Applications are invited for a PhD scholarship in the project 'A Danish model for individual Cognitive Stimulation Therapy for people with dementia' (the DiCST project) at Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Enrolment will be at the Faculty of Social Sciences under Copenhagen Graduate School of Social Sciences. The position is fully funded for 3 years.
Information Department of Psychology, University can be found at: https://psychology.ku.dk/
The position starting date is 1 December 2026.
Introduction
The DiCST project is headed by Associate Professor Laila Øksnebjerg and will be conducted in close collaboration with dementia professionals from e.g. municipalities. As user-involvement is a key in the project, people with dementia and family caregivers are also regarded as collaborators. Moreover, the project will involve collaboration with international researchers. The project is funded by TrygFonden and Alzheimer-forskningsfonden.
The DiCST study is based on Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST), which is a well-known psychosocial intervention method for people with mild to moderate dementia. There is profound evidence that CST can improve cognitive function and quality of life in people with dementia. CST was originally developed as a group-based manualised intervention delivered by professionals. The aim of the DiCST study is to design an individual psychosocial intervention for people with dementia, which is easy to access and implement in a home setting with a family caregiver. The aim of the intervention is to improve cognitive functions and quality of life of the person with dementia, as well as quality of life and aspects of caregiving for the family caregiver. Hence, DiCST will involve meaningful shared activities between a person with dementia and a family caregiver. The DiCST study will involve two sub-studies. In the first study the DiCST manual will be developed and evaluated, and methods and tools to support implementation of the DiCST intervention will be developed and evaluated. In the second study, the clinical effects of this DiCST method will be explored in a feasibility randomized controlled trial.
The PhD programme provides PhD students with strong research training and includes independent research work (under supervision), active participation in research networks, PhD courses, teaching, and other forms of knowledge dissemination, as well as drafting and defending a PhD-dissertation. The open position is for a 3-year PhD, within the framework of the 5+3 study programme.
Qualifications
Applicants must have qualifications corresponding to master's level related to the subject area of the project, e.g. neuropsychology and/or clinical psychology. If you have completed your education in Denmark, you must have a master's degree covered by the collective agreement for academics in the state sector. If you have completed your education outside of Denmark, you must either have a master's degree equivalent to a Danish master's degree (two years) or as minimum a bachelor's degree equivalent to a Danish bachelor's degree (three years) and be assessed as having professional qualifications at master's level.
If you have completed your education abroad, we will obtain an assessment of your education from the Danish Research Agency.
The ideal candidate will have knowledge of and interest in psychosocial interventions for people with dementia and their family caregivers. The candidate can have gained such perspectives from previous engagement in the field of neuropsychology and/or clinical psychology. While not a requirement, prior experience from working with qualitative data and/or cognitive (neuropsychological) assessment will be considered an asset. As the DiCST project will be performed in a Danish context, the candidate must be fluent in oral and written Danish (corresponding to CEFR level C1). In addition, excellent communication skills in English are essential and applicants must speak and write academic English. The administration may ask applicants to document their proficiency in Danish and English at any time in the recruitment process, if considered necessary.
As the project will involve a range of sub-projects and close collaboration with a number of different stakeholders, the candidate should have strong interpersonal skills and competencies related to planning and project management.
Applicants with a non-Danish Master's degree will have their degree assessed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science in order to establish that their Master's degree is equivalent to a Danish Master's degree. Please read more at the Ministry of Higher Education and Sciences website: https://ufm.dk/en
Deadline for applications: 21 August 2026.
Information
For further information regarding the project, including the overall project description, please contact Associate Professor Laila Øksnebjerg (< email cancellata per motivi di sicurezza >).
We strongly recommend that you request the overall project description before preparing your application.
Further information about the PhD study programme is available on the website of Copenhagen Graduate School of Social Sciences:
In English: https://socialsciences.ku.dk/phd/
In Danish: https://samf.ku.dk/forskning/phd/
Under "Legal basis" on the website you will find information about the rules and guidelines for the PhD programme and the Danish Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme at the Universities.
Applicants should familiarise themselves with the research strategy and the ongoing research at the Department before submitting their application. Further information can be found:
In English: https://socialsciences.ku.dk/research/
In Danish: https://samf.ku.dk/forskning/
Job description
The PhD studentwill be expected to contribute to all parts of the study, including development of the manual and intervention methods and -tools (based on user-involvement and collaboration with stakeholders), recruiting participants, collecting and analysing data, and disseminating findings. The PhD student will be responsible for collecting and analysing data in particular.
The successful candidate will be working in close cooperation with the PI as well as a student assistant, who will assist with a variety of tasks related to the project. The PhD student will benefit from being part of the Copenhagen Neuropsychology Lab that is part of the research section Cognition and Neuropsychology, where the PhD will partake in common research meetings and daily interaction with other PhD students and researchers. An international stay is planned as part of the PhD.
Enrolment as a PhD student at the Faculty of Social Sciences' PhD School is a precondition for employment as a PhD scholar.
As a PhD scholar at The Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Copenhagen, you will be supervised throughout the 6 semesters of your programme. In addition to this, you must complete courses totalling approximately 30 ECTS. On completion of the PhD programme, you must submit a PhD thesis in order to document your research effort.
Read more about the structure of the PhD programme and what it means to be enrolled as a PhD student via this link: https://psychology.ku.dk/phd_programme/
For more information about the PhD School, click here: https://socialsciences.ku.dk/phd/
Applications
The application must be submitted electronically using the APPLY NOW button below.
Applications should include the following enclosures:
If the MA diploma and/or examination records are in another language than English, German, French, Spanish, Danish, Norwegian or Swedish, please include a translation into either of these languages in your application. (Do NOT upload recommendations, publications or your Master thesis)
The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the surrounding society, and invites all qualified applicants, regardless of personal background, to apply for the positions. In order to be awarded a PhD scholarship the applicant has to enroll as a PhD student at the Faculty of Social Sciences, cf. the rules of the Danish Ministerial order No 1039 of 27 August 2013.
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the Appointments Committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an expert assessment committee.
Application process
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, applicants are selected for assessment on the advice of the Appointment Committee. All applicants will be notified whether they are passed on to assessment or not. Whereafter, the Assessment Committee is appointed by the Dean and the selected applicants are notified of the composition of the committee. Each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment which relates to their own application.
Afterwards selected qualified candidates will be invited for an interview. Please be advised that a positive assessment does not necessarily mean that you will be invited for an interview.
Applications received after the deadline will not be taken into account.
Information Department of Psychology, University can be found at: https://psychology.ku.dk/
The position starting date is 1 December 2026.
Introduction
The DiCST project is headed by Associate Professor Laila Øksnebjerg and will be conducted in close collaboration with dementia professionals from e.g. municipalities. As user-involvement is a key in the project, people with dementia and family caregivers are also regarded as collaborators. Moreover, the project will involve collaboration with international researchers. The project is funded by TrygFonden and Alzheimer-forskningsfonden.
The DiCST study is based on Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST), which is a well-known psychosocial intervention method for people with mild to moderate dementia. There is profound evidence that CST can improve cognitive function and quality of life in people with dementia. CST was originally developed as a group-based manualised intervention delivered by professionals. The aim of the DiCST study is to design an individual psychosocial intervention for people with dementia, which is easy to access and implement in a home setting with a family caregiver. The aim of the intervention is to improve cognitive functions and quality of life of the person with dementia, as well as quality of life and aspects of caregiving for the family caregiver. Hence, DiCST will involve meaningful shared activities between a person with dementia and a family caregiver. The DiCST study will involve two sub-studies. In the first study the DiCST manual will be developed and evaluated, and methods and tools to support implementation of the DiCST intervention will be developed and evaluated. In the second study, the clinical effects of this DiCST method will be explored in a feasibility randomized controlled trial.
The PhD programme provides PhD students with strong research training and includes independent research work (under supervision), active participation in research networks, PhD courses, teaching, and other forms of knowledge dissemination, as well as drafting and defending a PhD-dissertation. The open position is for a 3-year PhD, within the framework of the 5+3 study programme.
Qualifications
Applicants must have qualifications corresponding to master's level related to the subject area of the project, e.g. neuropsychology and/or clinical psychology. If you have completed your education in Denmark, you must have a master's degree covered by the collective agreement for academics in the state sector. If you have completed your education outside of Denmark, you must either have a master's degree equivalent to a Danish master's degree (two years) or as minimum a bachelor's degree equivalent to a Danish bachelor's degree (three years) and be assessed as having professional qualifications at master's level.
If you have completed your education abroad, we will obtain an assessment of your education from the Danish Research Agency.
The ideal candidate will have knowledge of and interest in psychosocial interventions for people with dementia and their family caregivers. The candidate can have gained such perspectives from previous engagement in the field of neuropsychology and/or clinical psychology. While not a requirement, prior experience from working with qualitative data and/or cognitive (neuropsychological) assessment will be considered an asset. As the DiCST project will be performed in a Danish context, the candidate must be fluent in oral and written Danish (corresponding to CEFR level C1). In addition, excellent communication skills in English are essential and applicants must speak and write academic English. The administration may ask applicants to document their proficiency in Danish and English at any time in the recruitment process, if considered necessary.
As the project will involve a range of sub-projects and close collaboration with a number of different stakeholders, the candidate should have strong interpersonal skills and competencies related to planning and project management.
Applicants with a non-Danish Master's degree will have their degree assessed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science in order to establish that their Master's degree is equivalent to a Danish Master's degree. Please read more at the Ministry of Higher Education and Sciences website: https://ufm.dk/en
Deadline for applications: 21 August 2026.
Information
For further information regarding the project, including the overall project description, please contact Associate Professor Laila Øksnebjerg (< email cancellata per motivi di sicurezza >).
We strongly recommend that you request the overall project description before preparing your application.
Further information about the PhD study programme is available on the website of Copenhagen Graduate School of Social Sciences:
In English: https://socialsciences.ku.dk/phd/
In Danish: https://samf.ku.dk/forskning/phd/
Under "Legal basis" on the website you will find information about the rules and guidelines for the PhD programme and the Danish Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme at the Universities.
Applicants should familiarise themselves with the research strategy and the ongoing research at the Department before submitting their application. Further information can be found:
In English: https://socialsciences.ku.dk/research/
In Danish: https://samf.ku.dk/forskning/
Job description
The PhD studentwill be expected to contribute to all parts of the study, including development of the manual and intervention methods and -tools (based on user-involvement and collaboration with stakeholders), recruiting participants, collecting and analysing data, and disseminating findings. The PhD student will be responsible for collecting and analysing data in particular.
The successful candidate will be working in close cooperation with the PI as well as a student assistant, who will assist with a variety of tasks related to the project. The PhD student will benefit from being part of the Copenhagen Neuropsychology Lab that is part of the research section Cognition and Neuropsychology, where the PhD will partake in common research meetings and daily interaction with other PhD students and researchers. An international stay is planned as part of the PhD.
Enrolment as a PhD student at the Faculty of Social Sciences' PhD School is a precondition for employment as a PhD scholar.
As a PhD scholar at The Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Copenhagen, you will be supervised throughout the 6 semesters of your programme. In addition to this, you must complete courses totalling approximately 30 ECTS. On completion of the PhD programme, you must submit a PhD thesis in order to document your research effort.
Read more about the structure of the PhD programme and what it means to be enrolled as a PhD student via this link: https://psychology.ku.dk/phd_programme/
For more information about the PhD School, click here: https://socialsciences.ku.dk/phd/
Applications
The application must be submitted electronically using the APPLY NOW button below.
Applications should include the following enclosures:
- Cover letter
Detailing your motivation and background for applying for the specific PhD project
- Reflections on psychosocial interventions for people with dementia and their family caregivers
The application must include a brief paper including a presentation and discussion of how the candidate views the benefits and challenges of applying psychosocial interventions within the field of dementia. This paper must not exceed 2 standard pages, corresponding to approx. 4,000 characters (including curriculum, title, punctuation, figures, footnotes and references, but excluding bibliography). A substantial breach of this will result in the application being excluded from consideration. - CV
Including a list of publications, if available, must be submitted with the application. - Diploma and transcript of records
The following documentation must be submitted:- A copy of the applicant's Master's degree diploma (if not available before the application deadline, a pre-approval must be submitted)
- A copy of the applicant's Master's degree transcript of records (an official description of the grading scale must be included)
- A copy of the applicant's Bachelor's degree diploma
- A copy of the applicant's Bachelor's degree transcript of records (an official description of the grading scale must be included)
If the MA diploma and/or examination records are in another language than English, German, French, Spanish, Danish, Norwegian or Swedish, please include a translation into either of these languages in your application. (Do NOT upload recommendations, publications or your Master thesis)
The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the surrounding society, and invites all qualified applicants, regardless of personal background, to apply for the positions. In order to be awarded a PhD scholarship the applicant has to enroll as a PhD student at the Faculty of Social Sciences, cf. the rules of the Danish Ministerial order No 1039 of 27 August 2013.
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the Appointments Committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an expert assessment committee.
Application process
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, applicants are selected for assessment on the advice of the Appointment Committee. All applicants will be notified whether they are passed on to assessment or not. Whereafter, the Assessment Committee is appointed by the Dean and the selected applicants are notified of the composition of the committee. Each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment which relates to their own application.
Afterwards selected qualified candidates will be invited for an interview. Please be advised that a positive assessment does not necessarily mean that you will be invited for an interview.
Applications received after the deadline will not be taken into account.
