There is no general PhD program in biology at Stockholm University. Instead the different research departments at the Biology section of the Science faculty organize their specific, subject related programs. Thus, new PhD positions are either announced by the respective departments, see links at research departments below and may also appear at the central announcement board at Stockholm University homepage.

Link to available jobs at Stockholm University

Students apply to one of the specific PhD position announced and it is then the different departments that decides who will be offered the position. This is the only way to be accepted on the PhD program. However, even though there might not be an available position relevant for the research subject of your interest at the time you look, it is always a good idea to check out directly with principal investigators at the corresponding departments. There might be new PhD positions soon to be announced.

The Biology section at Stockholm University Science faculty consists of three departments that are responsible for teaching and research at different areas of the biology subject. These are listed below with links to different departmental homepages. Please note that the Department of Biology Education, which also belongs to the Biology section, solely deals with education at undergraduate level; this department does not organize PhD education.

Biology Departments:

Department of Ecology, Environment and Plant Sciences (DEEP)

Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute (MWG)

Department of Zoology

Department of Biology Education (BIG)
 

Welcome as PhD student in Biology at Stockholm University. You have recently been accepted to attend and perform research studies at one of the three departments forming the Biology Section of the Faculty of Sciences. We are happy that you decided to choose our university for your studies and congratulate you to four to five years of inspiring and stimulating activities aiming to increase our understanding of basic biology.

No doubt this will also be a challenging and demanding period with long hours at the bench, in the field and behind the computer. The reward is the privilege to participate together with your supervisor and fellow students in the unearthing of new insights about Nature while being trained to become an independent scientist in a creative and inspiring milieu. As part of your training you are also required to follow a study course program specifically tailored for each student together with their supervisor. For this reason all PhD students are automatically registered at the BioResearch School.

BioResearch School

The Stockholm University BioResearch School organize PhD-courses for Biology Students performing their PhD-studies in any area covered by the biology departments. Depending on subject area, students belong either to the research school in molecular life sciences or to the research school in biodiversity and ecology. However, the courses are open for all students no matter the branch they belong to.

In addition to subject-related courses, the BioResearch School organize an introduction course, obligatory for all PhD students and required for those expected to participate in teaching, a course preparing the students for their career after the PhD, and general interest courses such as statistic and scientific writing, as well as special events, e.g workshops and the annual PhD Day. Those activities are equally well attended by students from both branches of the research school, providing ample opportunities for transdisciplinary interactions. The BioResearch School is led by two coordinators that report to a steering committee appointed by the Biology Section.

What’s needed, what’s expected and what’s the payoff

To receive a PhD in biology at Stockholm University you need to successfully pass a course package, produce a thesis of a quality that meets the standards required for publication in international journals and defend your work in a public dissertation. This requires drive and active planning throughout the different stages of the study period; let’s be fair about this – you need to be both self-going and hard-working. Creativity comes from knowing the issues to be tackled by heart; it means extensive data acquisition, thorough literature studies and interactions with colleagues and collaborators. This is easy when the experimentation runs smoothly but can be ever so hard when everything seems to go completely wrong. This is why you have a supervisor for support and to discuss with about your hypothesis and the approaches you have taken to tackle it. It is also why you need to read the literature and attend courses to build a general knowledge of both theory and methodology of your research field.

The payoff for the long hours is the privilege to understand and be inspired by a piece of Nature and be able to communicate your insights to colleagues and the society. It is our conviction that the skills and confidence you acquire during this training will make you well prepared for future endeavors no matter whether you stay in Sciences or not.

What do you have to do now

Check with your administration that your e-mail address has been registered with the BioResearch School and check up for the next “Introduction to Research Studies in Biology” here at this webbsite.

Some other web sites you may find useful

Faculty of Science at SU

Student life at SU

As a yearly tradition BioResearch School organise a day called PhD Day, where all PhD students in biology at SU are invited to present their work for each other. PhD Day has the format of a small workshop. It hosts a series of short oral presentations as well as a poster session by students from both branches of the BioResearch School, and ends by dinner at a nearby restaurant.

You can either present your work in a 15 min talk or put up a poster – both activities entitles to one credit point (1 hp) - or just come and contribute to the discussions. There will be two oral sessions plus a separate poster session.