PhD fellowship on Street-level Bureaucracy of Regulatory Implementation for AI

The Human Centered Computing Section at the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Science at the University of Copenhagen invites applicants for a PhD fellowship on Street-level Bureaucracy of Regulatory Implementation for AI.

The start date is expected to be 1 February 2027 or as soon as possible thereafter.

The position

This doctoral position is part of REGULAIRE (Regulatory Learning for the Governance of Transformative Technologies) is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Network bringing together 15 doctoral candidates at ten European universities to study how regulation can learn and adapt in situations where technologies, risks, and expectations change quickly. Its projects examine how regulators sense emerging problems early, how balanced interventions encourage learning without overcorrection or underreaction, how such interventions alter institutional capacities, and how feedback can be institutionalised so that insights travel across organisations and jurisdictions.

Project description

The PhD student’s research is expected to conduct in-depth qualitative studies of how EU digital regulation (e.g., AIA, DSA) is technically and organisationally implemented in SMEs developing AI-related technologies. The goal is to map developers’ translation of regulatory guidance into product and service design and compares implementation strategies across sectors. This project offers a focused route into human-centred computing, sociotechnical research and the study of regulation in practice. You will join an international cohort, receive supervision across institutions and take part in three residential summer schools, methods workshops, monthly paper development seminars and joint work with regulators, standardisation bodies and international organisations. Every project includes a planned three-month intersectoral secondment.

The PhD student to be recruited in this call is expected to define their PhD project within the scope of the overall project and collaborate with the larger project team.

Description of the scientific environment

The position will be within the Human Centered Computing section (HCC). The Human Centered Computing section is a highly interdisciplinary group that conducts research within the areas of Human-Computer Interaction, Computer Supported Cooperative Work, Ubiquitous and Pervasive Computing, Digital Fabrication and related fields. Our section aspires to be a top research environment that bridges technology, theory, and empirical studies. The Human Centered Computing research environment at the University of Copenhagen is internationally leading, as evidenced by it’s ranking as second in Europe according to CSRankings. Further information about research at the Department is available here: https://di.ku.dk/english/research/ .

This position will be co-supervised by Irina Shklovski (email:ias@di.ku.dk) and Naja Holten Møller (email:naja@di.ku.dk)at the University of Copenhagen in the Department of Computer Science, Human-Centered Computing section. The PhD will be conducted in collaboration with Joris Van Hoboken, Professor of Information Law, with special emphasis on Law and Digital Infrastructure at the Institute for Information Law (IViR), Faculty of Law, University of Amsterdam

Who are we looking for?

• Applicants should hold a MSc degree or equivalent in Computer Science, Data Science, HCI, Critical Data Studies, STS, Law and Policy or a related field.
• Good written and oral English skills are a requirement.
• Previous scientific publications (if any) and relevant work experience is encouraged
• Applicants must be willing to engage in international mobility, including the planned secondment and network-wide activities

The ideal candidate would have an educational background or prior work experience in technology development, prior experience in qualitative research and fieldwork in organisations, and some understanding of European regulatory and policy concerns around AI systems.

The PhD programme

You can undertake the PhD programme as:

A three year full-time study within the framework of the regular PhD programme (5+3 scheme), if you already have an education equivalent to a relevant Danish Master’s degree.

Getting into a position on the regular PhD programme

Qualifications needed for the regular programme To be eligible for the regular PhD programme, you must have completed a degree programme equivalent to a Danish Master’s degree (180 ECTS/3 FTE BSc + 120 ECTS/2 FTE MSc) related to the subject area of the position, i.e. HCI or CS. For information of eligibility of completed programmes, see General assessments for specific countries and Assessment database.

Additional qualifications for the MSCA PhD

REGULAIRE is funded by the European Commission’s Marie Skłodowska-Curie programme and to be eligible for this funding you must meet the following criteria:

• You must not have resided or carried out your main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Denmark for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to your recruitment;
• You must work on the project full-time.

Please ensure that this information is clear on your CV. Researchers can be of any nationality.

Terms of employment in the regular programme Employment as a PhD fellow is full time, on site in Copenhagen, and for maximum 3 years.

Employment is conditional upon your successful enrolment as a PhD student at the PhD School at the Faculty of SCIENCE, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific position formulated by the applicant.

Terms of appointment and payment accord to the agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. The position is covered by the Protocol on Job Structure.

Responsibilitiesand tasks in the PhD programme*

• Carry out a research project with increasing autonomy from your supervisors
• Collaborate with researchers both within the research group, and with external project partners
• Author scientific papers aimed at high-impact venues
• Participate in the research and training activities with the REGULAIRE network
• Disseminate research nationally and internationally
• Attend PhD courses on general skills development such as academic writing, as well as relevant specialised courses such as REGULAIRE summer and winter schools
• Conduct a change of scientific environment in the form of a secondment with a relevant standards organisation and an extended visit with one of the REGULAIRE academic partners
• Write and defend a PhD thesis on the basis of your project

We are looking for the following qualifications:

• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD position
• Relevant educational background
• Relevant publications
• Relevant work experience
• Other relevant professional activities
• Good written and oral English language skills

Application and Assessment Procedure

Your application including all attachments must be in English and submitted electronically by clicking APPLY NOW below.

Please include:

1. Cover Letter detailing your motivation and background for applying for this PhD position;
2. Research Statement _detailing your desired research focus and goals for the PhD studies within the scope of the specified position._The research statement should demonstrate your independent thinking by outlining a concrete research direction within technology governance you wish to explore, including: specific research questions you aim to address, preliminary ideas on methodological approaches you would employ, connections to existing literature, and the potential impact and applications;
3. Curriculum vitae including information about your education, experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position;
4. Original diplomas for Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees and transcript of records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in another language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted;
5. Publication list (if available);
6. Names and contact details of three references.

Application deadline:

The deadline for applications isNovember 15, 23:59 GMT +1.

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

The further process After the deadline, a number of applicants will be selected for academic assessment by unbiased expert assessors. You will be notified about whether your application will be selected for assessment.

The assessors will assess the qualifications and experience of the shortlisted applicants with respect to the above-mentioned research area, skills and other requirements. The assessors will conclude whether each applicant is qualified. The assessed applicants will have the opportunity to comment on their assessments. You can read about the recruitment process at http://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/.

Interviews with selected candidates are expected to be held in December

Questions For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact augenstein@di.ku.dk.

General information about PhD study at the Faculty of SCIENCE is available at the PhD School’s website: https://www.science.ku.dk/phd/.

The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the surrounding community and invites all regardless of personal background to apply for the position.