Deadline: January 15, 2025
The newly established Vienna Doctoral College on Digital Humanism is seeking 5 PhD Candidates (part-time, 30 hours/week, starting March 1, 2025) for an interdisciplinary research program at the intersection of technology and society.
Program Overview
Digital Humanism focuses on aligning digital technology development with human rights, democracy, inclusion, and diversity. The program emphasizes research addressing critical societal challenges posed by digital transformation, such as:
- Transparency and fairness in AI systems
- Privacy, misinformation, and democracy in the digital age
- Sustainable AI innovation
- Inclusive user designs and fostering AI literacy
Doctoral candidates will conduct interdisciplinary research across TU Wien, University of Vienna, and WU Wien, with supervision by experts from multiple disciplines.
Research Topics
- Recommendations Explained: Transparency and Fairness
Investigate stakeholder needs in recommender systems and develop explainable AI approaches. Use case: music streaming platforms. - Visualization of Argumentation Networks
Create systems for visualizing computational argumentation, applying techniques from data visualization and interaction design. - AI Literacy and Inclusive User Design
Study AI literacy and interaction patterns to promote equitable AI adoption through inclusive tool design. - AI as a Democratic Actor
Explore citizens’ perceptions of AI’s role in democracy and its implications for public discourse and engagement. - AI Innovation and Sustainability
Design AI systems addressing sustainability challenges like climate change and resource depletion, using quantitative social science and AI techniques.
Candidate Profile
- Strong interest in interdisciplinary research connecting technology and society.
- Relevant Master’s degree in fields such as Computer Science, Social Sciences, Data Science, or related areas (specifics vary by topic).
- Proficiency in research methods, statistical analysis, and programming (e.g., Python, R).
- Excellent English communication skills (written and spoken).
Offer
- Monthly gross salary: EUR 2,684.10 for 30 hours/week.
- Flexible work arrangements and partially remote options.
- Training in good scientific practices, ethics, and interdisciplinary methods.
- Opportunity to work with world-class experts in Vienna, a global hub for interdisciplinary research.
Application Requirements
Submit the following documents (in English) as a single PDF file titled SURNAME, FIRST NAME to dighum-dc-applications@ec.tuwien.ac.at by January 15, 2025:
- Letter of motivation (specify research topic(s) and ranking if applying to multiple).
- Complete CV (including publications, research experience, awards, etc.).
- Abstract of Master’s or Bachelor’s thesis (or relevant research project).
- Transcripts of all grades and list of finalized studies.
- 1-2 academic references with contact information.
- Additional relevant materials (if applicable).
Important Dates
- Application Deadline: January 15, 2025
- Interviews (Online): Week of January 27, 2025
For further details please see the university website:
