The Faculty of History, Philosophy and Theology - Institute for Studies of Science (ISoS) - has the following job opening: 
Doctoral Researcher in Philosophy of the Medical Sciences (Horizon Europe MSCA Doctoral Network TRANSCEND)
ID: Wiss25369
- starting: 01.03.2026
- fulltime
- salary according to Remuneration level 13 TV-L
- fixed-term
The History and Philosophy of Medicine Group, led by Prof. Lara Keuck, is looking for a highly motivated candidate for a three-year PhD project in philosophy of the medical sciences. The PhD position is part of the new MSCA doctoral network TRANSCEND, which brings together eleven European universities and further associated partners (https://biomed.au.dk/transcend-network). It is funded by Horizon Europe and explores a new approach to translational research on complex, chronic diseases by developing transdisciplinary methods and equipping doctoral candidates with a "biomedicophilosophical" mindset that combines critical thinking from the philosophy of science with cutting-edge biomedical research. The Bielefeld project is embedded in the Institute for Studies of Science, an interdisciplinary centre that hosts scholars and scientists from Philosophy, History, Sociology and Medicine.
The announced project is part of a work package called “Focusing on patient outcomes”, which emphasises goals like integrating patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and complex data (e. g., psychological and social factors) to enhance treatment personalisation, while also fostering critical reflection on the specific limitations and challenges of (re-) classifying medical conditions.
The Bielefeld project shall adopt a historically informed philosophy of science perspective to explore medical research methods that address the challenge of matching experimental targets with real-world applications. It aims to characterise "scoping methods," which evaluate how well interventions align with existing disease classifications. The doctoral researcher shall analyse various methods, including pharmacoepidemiological research, computational assessments, network neuroscience, and reverse clinical trials. The project's working hypothesis is that scoping methods can help to improve the matching of models to real-world targets, and that a better understanding of this class of methods will provide insights for planning and evaluating translational research.
This project will be primarily hosted at the Institute for Studies of Science at University of Bielefeld with Prof. Lara Keuck and her History and Philosophy of Medicine Group, and secondments are planned with Prof. Andrea Burden at ETH Zurich and Prof. Linda Douw at the AUMC in Amsterdam.
Employment is conducive to scientific qualification.
Doctoral candidates funded by MSCA Doctoral Networks
The announced project is part of a work package called “Focusing on patient outcomes”, which emphasises goals like integrating patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and complex data (e. g., psychological and social factors) to enhance treatment personalisation, while also fostering critical reflection on the specific limitations and challenges of (re-) classifying medical conditions.
The Bielefeld project shall adopt a historically informed philosophy of science perspective to explore medical research methods that address the challenge of matching experimental targets with real-world applications. It aims to characterise "scoping methods," which evaluate how well interventions align with existing disease classifications. The doctoral researcher shall analyse various methods, including pharmacoepidemiological research, computational assessments, network neuroscience, and reverse clinical trials. The project's working hypothesis is that scoping methods can help to improve the matching of models to real-world targets, and that a better understanding of this class of methods will provide insights for planning and evaluating translational research.
This project will be primarily hosted at the Institute for Studies of Science at University of Bielefeld with Prof. Lara Keuck and her History and Philosophy of Medicine Group, and secondments are planned with Prof. Andrea Burden at ETH Zurich and Prof. Linda Douw at the AUMC in Amsterdam.
Your Tasks
- work on research project (70 %)
- research training activities in Bielefeld and in the TRANSCEND network (30 %)
Employment is conducive to scientific qualification.
We offer
- salary according to Remuneration level 13 TV-L
- fixed-term (3 years) (§ 2 (1) sentence 1 of the WissZeitVG; in accordance with the provisions of the WissZeitVG and the Agreement on Satisfactory Conditions of Employment, the length of contract may differ in individual cases)
- fulltime
- internal and external training opportunities
- variety of health, consulting and prevention services
- reconcilability of family and work
- flexible working hours
- 30 days holiday and additional days off on 24.12. and 31.12. (depending on the specific field of work)
- basic option for mobile working in accordance with the service agreement
- supplementary company pension
- collegial working environment
- open and pleasant working atmosphere
- exciting, varied tasks
- unique training in an interdisciplinary and international doctoral network
Your Profile
We expect
- completed academic degree (e. g. Master's degree or equivalent) in History and Philosophy of Science, Philosophy or another discipline that is relevant for pursuing a doctoral project in philosophy of the medical sciences
- interest in and ability to engage with methodological concerns in the medical sciences
- interest in and ability to contribute to a collaborative work environment and engage in interdisciplinary research discussions
- very good written and spoken English language skills
- willingness and ability to pursue two secondments (research stays planned in Switzerland and the Netherlands) and further research training activities (summerschools, etc.) within the MSCA Doctoral Network TRANSCEND
Doctoral candidates funded by MSCA Doctoral Networks
- must not have a doctoral degree at the date of their recruitment
- can be of any nationality, but must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Germany for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their recruitment date
Application Procedure
We are looking forward to receiving your application with the following details:
- CV
- letter of motivation, detailing in particular why the candidate wants to participate in the TRANSCEND network and work on this project: https://biomed.au.dk/transcend-network
- University certificates
- 2 letters of recommendations
To apply, please preferably use our online form via the application button below.
application deadline: 30.10.2025
Contact
Prof. Dr. Lara Keuck
lara.keuck@uni-bielefeld.de
Postal Address
Universität Bielefeld
Fak. f. Geschichtswiss., Philosophie, Theologie
Dekanat
Postfach 10 01 31
33501 Bielefeld
Prof. Dr. Lara Keuck
lara.keuck@uni-bielefeld.de
Postal Address
Universität Bielefeld
Fak. f. Geschichtswiss., Philosophie, Theologie
Dekanat
Postfach 10 01 31
33501 Bielefeld
Bielefeld University has received a number of awards for its achievements as an equal-opportunity employer and has been
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At Bielefeld University on request positions can be carried out with reduced working hours as long as this does not conflict with official needs.
