The Department of Social Sciences and Business (ISE), Roskilde University, invites applications for a position as PhD fellow in Law from September 1st, 2026, or as soon as possible thereafter. The position as PhD is limited to a period of 3 years.
The MaMas project
The PhD fellow will be part of the European Research Council 5-year interdisciplinary project “Mapping and Conceptualizing Maternal Rights during Pregnancy, Birth, and the Postpartum Period (MaMas)”, led by Associate Professor of law Céline Brassart Olsen (Principal Investigator, PI). European Research Council grants are competitive EU funds for excellent, frontier research focusing on groundbreaking ideas and scientific excellence.
The overall aim of the MaMas project is to develop the first legal framework of maternal rights during the times of pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period. Using comparative, socio-legal methods, MaMas maps and analyses rights in health, labour, and welfare laws at international, European, and national levels, with a focus on Denmark, France and the United Kingdom. The goal is to map and compare women’s rights during the transition of becoming a mother in the selected countries, and to identify potential gaps and fragmentation across the different legal regimes.
Through qualitative methods, it investigates women’s awareness and experience of rights during this time in various spaces (health-care facilities, workplaces, home, and public spaces). Based on the legal and qualitative analyses, the project identifies gaps in the current legal approach, develops new legal language and concepts, and re-imagines maternal rights from women’s vantage point. You can read more about the project here.
Description of the PhD project
The PhD in law will investigate women’s health rights during the transition of becoming a mother. The position requires the ability to conduct legal, comparative analysis between health laws in Denmark, England and/or France, and knowledge of human rights.
The focus will be on health rights during pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period, particularly in health care settings, and on topics such as pregnancy loss, obstetric violence, and the notion of consent during birth. The PhD will have some flexibility in the choice of theory and method, in consultation with the supervisor and in line with the overarching approach of the project. The PhD is also expected to collaborate closely with the PI and postdoc in anthropology for the design of questionnaires for interviews with mothers, and to attend some interviews to understand mothers’ awareness and lived experience of rights.
The PhD fellow will be part of a supportive, interdisciplinary team, and will work closely with the PI (who will be the PhD supervisor) and collaborate with a postdoc in anthropology and a postdoc in welfare law. The PhD fellow will be affiliated with Roskilde University’s interdisciplinary research group Crossroads of Care and Social Reproduction (CARE), which conducts research on social reproduction and care. The PhD will have the opportunity to advance their academic skills and career as part of this interdisciplinary research project, and will be part of an international network of collaborators in Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The Doctoral School
You will be enrolled as a PhD fellow at the Doctoral School of Social Sciences and Business with approximately 47 PhD fellows from all over the world.
The Doctoral School of Social Sciences & Business provides PhD training and research within an interdisciplinary, international, and professional environment. It is part of a dynamic community of researchers who share a commitment to understanding society in diverse contexts of change and global engagement. Researchers come from all over the world and engage in topics that are geographically, theoretically and methodologically diverse. The Doctoral School has one PhD program. The program offers work-in-progress seminars, thematic professional development seminars, feedback and social activities for the enrolled PhD fellows.
Responsibilities and tasks
As a PhD fellow you are trained at an international level to undertake research. You are responsible for carrying out independent research under supervision and receiving constructive feedback in the PhD program to finish your PhD thesis. During your employment you are required to take 30 ECTS of coursework, and gain experience in teaching and supervision. You are also required to have a research environmental change during your PhD enrollment. The environment change can take place at foreign or local universities or research institutions.
For more information, see chapter 3, Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme at the Universities and Certain Higher Artistic Educational Institutions. Read more on what it entails to be a PhD Fellow at Roskilde University.
Qualifications
You must hold a master’s degree or equivalent in law.
Qualifications within the following areas are required:
- Knowledge of public law, preferably of health law in Denmark or a Scandinavian country
- Knowledge of international and European human rights and related institutions
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English
We also emphasize the following qualifications:
- Advanced legal theoretical and methodological competences
- Scientific originality
- Knowledge of and/or interest in critical and feminist legal theory, comparative legal methods, and interdisciplinarity
You are required to be enterprising and to possess good communication skills and to be a visible, involved participant in the Department’s daily activities, in addition to being willing to engage in disciplinary and interdisciplinary collaboration. Knowledge of Danish or of a Scandinavian language is an advantage.
Applications are invited from both inside and outside Denmark.
Assessment
In the assessment regarding employment consideration will be given to:
- Relevant master’s degree or equivalent (according to Danish Qualifications Framework for Higher Education)
- Any additional academic requirements stated in the job advertisement.
In the assessment regarding enrollment consideration will also be given to the following criteria:
- Educational skills and any further professional qualifications within law.
- Grades at a law master’s program or equivalent.
- Quality and relevance of the project description.
- Quality and relevance of the methodical and theoretical choices.
- Consistency and coherence between the problem and the choice of method and theory.
- If the PhD project seems realistic and feasible.
- Ability to complete the PhD project.
- Your project description shall be no more than 5 pages (excluding references).
Questions
For further information about the position, please contact Acting Head of the PhD school, Professor Peter Triantafillou (triant@ruc.dk). For technical or administrative questions, please contact the PhD Coordinator Hanne Vang Hansen (ise-phdadmin@ruc.dk).
Terms of employment
The employment is full time, 37 hours per week and you will refer to the Dean of Social Sciences.
The position will be filled according to the Agreement between the Danish Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC) and Job Structure for Academic Staff at Universities.
Application procedure
After the deadline for applications the Dean will shortlist applicants for assessment with assistance from the recruitment committee including the chairperson of the assessment committee.
Shortly after the application deadline all applicants will be notified whether or not their application has been selected for assessment.
The shortlisted applicants will be informed about the composition of the assessment committee, and each applicant will be given the opportunity to comment on the composition of the committee and - later on - their assessment.
Once the recruitment process is completed, all applicants will be informed of the outcome of their application.
Application
To apply for the position go to www.ruc.dk/en/job/
Only applications in English are accepted.
Applications must include:
1. Cover letter
2. CV
3. Documentation of education including grades from Master’s programme or equivalent. If you master degree is not awarded within the ECTS frame, please provide us with:
- Your bachelor diploma and grades.
- An official English translation of diplomas
- A description of the master programme including the official duration (in years).
4. Your description of the PhD project (no more than 5 pages)
5. Your time schedule of the PhD project
6. If applicable: Documentation for any research experience, work experience or publications.
Please submit your application no later than March 18, 2026.
Material received after this date will not be taken into consideration.
Roskilde University wishes to reflect the diversity of society and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background.
INFORMATIONER OM STILLINGEN:
- Arbejdspladsen ligger i:
Roskilde Kommune
-Virksomheden tilbyder:
-Arbejdsgiver:
Roskilde Universitet, Universitetsvej, 4000 Roskilde
-Ansøgning:
Ansøgningsfrist: 18-03-2026;
Se mere her: https://job.jobnet.dk/find-job/96543ce9-507a-4547-a7d2-0318c09401c7
