PhD student in Computer and Systems Sciences, with focus on Data Science

The Department of Computer and Systems Sciences. With over 200 employees and 4,500 students, the Department of Computer and Systems Sciences (DSV) is a strong and dynamic research and educational environment. The discipline of computer and systems sciences bridges the gap between technology and the humanities, social sciences, and behavioral sciences, with great relevance to our lives today and in the future. Our research addresses how new information and communication technology should be designed to benefit people, organizations and entire societies.

DSV offers a stimulating research community in an international environment. As a doctoral student at DSV, you study together with many other doctoral students, collaborate with senior research colleagues and get connected to other researchers in Sweden and abroad. DSV’s current location is Stockholm University's campus in Kista, north of central Stockholm, and we will move to the main Frescati campus in a couple of years.

More information about us, please visit: the Department of Computer and Systems Sciences.

Project description

Our society is increasingly shaped by data-driven decision-making, where vast and diverse datasets are generated across domains such as healthcare, finance, transportation, and social media. Extracting actionable insights from such heterogeneous and dynamic data environments presents significant challenges, including data integration, real-time analytics, model scalability, and interpretability.

This project will focus on advanced data mining and machine learning methods for extracting insights from large-scale, complex, and often heterogeneous multimodal data, with a particular emphasis on temporal and time-dependent data. The research will investigate how meaningful patterns and predictive signals can be identified from data that evolve over time, such as longitudinal, behavioral, interaction, or event-based data, particularly in critical domains such as healthcare. The project will build on ongoing research in machine learning for structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data, as well as on methodological aspects of interpretable and trustworthy data science. The project is expected to combine solid methodological foundations with empirical evaluation on real-world datasets, and to contribute to both scientific understanding and practical relevance.

The project is part of a vibrant academic community with a strong national and international network, offering opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration, seminars, and scientific exchange within both academia and industry. In addition to a competitive salary and wellness benefits, the candidate is offered strong support for academic development, including funding for books, conference travel, and professional growth opportunities.

Qualification requirements

In order to be admitted to postgraduate education, the applicant must have the general and specific entry requirements. The qualification requirements must be met by the deadline for applications.

You meet general entry requirements if you have completed a second-cycle degree, or completed courses equivalent to at least 240 higher education credits, of which 60 credits must be in the second cycle, or have otherwise acquired equivalent knowledge in Sweden or elsewhere.

Specific entry requirements are described in the general syllabus for doctoral studies in the field of Computer and Systems Sciences and state that the applicant must have completed courses at second-cycle level in Computer and Systems Sciences with a minimum of 60 higher education credits or equivalent. The applicant must also have completed a degree project (thesis) of at least 15 higher education credits. In addition, the applicant is required to have English language skills equivalent of Common European Framework of Reference for Languages Level B2.

Selection

The selection among the eligible candidates will be based on their capacity to benefit from the training. The following criteria will be used to assess this capacity:

• Independence in the analysis and organization of the earlier work
• Problem formulation and rigor in previous work and in the research plan
• Previously shown ability to keep the specified time limits
• Methodological and scientific maturity
• Communication and cooperation skills
• Subject specific knowledge relevant to education.

Written and oral proficiency in Swedish will also be considered a plus.

Admission Regulations for Doctoral Studies at Stockholm University.

About the employment

We offer a fixed-term employment as a doctoral student according to Chapter 5 of the Higher Education Ordinance (1993:100). The period of employment may not be longer than what corresponds to full-time doctoral education for four years. As a doctoral student, you should primarily devote yourself to your own doctoral education, but the employment may include work with education, research and administration to a limited extent (maximum 20 %).

A new employment as a doctoral student is for a maximum of one year, the employment is then renewed for a maximum of two years at a time.

Stockholm University strives to be a workplace free from discrimination and with equal opportunities for all.

Contact

For more information, please contact Associate Professor Tony Lindgren, tony@dsv.su.se, Senior Lecturer Ioanna Miliou, ioanna.miliou@dsv.su.se, or Director of PhD studies, Åsa Smedberg, studierektorF@dsv.su.se. 

Application

Apply for the PhD student position at Stockholm University's recruitment system. Attach a personal letter and CV as well as the attachments requested in the application form. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application is complete in accordance with the instructions in the job advertisement, and that it is submitted before the deadline.

The instructions for applicants are available at: How to apply for a position.