PhD Candidate, Research Group “Digital Economy, Internet Ecosystem and Internet Policy” (Focus: Evolution of the Internet Ecosystem)

The Weizenbaum Institute invites scholars to apply for the position of PhD Candidate in the Research Group “Digital Economy, Internet Ecosystem and Internet Policy” (Focus: Evolution of the Internet Ecosystem). The start date of this PhD position (100%) is as soon as possible.

The Weizenbaum Institute conducts interdisciplinary and basic research on the transformation of society through digitalisation, developing possible approaches and strategies for policymakers, businesses, and civil society. The institute’s aim is to better understand the dynamics, mechanisms, and implications of digitalisation. To this end, the Weizenbaum Institute examines the ethical, legal, economic, and political aspects of the digital transformation. Its guiding values comprise self-determination and sustainability in the digital society. The Weizenbaum Institute is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

Job content:

We are looking for a PhD student for our Research Group “Digital Economy, Internet Ecosystem and Internet Policy”

The research group, lead by Principal Investigators Prof. Stefan Schmid, Prof. Anja Feldmann and Head of the Research Group Dr. Volker Stocker, focuses on the evolution and efficiency of the Internet ecosystem as well as the tension between competition, regulation and innovation in the context of the digital economy. Particular emphasis is placed on researching various aspects of the deployment/expansion and efficient management of and access to digital (communications and cloud) infrastructures as well as their evolution. In addition, we examine markets, business models and the role of platforms and data in the digital economy.

While the projects within the research group share a strong interest in interdisciplinarity, the focus of the advertised position will be on various technical and economic aspects of the deployment and sharing of communications and cloud infrastructures as well as on the evolution of the Internet ecosystem (e.g., future Internet architectures, 5G/6G-based network slicing and edge computing, the role o hypergiants) and respective competition and innovation dynamics.

Your tasks:

• Pursue and complete a PhD thesis. The focus of the PhD project should be within the scope described above;
• Contribute to the work of various projects in the research group in the form of international presentations and publications;
• Participate in and contribute to the organization of research activities and events at the Weizenbaum Institute, such as workshops and colloquia;
• Contribute to science communication initiatives and organizational tasks of the research group.

Requirements:

• Master’s degree or equivalent (with excellent results) in economics or management (including industrial engineering, business informatics or related discipline), engineering or computer science
• Interest, affinity and experience in conducting research on communications and cloud infrastructures (helpful: techno-economic perspective)
• A strong international and interdisciplinary orientation;

We offer:

• The successful candidate will be offered an initial contract over three years (until September 2025); an extension is possible depending on a positive funding approval and evaluation of the Weizenbaum Institute;
• Remuneration up to TVöD (public service remuneration scale) E 13 (depending on qualification; check gross salary estimate here: https://oeffentlicher-dienst.info/tvoed/bund/);
• Health care schemes, annual bonus, and company pension plan (VBL-U);
• Flexible working hours and the possibility of working remotely;
• The opportunity to actively shape the work of one of Germany’s leading digitalization research institutions;
• Inspiring academic and international working environment in the heart of Berlin (close to Bahnhof Zoo) with broad interdisciplinary networks in research, media, and politics;
• Career development through a multitude of events, training opportunities, and cross-institutional networks;
• An enthusiastic and warm team that is open to new colleagues.

Severely disabled applicants with equal qualification will be given preferential consideration. We value diversity and welcome all applications – regardless of gender, nationality, ethnic or social origin, religion, disability, age, and sexual orientation. The Weizenbaum-Institut e.V. explicitly encourages women as well as persons with a migration background to apply.

The application must include:

• Cover letter, research proposal (two pages excluding references) and academic CV (including a complete record of your courses, including grades and an explanation of the grading system);
• A link to/a copy of a written work product. Examples: thesis, research paper (working draft or pre-print is acceptable).

If you do not fit to all the criteria but nevertheless think that you could be a good fit to the group, we encourage you to apply.

Please submit your application via our applicant portal. If you have any technical questions about the application process, please feel free to contact Maite Vöhl from our HR department via Mail (personal[at]weizenbaum-institut.de) or phone 0049-30-700141001 at any time.

We look forward to receiving your documents.

Apply Now