PREDOCTORAL RESEARCHER (PhD) – COUNTERACT
Faculty/Institute: Instituto Universitario de Estudios sobre Migraciones (IUEM), Universidad Pontificia Comillas
Desired start date: 1 December 2026
About the position A full-time predoctoral researcher position is offered within COUNTERACT, a national study on Spanish adolescents’ responses to online hate, funded by the Fundación “la Caixa”.
The project works across six regions with adolescents, educators and law enforcement, combining participatory co-design with a large-scale national experiment and translating the findings into practical tools.
The predoctoral researcher will be the main day-to-day researcher on the project and will work closely with the research team across all project phases.
Requirements
Education
- Master’s degree or equivalent in a social science discipline, such as sociology, psychology, political science, criminology, education, or a related field.
Experience and skills
- Demonstrated strong quantitative research skills, including survey design, data collection and statistical analysis.
- Confident use of SPSS, R or Stata.
- Strong project coordination and organisational skills.
- Well-developed written communication skills.
- Excellent interpersonal skills, with a proven ability to build working relationships with colleagues and external partners.
- Demonstrated interest in social justice, inequalities, youth online safety and migration.
Languages
- Native or C2-level Spanish.
- C1-level English or above.
Desirable
- Experience with experimental or intervention research and/or participatory or co-design methods.
Main responsibilities
- Support the design and delivery of the national experimental survey, including instrument development, piloting and fieldwork coordination across six regions.
- Support survey administration, manage the national dataset in line with FAIR principles, and conduct quantitative analysis.
- Contribute to evidence mapping and support co-design labs and evidence-to-action workshops with adolescents, educators and police.
- Coordinate day-to-day project activities, including partner liaison, project meetings and activities, and ongoing documentation and reporting.
- Help draft the project’s practical tools for schools, youth and police, and co-author academic publications and conference presentations.
- Develop a doctoral thesis within the scope of the project.
Application procedure
Applicants must send the following documentation to
[email protected] with the subject line:“COUNTERACT — Predoctoral”
Deadline: 16 October 2026
Required documentation:
- Curriculum Vitae (maximum 3 pages)
- Academic transcripts
- Brief cover letter (maximum 1 page) explaining the applicant’s interest in the project and how it aligns with their experience and qualifications
- Contact details for two academic referees
Interview date for shortlisted candidates: 23 October 2026
Working conditions
- Full-time predoctoral employment contract for 4 years, covering the duration of the project grant and an additional two years.
- Salary: €20,000–€25,000 gross/year.
- At Comillas, we strive to create and maintain an environment that provides space and support equally to everyone. Therefore, if you have a disability certificate of 33% or higher, we encourage you to include it in your application.
Benefits
- Supervision by the PI and project team and integration into the IUEM research community.
- Training and practical experience in project design, advanced research methods and data analysis.
- Co-authorship on publications and policy documents.
- Collaboration with schools, NGOs and public institutions.
- Versátil Compensation Plan and social benefits.
- Training plan and professional development opportunities.
- Comillas Plus: exclusive Comillas portal with more than 200 commercial discounts.
- Access to internal services, including discounts and special conditions for the gym, bookstore, library and other services.
Evaluation of merits
Education – academic record, additional merits and training 30 points
Experience – duration, institutions and skills relevant to the Requirements section 15 points
Research and/or academic and scientific output – presentations, dissemination, publications and collaborations 25 points
Final interview 30 points
Total 100 points
Funding
Contrato financiado por la Convocatoria Social Research Call 2026 del Observatorio Social de la Fundación “la Caixa”. Código de proyecto: SR26-00319.
Contract funded by the Social Research Call 2026 of the “la Caixa” Foundation’s Social Observatory. Project code: SR26-00319.
La Universidad está fuertemente comprometida e involucrada con la igualdad de trato entre mujeres y hombres. Existe un Plan de Igualdad que recoge las medidas tomadas por la Universidad, así como un protocolo de actuación frente al acoso moral, sexual y por razón de sexo y violencia de género.
En Comillas, nos esforzamos por crear y mantener un entorno que brinde espacio y apoyo a todas las personas por igual, por lo que si cuentas con un certificado de discapacidad igual o superior al 33% te animamos a que se refleje en tu candidatura.
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📌 Investigador predoctoral (PhD) COUNTERACT (Madrid)
🏢 Universidad Pontificia Comillas Icai-Icade
📍 Madrid