Doctoral Researcher (15 positions)

We are inviting applications for 15 Doctoral Researcher (PhD Student) positions. The positions will be hosted by the Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology on either the Kuopio or the Joensuu campus and will start on 1 January 2026.

Please find more information below and submit your application by 1 September 2025.

Role and salary

In the position of a Doctoral Researcher (PhD Student), you will work at the Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology. The duties of a Doctoral Researcher (PhD Student) include working on their doctoral dissertation within the doctoral programme in accordance with their approved research proposal. The aim is to complete the doctoral degree within 3-4 years of full-time study, regardless of the funding source. The topics of doctoral research must be linked to the fields of research represented in the faculty.

The position of a Doctoral Researcher (PhD Student) may be applied for either on a full-time or a part-time basis. Part-time positions must be co-financed from another funding source (for example, an external grant or another organization), so that the total amount of funding enables the candidate to work full-time on their doctoral dissertation.

Doctoral Researcher (PhD Student) positions will be filled for a fixed term of three years if the applicant begins their doctoral research on 1 January 2026. The position can also be applied for to fund ongoing doctoral research, in which case any previous periods of working as a doctoral researcher or equivalent roles will be observed in the duration of the appointment regardless of their funding source. The research plan of the doctoral dissertation should allow for the pre-examination process to be initiated within three years of starting the dissertation work when working full-time.

In addition to the quality and innovativeness of the research proposal, the relevance of the applicant’s research to the faculty’s research fields, the applicant’s educational background and merits, and an estimate of the applicant’s possibilities to carry out their research and studies will be taken into consideration in the selection. The structure of the doctoral dissertation and the research proposal must comply with the faculty’s instructions (website). The applicant must also agree, in accordance with the aforementioned instructions, on the supervision arrangements of their doctoral dissertation with the supervisors before submitting the application. Applications will be evaluated based on uniform criteria by evaluation panels. The assessment may include an interview, which will be agreed upon separately.

The positions will be filled as from 1 January 2026. Doctoral Researcher positions are always filled for a fixed term, and the positions can be applied for a period of 1 to 3 years. A probationary period is applied to new members of the staff.

The salary of this position is based on the salary system for the teaching and research staff of Finnish universities. The salary consists of a job-related salary element and a personal salary element. In this position, the job-related salary element is based on levels 2–4 of the job requirement level chart, depending on the stage of the applicant’s doctoral research and postgraduate studies. In addition, a personal salary element is paid, which is 6–50% of the job-related salary element. At the beginning of the employment, the salary is approximately EUR 2,650–3,060/month.

Our requirements

We expect you to:

• be eligible for postgraduate studies; you hold a relevant Master’s degree awarded by a university or by a university of applied sciences, or a relevant applicable study programme abroad which in the awarding country gives eligibility for the corresponding level of higher education
• have sufficient English language skills for the task 
• meet the student admission criteria for the LUMETO doctoral programme (Doctoral Programme in Science, Forestry and Technology, website)
• be planning or working on your first doctoral degree
• have the research plan of the doctoral dissertation that is prepared to enable the pre-examination process to be initiated within three years of starting the dissertation work when working full-time
• be a postgraduate student registered with the University of Eastern Finland or be planning to complete your doctoral dissertation at the University of Eastern Finland. Students in the final stages of their Master’s degree may also apply provided that they complete their degree by 16 September 2025 and deliver a copy of their degree certificate to the faculty by 30 September 2025. For such applicants, the possible appointment to the Doctoral Researcher position will be conditional and tied to the completion of the degree by the above-mentioned deadline.

Applicants who do not yet have the right to pursue postgraduate studies at the University of Eastern Finland are not required to apply for study rights at the application stage. If the applicant is selected for the position and applies for postgraduate study rights, the selection will be conditional until the right to pursue postgraduate studies in the faculty’s doctoral programme has been granted. The application for postgraduate study rights is submitted through the Studyinfo (Opintopolku) service.

We offer you

You will have access to the university’s staff benefits, including:

• the opportunity for flexible multi-location work
• extensive occupational health care
• a broad selection of staff training
• staff discount on lunch in our campus restaurants, as well as on a range of other services
• affordable sports services and a tax-free bike benefit

Please read more in the Work at UEF section on our website. You will have an opportunity to work in an interesting and diverse role as part of our international, creative, participatory and inclusive academic community.

Enjoy your life in Finland! Known for its cleanliness, welfare know-how, modern technology and superb education system, Finland is an exotic and safe country to work in. Please visit the  Life in Finland section on our website to learn more.

How to apply?

Please submit your application by 1 September 2025 by using the electronic form. Only applications that contain all appendices specified in the call will be evaluated and taken into account in the selection. The aim is that the faculties decide on the persons to be appointed to the positions during October.

Please note that the applications must contain the following appendices in English:

• a CV (Template for researcher's curriculum vitae, TENK website)
• a publication list specifying the publications to be included in your doctoral dissertation  (List of publications, Research Council of Finland website), if not included in the curriculum vitae
• a research plan (Instructions for writing a research plan, website) including a research funding plan describing the resources required and existing for the research as well as a brief description of the relevance/impact of the research. Persons who are already registered as postgraduate students must submit an updated research proposal, including a report on the progress of their doctoral research and the intended schedule for the completion of the doctoral research and the initiation of the pre-examination process. The maximum length is 3 pages without references. If applying for a part-time position, please include the other organization’s approval of your research plan and funding plan
• a motivational letter (1-2 pages), in which the applicant describes their motivation to pursue postgraduate studies and conduct research, and assesses their methodological and knowledge-based capabilities to carry out the proposed doctoral research and postgraduate studies
• copies of your academic degree certificates / diplomas and an official transcript of records for the degree granting eligibility for postgraduate studies, and copies of certificates / diplomas relating to your language proficiency, if not indicated in the academic degree certificates/diplomas.

If your diploma is not in English, Finnish or Swedish, an official English translation must be provided. All translations must be issued either by the awarding educational institution or an authorised translator. Each page of the official translation must bear the translator’s stamp and/or signature. Official translations must be accurate translations of the original documents. Translations made by the applicants themselves are not accepted.

Questions?

For more information about this position, please contact Executive Head of Administration Arja Hirvonen, arja.hirvonen@uef.fi, +358 29 445 3002.

For more information on the application and the application process, please contact hrlumet@uef.fi.