PhD scholarship in Criminology at the Department of Sociology, University of Copenhagen (UCPH) 2026.
PhD scholarship in Criminology at the Department of Sociology, University of Copenhagen (UCPH) 2026.
Applications are invited for a PhD scholarship in Criminology at the Department of Sociology.
Enrolment will take place at the Faculty of Social Sciences, under the Copenhagen Graduate School of Social Sciences.
The position is offered as a three-year full-time PhD within the 5+3 framework.
The starting date is 1 September 2026.
The PhD programme provides PhD students with strong research training, which opens up a variety of career opportunities within the private and public sectors.
The programme includes the drafting of a PhD thesis, active participation in research networks, PhD courses, teaching, and other forms of knowledge dissemination.
The following criteria are used when shortlisting candidates for assessment:
- Research qualifications as reflected in the project proposal.
- Quality and feasibility of the project.
- Qualifications and knowledge in Criminology and the sociology of deviance.
- Performance (grades obtained) in graduate and post-graduate studies.
- The Department of Sociology can offer adequate supervision for the research topic in question
Qualification requirements.
- Applicants must have qualifications corresponding to a master’s level related to the subject area of the project.
- If you have completed your education in Denmark, you must have a master’s degree covered by the collective agreement for academics in the state sector.
- If you have completed your education outside of Denmark, you must either have a master’s degree equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (two years) or at least a bachelor’s degree equivalent to a Danish bachelor’s degree (three years) and be assessed as having professional qualifications at master’s level.
- PhD students are paid a salary in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC).
- The PhD student has a work obligation of up to 840 hours over the 3 years without additional pay.
- The work obligation can include teaching, for instance.
How to apply
Please submit your application online.
Your application must be written in Danish or English and include the following attachments (with descriptive titles) in either PDF or Word format:
- Cover letter (max. 1 page detailing your motivation and background for applying to the specific PhD project)
- CV
- Project description (max. 12,000 characters incl. spaces, not incl. bibliography)
- Project abstract (max 1,200 characters incl. spaces)
- Diploma and transcripts of records (BSc and MSc). Please note: If your degree diploma is not available by the application deadline, please include your latest transcript of grades.
- Other information for consideration, e.g., list of publications, documentation of English language qualifications (if any). Please do not include commitments from supervisors, recommendations, etc.
Further details on the documents that should accompany your application are available on this website: Admission requirements and application procedures – University of Copenhagen.
The closing date for applications is 8 March 2026 at 23:59 CET. Any applications or additional material submitted after the deadline will not be considered.
After the application deadline:
- The Head of Department will consider advice from the appointment committee and then select applicants for assessment.
- All applicants will be notified whether they have been shortlisted.
- The Head of Department will then set up an expert assessment committee to assess the shortlisted applications.
- The selected applicants will be informed who is serving on the committee.
- Each shortlisted applicant will be offered the opportunity to comment on the committee’s assessment before the appointment is announced.
As an applicant to the University of Copenhagen, you should be prepared to undergo a security screening related to international research collaboration as part of the recruitment process.
The security screening will be conducted in cases where the University deems it appropriate based on an overall assessment.
