The Graduate School at Arts, Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University, in collaboration with the Velux Foundation, invites applications for a PhD fellowship (5+3) for a period of up to three years or a SU PhD scholarship (4+4) for a period of up to four years in Generative AI in Education: Experiments with automated writing provided the necessary funding is available.
The PhD fellowship (5+3) is available for appointment as of 1 February 2026.
The SU PhD scholarship (4+4) is available for appointment as of 1 February 2026 or 1 March 2026. The commencement of studies depends on the number of ECTS credits earned in the Master’s degree programme by the end of January 2026:
It is expected that the candidate awarded the scholarship/fellowship will be able to commence the PhD programme on the above-mentioned date.
Across all levels of education, students are integrating generative AI (GenAI) into their learning processes. As a result, education is forced to confront the automation of writing, coding, or similar educational processes. In education, writing has been institutionalized as central to learning and assessment, serving as a means for students to explore, organize, create, and demonstrate knowledge. However, GenAI technologies are beginning to unsettle long-standing cultural assumptions about writing as a uniquely human act. This raises pressing questions about how educational institutions value, regulate, and judge writing in the age of AI. What counts as ‘good writing’ in this new landscape? How are new forms of writing being normalized, resisted, or redefined?
The PhD candidate will have the opportunity to explore emerging tensions and contestations around what constitutes legitimate writing in educational settings, including how different stakeholders (students, teachers, administrators, policymakers) negotiate these evolving standards. It would be a strong advantage for applicants to have experience with ethnographic methods and be familiar with theoretical frameworks from science and technology studies (STS), anthropology, sociology or related fields.
The PhD project will be conducted as part of the Algorithms, Data and Democracy project, founded by the VELUX Foundations. Read more here: www.algoritmer.org
Enrolment and place of work
The PhD student must complete the studies in accordance with the valid regulations for the PhD degree programme, currently the Ministerial Order of 27 August 2013 on the PhD degree programme at the universities: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/thephddegreeprogramme/
Description of the graduate school’s PhD degree programme: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/phdstudystructure/
Rules and regulations for the PhD degree programme at the Graduate School at Arts: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/thephddegreeprogramme/
The PhD scholar/fellow will be enrolled as a PhD student at the Graduate School at Arts, Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University, with the aim of completing a PhD degree at the Danish School of Education, Aarhus University.
The PhD student will be affiliated with the PhD programme Learning and Education.
The PhD student’s place of work will be the Danish School of Education, Aarhus University. In general, the student is expected to be present at the school (campus Emdrup/Copenhagen) on an everyday basis.
The PhD degree programme is expected to include a lengthy research stay at a foreign institution, cf. Description of the graduate school’s PhD degree programme.
Danish School of Education’s research programme: http://edu.au.dk/en/research/research-programmes/
4+4 programme
When you apply for a SU PhD scholarship (4+4), you must be able to document relevant qualifications in the academic area of the PhD project in the form of a Bachelor’s degree and one year of Master’s degree studies or equivalent qualifications.
A prerequisite for allocation of SU PhD scholarships is that these qualifications are acquired no later than 31 January 2026 if enrolment start is 1 February 2026 and no later than 28 February 2026 if enrolment start is 1 March 2026.
Applicants who have acquired 60 ECTS credits in a Master’s degree examination and applicants who will have acquired 60 to 90 ECTS credits in a Master’s degree examination after the deadline for application can apply for a combined SU and PhD scholarship in the 4+4 scheme. Applicants who have already earned 90 ECTS credits at the time of application should apply for the 5+3 PhD fellowship as long as the Master’s degree programme is completed no later than the day before the PhD enrolment starts.
The duration of Part A of the PhD degree programme depends on the number of ECTS credits earned at the commencement of study. The duration is estimated based on the information in the application about the number of ECTS credits earned and those to be awarded upon satisfactory completion of current courses.
A condition for being allocated a combined SU and PhD scholarship is that the applicant passes this examination prior to the commencement of studies.
SU PhD scholarships are allocated in accordance with the Ministerial Order regarding state educational support (SU), section II: https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2023/395 (Danish State Education Grant and Loan Scheme Authority – only in Danish. Please see this page for further information http://www.su.dk/english/).
In connection with the SU PhD scholarship, a PhD scholar can undertake paid work amounting to 280 hours distributed over part A of the studies. Employment in accordance with protocol regarding PhD scholars; agreement regarding payment of PhD students for work carried out in connection with the PhD degree programme: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/thephddegreeprogramme/
SU PhD-points and hourly pay: https://phd.arts.au.dk/4-4-part-a/salary-and-employment
5+3 programme
When you apply for a 3-year PhD fellowship (5+3), you must have completed your two year Master’s degree (120 ECTS) no later than 31 January 2026.
The PhD fellow will be employed as a PhD student at the Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University. The terms of employment are in accordance with the agreement between the Danish Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (see section 6.1.4), as well as with the protocol to the agreement covering staff with university degrees in the state sector (see enclosure 5). The agreement and the protocol including amendments are available online: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/thephddegreeprogramme/
Salary: https://phd.arts.au.dk/4-4-part-b-and-5-3/salary-and-employment
How to apply
The application must include:
Please see a detailed description of the requirements for the application in the guide for the application facility: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/how-to-apply/
Application
If you require professional guidance regarding your application for the PhD scholarship/fellowship please contact the PhD programme director at Learning and Education: http://phd.arts.au.dk/about-us/contact/
For further information, please contact Associate Professor Helene Friis Ratner, Danish School of Education, helr@edu.au.dk, Phone + 45 30 82 60 19.
The application must be submitted in English.
All applicants must provide documentation of excellent communication skills in English which are considered essential, and you must therefore be able to read, write, and speak academic English fluently. English language requirement is comparable to a minimum of TOEFL 83 or IELTS 6.5. Please see this page for further information: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/english-test/
Child protection certificate
In accordance with Ministerial Order no. 554 of 23 May 2023, Aarhus University is obliged to obtain a statement of no previous convictions in respect of children in connection with the appointment and employment of staff whose work will involve direct contact with children under the age of 15. If you, in connection with your PhD project, will be in direct contact with children under the age of 15 who are not accompanied by a parent or guardian, childcare professional or teacher, you will be covered by the requirements of the ministerial order.
If you are covered by these requirements and read Danish, please complete the section “Samtykkeerklæring” (declaration of consent) in the police form and upload the file under “Other information to consider” in the application form. You can download the form here: https://politi.dk/-/media/mediefiler/landsdaekkende-dokumenter/straffeattest/brneattest-p274.pdf
If you are covered by these requirements and do not read Danish, please upload a brief statement with the headline “Child protection certificate needed” under the field “Other information to consider” in the application form.
Applications for the PhD scholarship/fellowship and enrolment in the PhD degree programme can only be submitted via the application form in Aarhus University’s web-based facility.
Deadline for applications: 1 October 2025 at 23.59 Danish time (CET/CEST).
Reference number: 2025-12
During the assessments, Aarhus University can conduct interviews with selected applicants.
