PhD position in Computer Science, TRUMAN

Description

The Faculty of Health, Science, and Technology is advertising a position within its doctoral program leading to a PhD in Computer Science.

A PhD position is available within the Privacy and Security research group (PriSec) at the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science at Karlstad University. Research within PriSec is specialized in privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) and privacy engineering, network security, and usable security and privacy. We are now looking for someone who is enthusiastic about driving state-of-the-art technology forward together with us!

Duties

The candidate is expected to contribute to research within the research project TRUstworthy huMAN-centric artificial intelligence (TRUMAN), funded by the Horizon Europe Programme. The position and project work are focused on aspects of robust and trustworthy artificial intelligence (AI) and human computer interaction (HCI) related to usable privacy and cybersecurity.

As a doctoral student, you will primarily dedicate time to your own studies. The doctoral programme, comprising 240 credits for a Degree of Doctor and 120 credits for a Degree of Licentiate, is an opportunity to study while being paid a salary in combination with work and provides a stepping stone for a career in academia. The doctoral student is expected to work independently and be prepared to contribute to the activities and development of the subject and the department. Teaching and administrative duties may also be included upon agreement, but will not constitute more than 20% of full-time.

Work as a doctoral student allows for great freedom and flexibility in terms of how you structure your day. It takes commitment, discipline and a structured approach in order to successfully complete a doctoral thesis. Experienced supervisors offer guidance and support along the way. To contribute to a positive work environment and further the department’s activities, we expect you to be a present and active part of the day-to-day operations and workplace community.

Qualification requirements

To be eligible for a doctoral studentship, the applicant must meet the general and specific entry requirements (Higher Education Ordinance, Chap. 7, Sect. 35).

To meet the general entry requirements, the applicant must have been awarded a second-cycle qualification, satisfied the requirements for courses comprising at least 240 credits of which at least 60 credits were awarded in the second-cycle, or acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way in Sweden or abroad (Higher Education Ordinance, Chap. 7, Sect. 39).

To meet the specific entry requirements for third-cycle studies in Computer Science, the applicant must have a Master’s degree or the Swedish Magister or Civilingenjör Degrees in Computer Science or Computer Engineering, or equivalent. Eligible are also those candidates who have achieved corresponding degrees or knowledge in Sweden or abroad.

Admission and assessment criteria

To be eligible for doctoral studies, you must be considered capable of benefitting from the programme (Higher Education Ordinance, Chap. 7, Sect. 35). Admission is based on individual assessment.

In particular, your academic performance in previous education, the quality of the independent written work included in the education, whether you have very good knowledge of English, and your intention to be present and participate in the research environment will be assessed. Knowledge or experience in at least one or more of the following areas: cybersecurity, privacy-enhancing technologies, privacy and security measurements, trustworthy AI and HCI, and especially usable privacy, security, and transparency.

Knowledge of and experience in interdisciplinary projects in these areas, and in particular experience in HCI research and user studies, are highly important. Personal qualities such as initiative, cooperation skills, and the ability to communicate with international and national project partners and to work both independently and in a team are also highly important.

Knowledge of Swedish is an advantage.

Terms

Upon admission to doctoral studies, the person will be offered the appointment of doctoral student (Higher Education Ordinance, Chap. 5, Sect. 3). The position comprises four years of full-time studies, or five years at a study rate of 80% with 20% teaching or other departmental duties. The position is fixed-term — one year initially, followed by possible extensions by a maximum of two years at a time. Start date by agreement.

The salary for the doctoral studentship corresponds to the standard level of salary for doctoral students and progresses in accordance with a local collective agreement.

Application

Submit the application via the University’s web-based recruitment tool, Varbi.

Applicants are responsible for submitting a complete application in accordance with the advertisement, for providing translations of any documents written in a language other than Swedish, Norwegian, Danish or English, and for ensuring that the documentation allows for objective and qualitative assessments. A complete application should be submitted by the application deadline. An incomplete application may jeopardise a fair assessment of qualifications.

The application should include:

-a cover letter where the applicant details the reasons behind their interest in the position, 
-a list of qualifications (CV),
-degree certificate with a complete tanscript of the courses included, or a certified list of comleted courses with grades and dates,
-copy of Master's thesis or equivalent,
-where applicable, copies of publications or certificates for other qualifications,
-any letters of recommendation,
- two references, such as a teacher, supervisor, or previous or current superior.

Attach all the documents and publications you wish to be considered to the electronic application (do not just provide links). Name each uploaded document to clearly indicate its content.

Documents that cannot be submitted electronically should be sent to the following address:

Karlstads universitet
Hanna Ljungdahl
651 88 KARLSTAD 

Application deadline: 2025-05-29

State the reference number: Reference REK2025/06

Applicants with qualifications from abroad

If you have qualifications from a university outside Sweden or if they have not been recognised by a Swedish authority before, it is important that you attach degree certificates and official transcripts to facilitate the recognition of foreign qualifications.
Provide a contact for the degree-awarding institution (phone number or email) who can verify your qualifications.

We look forward to your application!

Karlstad University has chosen advertising channels for this recruitment and firmly declines any contact with advertising or recruitment agencies.