Two Fully Funded Doctoral Positions in Languages, linguistics and discourse analysis
The University of Eastern Finland is pleased to announce two fully funded doctoral positions within the Marie Skłodowska‑Curie Doctoral Programme (MSCA) in Finland. While the programme broadly focuses on interdisciplinary research on the sustainable forest‑based bioeconomy, two positions are specifically dedicated to language‑related research on sustainability, nature, and discourses.
Key Facts
* Application period: 11 June – 10 August 2026 * Employment duration: 48 months (fulltime) * Mobility: International mobility required (MSCA rules apply) * Total project duration: April 2026 – March 2031 * More information of the programme: https://sites.uef.fi/dp-fobi/
Position 1
Environmental Discourses and the Spread of Multilingual (Dis)information in Social Networks This project invites a doctoral candidate interested in how environment‑related discourses circulate in digital social networks. The research aims to examine how discourses and (dis)information about climate, the environment, and climate‑smart solutions spread across digital media platforms.
Ideal Candidate Profile
* Master’s degree in linguistics (general or subfields), computational linguistics, translation studies, or a closely related discipline * Competence with large‑scale datasets and computational tools such as R or Python * Strong expertise in the nuances of language use * Excellent written and oral English skills * Ability to work in more than one language is an advantage * Must meet the language requirements of the Doctoral Programme of the Philosophical Faculty at UEF (see: https://www.uef.fi/en/degree-programme/doctoral-programme-of-the-philosophic...)
Further details: https://sites.uef.fi/dp-fobi/environmental-discourses/
Position 2
Contested Conceptualizations of Forest in Bioeconomy‑Related Discourses This project focuses on how forest and nature are conceptualized in public discourses related to bioeconomy. It examines the rhetorical, metaphorical, and affective strategies used to frame forest‑based solutions to societal and environmental challenges.
Ideal Candidate Profile
* Master’s degree in languages, translation studies, linguistics, media studies, communication studies, cultural studies, environmental humanities, or a related field * Excellent written and oral English skills * Must meet the language requirements of the Doctoral Programme of the Philosophical Faculty at UEF (see: https://www.uef.fi/en/degree-programme/doctoral-programme-of-the-philosophic...) * Ability to work in more than one language is an advantage * Prior methodological knowledge of metaphor analysis, rhetorical analysis, or other language‑data methods is beneficial but not required
Further details: https://sites.uef.fi/dp-fobi/contested-conceptualizations/
More information:
Position 1: Prof. Mikko Laitinen (mikko.laitinen@uef.fimailto:mikko.laitinen@uef.fi) and Prof. Maarit Koponen (maarit.koponen@uef.fimailto:maarit.koponen@uef.fi)
Position 2: Dr. Esa Penttilä (esa.penttila@uef.fimailto:esa.penttila@uef.fi) and Prof. Tuija Saresma (tuija.saresma@uef.fimailto:tuija.saresma@uef.fi)
-- Mikko Laitinen, PhD Professor of English mikko.laitinen@uef.fi PI of COMET Weak-tie hypothesis in complex digital networks (Research Council of Finland 2024-28) PI of FIN-CLARIAH Common Language Resources and Technology Infrastructure (2022-2029) https://uefconnect.uef.fi/en/person/mikko.laitinen/ --