PhD student in Archaeology in Graduate School GRASS Full-time

PhD Student in Archaeology in Graduate School GRASS

Uppsala University, Disciplinary Domain of Humanities and Social Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Department of Archaeology, Ancient History and Conservation

The Department of Archaeology, Ancient History, and Conservation is looking for a PhD student in Archaeology, based at Campus Gotland in Visby. The position involves being part of a dynamic and expanding research environment with just under a hundred employees in both Visby and Uppsala. The combined departmental environment includes seven disciplines with teaching at undergraduate and advanced levels and PhD programmes in Archaeology, Conservation, Classical Archaeology and Ancient History, and Egyptology.

You will also be part of the already established and interdisciplinary Graduate School in Sustainability Studies (GRASS). In the fall of 2025, a second round of the graduate school started. Together with doctoral students from various disciplines, you will explore different aspects of sustainability. The task of the graduate school is to conduct research based on central societal challenges, where local relevance meets international excellence. Here, questions about, among other things, cultural heritage, digital methods, sustainable consumption, and future energy systems are examined. Preservation and change, as well as the definition and management of resources, are central aspects. The graduate school is strongly anchored in ongoing interdisciplinary collaborations in research and education conducted in an international environment. The graduate school is an important part of Uppsala University's education and research in sustainability. Here, we work together with international partners, guest researchers, and local actors with a special focus on knowledge development to manage the transition needed to live well in a world with climate change. As a PhD student, you will be part of this interdisciplinary research environment. You will also participate in the graduate school's doctoral courses, seminars, and first-class doctoral supervision.

Project Description Digital Innovation for Sustainable Heritage (DISH) is an interdisciplinary project focusing on the use of digital methods for cultural heritage to sustainably support Gotland's archaeological and built heritage in the face of challenges such as climate change, construction, tourism, and the risk of armed conflict. We are looking for someone with an interest in bridging archaeology, conservation, and digital humanities. The broader project uses the medieval town of Visby and its archaeological heritage as a “living laboratory” that forms the basis of the project. The research will focus on creating new protocols and approaches for digitizing, managing, analyzing, interpreting and communicating cultural heritage, with a focus on Gotland, but which can be implemented in other cultural environments around the world. This is a collaboration between the disciplines of archaeology, conservation, and game development. DISH already employs one PhD in Conservation, focusing on digital conservation of Visby's built environment. You will be joining a multi-disciplinary team which includes experts in digital methods in archaeology, digital modelling and content creation, and machine learning and AI. DISH's work will be a valuable resource for historians, archaeologists, or conservation academics in their respective fields.

Research Focus: Heritage Twins in Archaeological Practice The aim of the project resulting in a doctoral thesis is to develop innovative digital tools for sustainable cultural heritage management. The project will develop and apply heritage twinning to the archaeological record of the UNESCO World Heritage city of Visby. The focus of the project is integrating data from existing heritage resources (museum collections, excavation archives) with digital heritage twins of the archaeological environment of Visby. The key here is to adapt and apply digital methods to document, visualize and analyze archaeology through time and space, as well as to develop protocols for data sharing and management. A key question in the research is how digital methods can be designed to facilitate both sustainable digital archives as well provide powerful tools for knowledge transfer and stakeholder and public engagement, supporting academics, regional government and the tourism industry. In this work, you will collaborate with stakeholders responsible for managing Visby's World Heritage.

Duties Doctoral education normally comprises four years of net studies and is financed with a doctoral position. Doctoral students are expected to contribute to the department's work environment through regular attendance, conduct coursework and dissertation work full-time, and actively participate in the department's seminar activities. For further information, see the study plans that regulate education within each main area. The possibility of teaching new courses on cultural heritage and digital modeling or simpler administrative service at the department corresponding to a maximum of 20 percent may occur by agreement. The position is extended to the corresponding extent.

Requirements Eligible applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Hold a Master's degree in Archaeology, or have completed at least 240 ECTS credits, of which at least 60 ECTS are at the advanced level, including an independent research project of at least 15 ECTS in Archaeology, or have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in another way.
• Proven experience in two or more digital documentation methods for objects or environments, such as GIS, photogrammetry, structured light scanning, LIDAR, tomography, or digital/heritage twin technology.

Additional qualifications

• Data analysis and data management skills
• Basic skills in Python for machine learning tasks
• Competency in digital modelling systems such as Blender, Unity or Unreal Engine

Application The application, which can be written in Swedish or English, must include:

• Introduction letter (max 2 A4 pages) describing yourself, why you want to pursue PhD studies, and why you are suitable to work with digital twin technology for monitoring and managing cultural heritage,
• Applicant's CV showing the educational path (max 2 A4 pages),
• Contact details for two referees,
• Master's thesis (if such was included in the education) and any publications,
• Project plan (max 2 A4 pages) describing how you would develop digital heritage twins to integrate different types of heritage assets in Visby – artefactual, spatial and built environments – and use this information to assist in knowledge transfer and stakeholder engagement,
• Copies of degree certificates or equivalent documenting eligibility

Assessment Criteria A recruitment group reviews applications and makes a recommendation to the department board based on 1) the applicant's qualifications and other merits for the specified research task; 2) the relevance and feasibility of the project plan; 3) the applicant's ability to benefit from doctoral education in general; 4) the quality of the applicant's submitted master's thesis; 5) the applicant's ability to complete the research task within the set time frame; 6) the department's ability to offer qualified supervision; 7) other publications and relevant employment. In the admission process, a selection of applicants will be invited to an interview.

About the employment The employment is a temporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7. Scope of employment fulltime (100 %). Starting date 2026-08-15 or as agreed. Placement: Visby.

For further information about the position, please contact: Senior Lecturer, Dr Patrick Randolph-Quinney, patrick.randolph-quinney@arkeologi.uu.se or Director of PhD Studies, Professor Michael Lindblom, michael.lindblom@antiken.uu.se

Please submit your application by 27 April 2026, UFV-PA 2025/886.

In case of different interpretations of the English and Swedish versions of this announcement, the Swedish version takes precedence.

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