Application deadline: January 6, 2025.

The Department of Business and Sustainability at the University of Southern Denmark in Esbjerg invites applications for a PhD scholarship as of March 1, 2025, or as agreed. For more information about the department, please visit the website.

Be part of a large-scale international project
We are looking for a talented and motivated PhD student for our interdisciplinary project “Aquatic and Riparian Ecosystems: Biodiversity and Economic Service Transformations from NbS (ARE BEST NbS)” funded by the European Biodiversity Partnership ‘Biodiversa+’, which is co-funded by the European Union and several national donors. The project is coordinated from our department, and it has sub-projects in 6 European counties, and it integrates experimental design, econometric modelling, and real-world application.

The project focuses on implementing Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to enhance biodiversity in aquatic and riparian ecosystems (AREs) while addressing environmental and resource management challenges. Your role in the project will be to explore the costs and benefits of NbS relative to alternative investments emphasizing the importance of understanding diverse stakeholder preferences to ensure credible and legitimate implementation.

Your contribution to the project
This position offers a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of environmental science, economics, and stakeholder engagement, focusing on consumer preferences for Danish NbS and Membranes. As our new PhD student, you will play a central role in:

• Designing and implementing Discrete Choice Experiments (DCE) and Contingent Valuation Methods (CVM).
• Collaborating with stakeholders and experts to develop robust experimental designs and methodologies
• Collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data from both narrative and classical experiments
• Conducting advanced econometric modeling to estimate consumer preferences for NbS and Membranes
• Preparing comprehensive analysis reports and contributing to high-impact research publications.
• Participating in dissemination activities to share findings with academic, industry, and public audiences.

When preparing your project proposal, you are strongly advised to consult the general guidelines for preparing a project proposal at the PhD School’s webpage.

Who are we looking for
We are looking for applicants possessing personal qualities such as curiosity and a strong desire to understand and solve societal challenges. You should be able work independently and, in consultation with your PhD supervisor, prioritize the different aspects of your work. Finally, you are expected to have good interpersonal skills, be interested in engaging with the national and international research community (your supervisor and the department will support you in this), be present and take part in the daily academic and social environments in Esbjerg.

Applications are invited from applicants with a relevant master’s degree within social sciences (e.g. agricultural economics or management, environmental and resource economics or management, economics or related disciplines). Moreover, we expect applicants to:

• Have good English skills, both in speaking and writing.
• Have good communication skills.
• Have enthusiasm and talent for academic work.
• Interest in interdisciplinary and stakeholder-engaged research.
• Have knowledge in quantitative research methods and be familiar with using software such as R, Stata or the like.
• Be engaged, proactive, cooperative, be able to work independently, showing awareness and confidence in own skills and capabilities.

The department wishes our staff to reflect the diversity of society and thus welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background. For a more detailed description of the qualification criteria, please consult the department’s Scholarly Qualification Guidelines [LINK].

The research Environment
As a PhD Student, you will be embedded in a strong research community that is internationally recognized for excellence in research and a strong commitment to interdisciplinary methods and approaches within the social sciences and beyond. Within the Department of Business and Sustainability, your closest colleagues are those in the Management and Economics of Resources and the Environment (MERE) group along with members of the SDU Climate Cluster.

The department believes in fostering a stimulating and inspiring environment for both faculty members and students. The department’s ambition is therefore to recruit, develop, and retain talented scholars committed to both academic excellence and departmental development.

The department in general offers a dynamic and entrepreneurial work environment in which collaboration, societal engagement, and team spirit are fundamental parts of the culture. Our department has activities in Kolding, Esbjerg and Sønderborg with approx. 60 employees engaged in research and teaching in the fields of resource and environmental economics, entrepreneurship, marketing, and organizational studies.

Requirements and programme structure
As a PhD Student you will follow an individual PhD plan including course work, conference participation, and knowledge dissemination and/or teaching. PhD Students typically spend three-six months in another research institution abroad. The scholarship carries a monthly salary including pension plus office facilities and financial support for conference travels and research visits abroad. Conditions of employment will be in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and AC (the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations).

If selected for the position you will be enrolled in the PhD programme at the Faculty of Business and Social Sciences in Economics. Your employment as a Salaried PhD Student is governed by the agreement of November 10, 2015, on Graduate Employees in government appendix 5 – protocol on PhD Research Fellows. The scholarship runs for three years.

Contact information
Further information about this position and its academic expectations is available from Associate Professor Julia Bronnmann, e-mail: [email protected]

For further information about the PhD school, please contact the PhD School Secretariat through e-mail: [email protected].

Please be aware that you must apply online through the SDU online recruitment system. If you experience technical problems, please contact [email protected].

Application and assessment process
The application deadline is January 6, 2025, at 11.59 PM / 23.59 (CET/CEST), after which the link will no longer be active

An application must include:

• Application form can be downloaded at this LINK.
• A project proposal, max 5 pages of 2400 characters each, including spaces, notes, appendices, bibliography etc. The total length in characters including spaces of the project description must be stated on the first page of the project description
• An abstract for the above project description of no more than 250 words
• Detailed CV
• A summary of your master thesis including information on the research question, motivation, employed research method, and key findings (max 1 page of 2,400 characters each, including spaces, notes, appendices, bibliography etc.)
• A certified copy of your master’s degree certificate including all examination results.
• Information on experience with teaching, dissemination, or scientific publication, if applicable

All documents in other languages than Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, English, or German must be translated into English. The project proposal, project abstract, and CV must be written in English. Use of large language models or related AI tools in any capacity must be disclosed in accordance with best academic practices.

Documents should not contain a CPR number (civil registration number) – in this case, the CPR number must be crossed out.

If you do not adhere to the above-mentioned specifications your application can be rejected without further assessment. The department reserves the right to arrive at a decision solely based on the material submitted.

Shortlisting may be used in the assessment process.

Applications will be assessed by a committee. When the assessment committee has submitted its report, you will be emailed the part of the evaluation that concerns yourself, and you will know if you are deemed qualified for the position or not. The assessment report is subsequently forwarded to the Head of Department who assembles an appointment committee and determines if one or more of the qualified applicants should be invited to a job interview. The appointment committee will manage and complete job interviews and advise the Head of Department on which candidate should be offered appointment.

About SDU and Esbjerg
International applicants will be offered Danish language training as part of the employment. The International Staff Office (ISO) at SDU provides a variety of services for new employees, guests and people who consider applying for a job at the University of Southern Denmark. Among other things, the staff answers questions concerning salary, taxation and housing. Additional information about working in Denmark can be found at Work in Denmark.

Read more on: SDU’s employment website.

Placering: Esbjerg, Denmark