PhD student in Conservation

The Department of Archaeology, Ancient History and Conservation invites students with an advanced degree in Conservation or equivalent to apply for funding for a doctoral position at the Berit Wallenberg Foundation, with the department hosting the programme.

The Department of Archaeology, Ancient History and Conservation is a dynamic and expanding research environment with around 100 employees working in both Visby and Uppsala. The environment comprises seven disciplines taught at undergraduate and advanced levels, and the department offers postgraduate education in Conservation, Archaeology, Classical Archaeology and Ancient History, and Egyptology. Conservation is offered in Visby, Archaeology is offered in both Uppsala and Visby, and Classical Archaeology and Ancient History and Egyptology are offered in Uppsala.

The department has an integrated research culture that includes the GRASS research school in Visby and two centres of excellence in Uppsala. Competencies in cultural heritage management include sustainable management of cultural heritage, building and environment-related cultural heritage management, cultural heritage and social security, and research on the role of cultural heritage in social, ecological and economic sustainable development. It is important that this profile is strengthened in the future with expertise in preventive conservation and collection management. More information about ongoing research projects is available on the department’s website.

Duties
Doctoral education through employment as a doctoral student comprises four years of net study. As a doctoral student, you are expected to pursue your doctoral education on a full-time basis and, within the framework of this, to actively participate in the department’s seminar activities. For further information, see the study plans that regulate education within each main field of study. Teaching or administrative duties at the department corresponding to a maximum of 20 per cent may occur by agreement. The employment is extended to a corresponding extent.

Applicants who are admitted to the doctoral programme will be employed as doctoral students at the department for four years on a full-time basis. Salary according to the local collective agreement on salaries for doctoral students. Doctoral students are covered by the terms of employment that apply to all employees at Uppsala University regarding insurance, holidays and the right to parental leave.

Requirements
To meet the entry requirements for doctoral studies, you must:

• hold an advanced degree in Conservation, or
• have completed at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 higher education credits at advanced level, including an independent project worth at least 15 higher education credits in one of the above-mentioned main areas, or
• in some other way have acquired essentially equivalent knowledge.
• received funding from Berit Wallenberg Foundation

Other information about the doctoral position
Please note that the doctoral position can only be filled if the applicant receives funding from the Berit Wallenberg Foundation. The foundation funds research in archaeology and art history, preferably up to the end of the 19th century. Grants are primarily awarded for research relating to Swedish and Nordic material. The applicant is responsible for designing the research plan so that the project clearly falls within one of the foundation’s areas of focus (archaeology or art) and corresponds to the foundation’s priorities. Applications that are not considered to have realistic prospects of competing for funding from the foundation will not be nominated by the department. After internal review, the department board decides which applications the department can endorse. The Berit Wallenberg Foundation then makes the final selection and decides on funding.

Application
The application, which can be written in Swedish or English, must include:

• an introductory letter (max 2 A4 pages) describing yourself, why you want to pursue doctoral studies and why you are suitable for admission to a doctoral programme,
• the applicant’s CV showing the educational background (max 2 A4 pages),
• contact details of two referees,
• Master’s (second cycle) thesis (if one was included in the programme) and any publications,
• research plan (max. 10 A4 pages), including the research question, state or the art, material and methodological issues, and the relevance of the project both to the scientific community in general and to the research funder in particular,
• copies of degree certificates or equivalent documenting eligibility.

Assessment criteria
The department board makes its decision based on 1) the quality, feasibility and relevance of the research plan; 2) the applicant’s qualifications for the intended research task; 3) the applicant’s ability to benefit from doctoral education in general; 4) the quality of the applicant’s submitted degree project; 5) the applicant’s ability to complete the research task within the set time frame; 6) the department’s ability to offer qualified supervision; 7) other publications and relevant employment. During the admission process, a selection of applicants will be invited to an interview.

About the position
The employment is limited in time, the scope is full-time. Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1–7 and in Uppsala University’s rules and guidelines. Start date 1 January 2027 or as agreed. Location:  Visby. Applicants admitted to the doctoral programme will be employed as full-time doctoral students at the department for four years with salary according to a salary scale negotiated with the employee organisations.

For further information about the position, please contact: Head of Department Karl-Johan Lindholm, prefekt@arkeologi.uu.se, 018-471 20 81; Director of PhD Studies Michael Lindblom, michael.lindblom@antiken.uu.se, 018-471 75 53.

Please submit your application by 1 April 2026, UFV-PA 2026/559.-