We are inviting applicants interested in critical scholarly inquiry into the design of medical products and systems, for a 3-year PhD position starting 1 September 2022.
We are inviting applicants interested in critical scholarly inquiry into the design of medical products and systems, for a 3-year PhD position starting 1 September 2022. The candidate will work at the Department of Design and Communication at the University of Southern Denmark, within a research group investigating design’s ongoing engagement with users’ bodily well-being.
Qualifications
Candidates are required to have a relevant Master’s degree – such as (but not limited to) the following:
- Master’s degree in humanistic studies of design, e.g. Design Studies or Design History;
- Master’s degree in other social sciences and humanities disciplines, e.g. Science and Technology Studies or Cultural Studies; or
- Master’s degree in design disciplines, such as Industrial Design or Product Design.
Candidates are also required to have:
- prior experience with in-depth qualitative fieldwork, and
- good academic writing skills in English.
Preferred qualifications include prior experience with academic publishing; practical or scholarly experience with or within the medical sector; and/or working knowledge of Danish or one of the Scandinavian languages.
The project
PhD position is related to the 3-year research project “Design as Somatic Expertise: The User’s Body and Well-Being in Design Today,” funded by Carlsberg Foundation. The project is led by Harun Kaygan at the Department of Design and Communication in Kolding, under the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Southern Denmark. The research project “Design as Somatic Expertise” investigates designers’ interest in and engagements with users’ bodily well-being across design disciplines such as product design and interaction design, and in the design of diverse products as medical devices and playground equipment. We are interested in how designed products track users’ movements, habits and bodily processes, as well as how designers develop and use methods to capture users’ gestures, skills and affective states. More information on the research project can be found at the following link:
The PhD project will investigate medical device design from a critical humanistic perspective, using STS-based theoretical frameworks together with qualitative methods. It will look into design dimensions such as user-product interactions, interface design, aesthetics and atmosphere, around issues such as self-tracking and self-monitoring, prosthetic embodiment, and building and maintenance of care networks. It is expected for the PhD candidate to design and conduct their own research under supervision. The PhD project will be supervised by Harun Kaygan and an external co-supervisor related to the medical sector.
Further information is available from Associate Professor Harun Kaygan at hkay@sdu.dk
Application, salary and conditions of employment etc.
A PhD Fellowship is a three-year position. Employment ends automatically by the end of the period. The holder of the fellowship is not allowed to have other paid employment during the three-year period.
The successful applicant will be employed in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and AC (the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations), Cirkulære om overenskomst for Akademikere i staten 2019 (the document only exists in Danish).
To qualify for a PhD position, you must have completed a relevant master’s degree with a good assessment by the application deadline.
The application should include:
- Special PhD-application form found here
- Curriculum Vitae
- Detailed project description, no more than 5 pages
- Examination certificates
- A maximum of 2 of the most relevant publications. Please attach one pdf-file for each publication. For any publication with a co-author, a co-author statement must be submitted as part of the pdf-file
Application and all appendices must be in Danish, English or one of the Scandinavian languages. Only material in Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, and English will be assessed. Please always include a copy of original diploma/certificates.
Please always include a copy of original diploma/certificates. We only accept files in pdf-format no more than 10 MB per file. In case you have more than one file per field you need to combine the pdf-files into a single file, as each field handles only one file. We do not accept zip-files, jpg or other image files. All pdf-files must be unlocked and allow binding and may not be password protected.
Applications will be assessed by an assessment committee and the applicant will receive the part of the evaluation that concerns him/her. The assessment report will subsequently be forwarded to the Head of Department who will assemble an appointments committee. An interview may form part of the overall assessment of the applicants’ qualifications. The committee may request additional information, and if so, it is the responsibility of the applicant to provide the necessary material.
If the application does not meet the requirements mentioned above, the Faculty of Humanities may reject your application without further notice. Applications received after the deadline will neither be considered nor evaluated.
Shortlisting and tests may be used in the assessment process. Please note that only a shortlisted applicant will receive an assessment.
Applications should be sent electronically via the link “apply online” and the Faculty expects applicants to read the information “How to apply” before applying.
We recommend that as an international applicant you take the time to visit Working in Denmark where you will find information and facts about moving to, working and living in Denmark, as well as the International Staff Office at SDU.
The University wishes our staff to reflect the diversity of society and thus welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background.
Further information about the PhD-program at the Faculty of Humanities can be found here.
Send application
Deadline 2022-June-29
You can apply for the job at Faculty of Humanities by completing the application form