PhD Position in Sociology
University of Bern
Switzerland

Institution: Institute of Sociology, University of Bern, Switzerland
Start Date: January 2026 or by agreement
Duration: Up to 4 years

Project Focus:

• Part of a Starting Grant project examining how career paths are shaped by gender, ethnicity, and social background.

Key Responsibilities

• Conduct research on labor market inequalities related to gender, ethnicity, and social background.

• Assist with setup of linked employer-employee datasets; support data collection (choice experiments, text analysis, interviews).

• Contribute to publication-based PhD thesis through regular discussions with peers and mentors.

• No teaching commitments; optional involvement in BA/MA programs.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree (or final semester) in sociology or related fields (economics, organizational psychology)

• Strong quantitative skills (R, Stata, Python); familiarity with large datasets, experiments, text analysis, or qualitative methods is a plus

• Interest in interdisciplinary research

• Proficiency in English; knowledge of a Swiss official language is advantageous

• Independent, self-motivated, with strong problem-solving and communication skills

Benefits

• Participation in an interdisciplinary research project (collaboration with economics, psychology, data science)

• Close mentorship and structured PhD training

• Salary according to SNSF regulations

• 5 weeks of paid vacation per year

• Flexible working hours and potential for partial remote work

Application Instructions

• Submit motivation letter, CV, transcript of records, and writing sample (seminar paper or thesis)

• Include names and contact details of two references

• Submit as a single PDF

• Review of applications started November 21, 2025 and continues until filled

Contact for questions: Prof. Dr. Benita Combet – benita.combet@unibe.ch

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