarching aim of the STEPS research school is to contribute new knowledge to Swedish teacher education, grounded in contemporary research on educational equity, school segregation, and the societal mission of schooling. STEPS is based on an interdisciplinary model in which doctoral education and research on educational equity and segregation are integrated in active interaction with teacher education. STEPS thus functions as a bridge between advanced research and pedagogical practice, contributing to strengthening the research foundation and relevance of teacher education in relation to the compensatory mission of schools.

At Uppsala University, three research areas will be in focus within the Department of Education:

• Area 1 examines how school markets, residential context, living conditions, and geographical factors influence families’ early choices of preschool and compulsory school.
• Area 2 analyses how student composition at the preschool and school level interacts with pedagogical practices and quality aspects, and the significance of these interactions for educational outcomes across different geographical and demographic contexts.
• Area 3 studies how school segregation develops in different regional and local school markets, with a focus on how the provision of schools is shaped, experienced, and managed within local institutional practices.

As a doctoral student, you will be affiliated with the research group Housing, Education and Segregation (BUS), a multidisciplinary research environment operating at the intersection of sociology, geography, and education. Research within BUS focuses on how spatial contexts – particularly housing and schooling – shape children’s, young people’s, and families’ opportunities for action, choices, and educational outcomes. The research conducted within BUS has a strong empirical and data-driven profile and builds on collaboration with municipalities and other public actors. The group combines large-scale quantitative analyses of register and survey data with qualitative studies of institutional practices, governance, and everyday decision-making processes. A central focus is the development of analytical approaches that allow for more causal interpretations of the relationships between segregation, school choice, and educational outcomes, complemented by interview-based and ethnographically inspired studies that deepen the understanding of quantitative patterns.

Further information about the BUS research environment is available on the department’s website: https://www.uu.se/en/department/education/research/education/the-research-group-housing-education-and-segregation-bus 

Duties: The full-time employment will be on a temporary basis for a period of four years and should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). PhD students are expected to study full-time and actively participate in the department’s activities. Departmental duties (typically teaching and administration) at a level of at most 20 percent can be included in the position, in which case the employment period will be extended beyond the four years.

Requirements: In order to be eligible for PhD studies in Education at Uppsala University the following requirements need to be met: a) completion of an advanced level degree b) fulfillment of the requirements for courses comprising at least 240 credits, of which at least 60 credits awarded at the advanced level, and c) have completed courses of at least 90 credits in Education, or the equivalent in some other form in Sweden or abroad. Proficiency in Swedish is not a requirement for employment, but the applicant is expected to learn Swedish, and must have an excellent command of spoken and written English. 

Additional qualifications: Documented experience in quantitative methods is considered particularly meritorious, for example in the analysis of register or survey data, as well as an interest in methodological development and advanced statistical analyses.

Applications should include: completed and signed application form https://www.uu.se/download/18.3639f68418f572f151d707/1715160978111/Ansokan_forskarniva_210304.pdf one copy of relevant degree theses (bachelor’s thesis and master’s thesis or equivalent), a short CV with any publications, degree certificates and grades confirming that you meet the general and specific entry requirements, as well as other documents or merits that the applicant wants to highlight. The application shall also include a description (4–5 pages) of the applicant’s proposed research focus and doctoral project, based on one of the research areas presented above. The description should include the research question(s), disciplinary context, review of relevant prior research, the type of data required, proposed methodology, reflections on the relevance of the dissertation project, as well as a statement explaining the applicant’s interest in pursuing doctoral studies in Education at Uppsala University.

All documents submitted with the application should be in Swedish or English. All attached documentation in other languages than Swedish and English, should be officially translated into English.

Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1-7 and in Uppsala University's rules and guidelines.

For more information on PhD programmes at the department, see https://www.uu.se/en/department/education/study/doctoral-studies

For the curriculum regulating third-cycle education in Education studies, see Allmän studieplan pedagogik https://www.uu.se/download/18.773af7981919740a5cc20c73/1725370903064/ASP pedagogik rev 1 juni 23.pdf

The doctoral training in education is also regulated by the Faculty of Educational Sciences “Procedures for the Admission to Doctoral Studies”, “Continuation of Employment”, Prolongation of Employment” and “Procedures for the PhD Student’s Individual Study Plan”, see https://www.uu.se/medarbetare/fakultet/utbildningsvetenskaper/utbildning-pa-forskarniva/riktlinjer.

A doctoral student may be employed for maximum eight years, however the length (or duration) of the employment may not exceed the equivalent to full-time doctoral studies of four years.

About the employment
The employment is a temporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7. Salary according to local agreement for PhD students. Scope of employment 100 %. Starting date as agreed. Placement: Uppsala.

For further information about the position, please contact: Director of PhD studies: Gunilla Lindqvist, gunilla.lindqvist@edu.uu.se, phone 070-6938622. Research Leader of BUS, Håkan Forsberg, hakan.forsberg@edu.uu.se , 018-471 2456.

In this recruitment we have replaced the cover letter with questions that you are asked to answer when making your application. The answers will be used as a part of the selection process.

Please submit your application by 25 March 2026, UFV-PA 2026/331.

Are you considering moving to Sweden to work at Uppsala University? Find out more about what it´s like to work and live in Sweden.