PhD Stipend in Health System Innovation

The Department of Health Science and Technology (HST) at Aalborg University is an interdisciplinary research and teaching environment where engineering, medicine and health sciences come together to improve people's lives.

As a PhD fellow at HST, you will become part of an international research community with access to experienced supervisors, modern research facilities and strong interdisciplinary collaboration. You will work alongside researchers from a wide range of disciplines and engage with hospitals, industry and public-sector partners to address some of society's most important health challenges.

The department is home to approximately 180 academic staff members, around 100 PhD fellows and more than 1,700 students. We offer a stimulating research environment that encourages scientific curiosity, collaboration and professional development.

The Faculty of Medicine is committed to preparing PhD graduates for diverse career paths. Throughout your PhD, you will develop advanced research competencies alongside transferable skills that prepare you for careers in academia, industry and the public sector. Towards the end of your PhD, you will be offered dedicated career development support to help you plan your next career step.

At HST, our values – Share. Care. Dare. – shape the way we collaborate, support one another and create knowledge with societal impact.

Learn more about the department on our website and in our research portal.

Your work tasks
This PhD stipend will be affiliated with a research and innovation project focusing on health system innovation and to be more specific cross-sectoral health care pathways for people with chronic disease.

The project aims to develop cross-sectoral care pathways that can contribute to more coherent, person-centred and sustainable support for people with chronic disease, along with lead to system-level change through collaboration between hospitals, general practice, municipalities, civil society organisations and other relevant stakeholders.

The PhD student will contribute to the prototype development, feasibility test and evaluation of innovative cross-sectoral pathways and will be involved in data collection, data analysis, and dissemination of research findings. The project combines perspectives from systemic innovation, integrated care, and health economics.

The PhD student will collaborate closely with researchers, healthcare professionals, municipalities, community organisations and patient representatives. The position therefore requires the ability to work independently with multiple tasks while also being confident, when collaborating with a broad range of stakeholders and collaborators.

The PhD will be affiliated to the Section of Public Health at the Department of Health Science and Technology. The list of supervisors includes professor Sine Agergaard and associate professor Ludvig J.T. Rasmussen, as well as Professor Jan Sørensen from Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University.

The PhD stipend is available for a period of 3 years starting January 1, 2027. The PhD student will be enrolled in the doctoral programme in Health Care, Health Promotion and Organizations at the Faculty of Medicine.

Applicants should have:

• a master's degree within the health sciences; design and innovation studies; sociology, anthropology or related programmes
• well-developed skills in conducting research, analysing data and disseminating results
• a sincere interest in chronic disease management, healthcare organisation, cross-sectoral collaboration, innovation and health economic assessment
• a structured and systematic approach to work with quality as the guiding principle
• interpersonal skills and collaborative competency
• advanced language skills in Danish and English (oral and written)

Knowledge of or experience with innovation processes, feasibility testing, and health economic evaluation will be considered an advantage.

Qualification requirements

PhD stipends are allocated to individuals who hold a Master's degree. PhD stipends are normally for a period of 3 years. It is a prerequisite for allocation of the stipend that the candidate will be enrolled as a PhD student at the Doctoral School in Medicine, Biomedical Science and Technology in accordance with the regulations of Ministerial Order No. 1124 of September 19, 2025 on the PhD Programme at the Universities and Certain Higher Artistic Educational Institutions. According to the Ministerial Order, the progress of the PhD student shall be assessed at regular points in time. As part of the PhD study, you are among other things required to complete PhD courses corresponding to 30 ECTS, gain experience with teaching or other forms of knowledge dissemination and complete an external research stay outside of Aalborg University, preferably 3-6 months at a foreign research institution.

How to apply

Your application must include the following:

• Application (max. 2 pages) describing the applicant's background, motivation and qualifications for the PhD position
• Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• List of publications (if available)
• Diplomas (bachelor's and master's degree diploma)
• Other relevant documents
• References (please provide contact information for supervisors and/or employers)

The application must be submitted via Aalborg University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aalborg University's website.

Aalborg University wants to reflect the surrounding society and has diversity as a core value. Therefore, everyone, regardless of personal background and orientation, is encouraged to apply for the position.

Do you have any questions?
If you have any questions about the position, you are more than welcome to contact us. You will find contact persons at the bottom of the jobpost.

Please reserve the late afternoon of November 19 for a possible job interview

Further information
Read more about our recruitment process here.

The assessment of candidates for the position will be carried out by qualified experts.
Shortlisting will be applied. This means that after the application deadline, the head of the department, with the assistance of the hiring committee, will select the applicants to be assessed. All applicants will be informed whether they have been shortlisted for assessment or not.

The hiring process at Aalborg University may include a risk assessment as a tool to identify potential risks associated with new hires, ensuring the safety, compliance, and integrity of the workplace.

Read more about The Doctoral School in Medicine, Biomedical Science and Technology

Salary and terms of employment

The employment is in accordance with the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities and the Ministerial Order on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Universities. Furthermore, your terms of employment and salary are in accordance with the collective agreement between the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations and the state (AC collective agreement).

You can find information about the salary and salary structure for the position in the Salary Overview for Recruitment - Scientific positions (VIP. Please refer to the introductory section of the page and the section entitled “PhD Fellow”.

There is a mutual probationary period of 3 months for the position.

Where to apply

Website: https://aau.varbi.com/en/what:job/jobID:969158/type:job/where:39/apply:1