PhD fellowship in Didactics of Mathematics

Department of Science Education invites excellent and highly motivated applicants for a PhD fellowship in didactics of mathematics in the research project Data Science in Mathematics Education, DASME funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

The project is hosted by the Section for Didactics with associate professor Britta Eyrich Jessen as principal investigator

Start date is expected to be 1 April, 2026, or as soon as possible thereafter.

The project
What does big data, machine learning, and data science mean to most upper secondary students? Not much. They may know the acronym of AI, as a new tutor, but what is it made of? How does it work? How are data science tools used for political decision making?

Data science is mentioned in the news linked to climate changes or health care decisions during the pandemic and beyond. But for most people, how the world is modelled, and decisions are made, is “black boxed”. So, who are to teach students to become engaged and critically thinking citizens on this matter? This project will explore the potentials of teaching upper secondary students, basic elements of data science as part of mathematics education within existing framing of the discipline avoiding overcrowded curriculum for teachers and students.

The project has four main activities: (1) identifying knowledge and practices in scholarly domains regarding data science, which may be transposed into upper secondary mathematics education, (2) to design data science activities, which draw on the mapping from (1) and current Danish curriculum, (3) to implement the designs in schools before (4) designing and realising professional development activities for Danish teachers. Thus, the project will develop how we think about teaching and learning of modelling in upper secondary schools in Denmark, which aligns with current research interests shared in the communities of mathematical modelling and statistics education internationally.

The PhD will work on activities (2)-(4). The research will be situated within the Anthropological Theory of the Didactic (ATD), which is a theoretical framework where the research group on Didactics Of Matheamtics at University of Copenhagen is experts. The PhD student will be involved in developing reference models for modelling through data science and methodologies for studying how students engage in teaching and learning activities combining digital environments, elements of computing education with more classic mathematics education.

The project is funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation, where Britta Eyrich Jessen is the PI and main supervisor, and works in close collaboration with Louise Meier Carlsen (IT University) and Daniel Spikol (UCPH). The project runs in close collaboration with the advisory board: Vince Geiger (Australian Catholic University, Brisbane), Marianna Bosch (University of Barcelona), Hans Stefan Siller (University of Würzburg), Jonas Bergmann Ärlebäck (Linköping University) and Claus Ekstrøm (BioStat, UCPH). Within the project we have secured funding for research stays with members of the advisory board as well as conferences. More detailed plans for the stays will be planned with the finalisation of the PhD plan.  

Who are we looking for?
We are looking for a motivated candidate with the following competencies and experiences:

• Master’s level backgrounds within mathematics, statistics, data science.
• We welcome applicants with two disciplines prepared for the upper secondary teacher profession.
• Candidates with experience from teaching mathematics and/or science at upper secondary level or above, will be preferred.
• It is crucial for the project that candidates can communicate and collaborate on various details both with national and international researchers as well as Danish teachers. Documented knowledge and experiences regarding this will be considered an advantage.
• As most part of the data collections will cover curriculum materials in Danish, in vivo data collections from Danish classrooms, and professional development activities will be held with Danish teachers, a high level of command of Danish language is necessary.

Our research environment
The Department of Science Education, in which the position is located, is an interdisciplinary department, involving specialists in didactics in both mathematics and science, philosophy of science, and university pedagogy. The successful applicant is expected to engage in interdisciplinary activities in relation to teaching and development work. It is a hallmark of our research to unite strong fundamental and applied research with a high impact on society, including themes that are of particular interest to the University of Copenhagen in general as well as to the Faculty of Science in particular.

The research group of Didactics of Mathematics is a leading partner in the research program of ATD, and covers mathematics education from primary to tertiary education with a variety of domain specific interests. The group has several national and international PhD students, and holds regular research seminars attended by international scholars. The research group is part of the Section for Didactics where the colleagues are focusing on domain specific education in the natural sciences and others in digital education.

The DASME group consist of Britta Eyrich Jessen, Louise Meier Carlsen, Assistant Professor in Computing Education (Center for Computing Education Research, ITU), and Daniel Spikol, Associate Professor in Digital Education (Department of Computer Science and Science Education, UCPH). Furhtermore, the group has a number of BA and master students associated. Later a Post Doc will join the group.

Supervision
Principal supervisor will be Britta Eyrich Jessen, Assosciate Professor of Didactics of Mathematics, Department of Science Education, Britta.jessen@ind.ku.dk, Direct phone +45 35 32 03 63. Co-supervisor will be selected upon employment. The PhD student will also benefit from feedback from the advisory board and later the Post-doc in the DASME project, as well as from other researchers in the Didactics of Mathematics Group and the Didactics Section with relevant expertise.

The PhD programme
A three year full-time study within the framework of the regular PhD programme (5+3 scheme), if you already have an education equivalent to a relevant Danish master’s degree.

Qualifications needed for the regular programme
To be eligible for the regular PhD programme, you must have completed a degree programme, equivalent to a relevant Danish bachelor´s degree (180 ECTS) related to the subject area of the project, e.g. (here mathematics, statistics, actuarial science, data science, mathematics education or computing education potentially with a minor in another discipline relevant for upper secondary school). For information of eligibility of completed programmes, see General assessments for specific countries and Assessment database.

Terms of employment in the regular programme
Employment as PhD fellow is full time and for maximum 3 years.

Employment is conditional upon your successful enrolment as a PhD student at the PhD School at the Faculty of SCIENCE, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant.

Terms of appointment and payment accord to the agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. The position is covered by the Protocol on Job Structure for Academics in the State.

Responsibilities and tasks:

• Carry through an independent research project under supervision, including networking with collaborators, advisory board and teachers.
• Complete PhD courses corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS / ½ FTE
• Participate in active research environments, including a stay at another research institution, preferably abroad
• Teaching and knowledge dissemination activities
• Write scientific papers aimed at high-impact journals
• Write and defend a PhD thesis on the basis of your project

We are looking for the following qualifications:

• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Relevant publications
• Relevant work experience
• Other relevant professional activities
• Curious mind-set with a strong interest in upper secondary mathematics education
• Good language skills

Application and Assessment Procedure
Your application including all attachments must be in English and submitted electronically by clicking APPLY NOW below.

Please include: 

• Motivated letter of application (max. one page)
• Your motivation for applying for the specific PhD project. The motivation letter should include a suggestion for a potential PhD project (max. two pages)
• Curriculum vitae including information about your education, other experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position
  • Please describe and document teaching experience
  • Positions held af universities/research institutions
  • Outreach activities (e.g. talks, in media, others)
  • Scholarships or carreer grants
  • Please describe and document international network or activities
• Original diplomas for Bachelor or Master and transcript of records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in another language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted.
• Publication list (if possible)
• Reference letters (if available)

Application deadline
The deadline for applications is 4 January 2026, 23.59 CET.

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

The further process
After deadline, a number of applicants will be selected for academic assessment by an unbiased expert assessor. You are notified, whether you will be passed for assessment.

The assessor will assess the qualifications and experience of the shortlisted applicants with respect to the above mentioned research area, techniques, skills and other requirements. The assessor will conclude whether each applicant is qualified and, if so, for which of the two models. The assessed applicants will have the opportunity to comment on their assessment. You can read about the recruitment process at https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/.

Questions
For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact the principal supervisor.

General information about PhD study at the Faculty of SCIENCE is available at the PhD School’s website: https://www.science.ku.dk/phd/.

The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the surrounding community and invites all regardless of personal background to apply for the position.