Job offer

European Commission; España; Presencial; EUR 25.000; Jornada completa

Descripción de la vacante

The European Commission invites applications for a PhD researcher in comics at Elisava, focusing on social innovation and design. With a salary of €25,000 per year, candidates will contribute to academic research and education while exploring graphic storytelling's role in academia. Applicants must hold a Master's degree and possess relevant skills in design, data analysis, and social impact.

Formación

• Master's degree or equivalent required.
• Experience in design and research methodologies preferred.
• Strong interest in social issues and their intersection with graphic storytelling.

Responsabilidades

• Study comics as a research tool and pedagogy.
• Work on research projects, including European initiatives.
• Teach courses within undergraduate or postgraduate programs.

Conocimientos

Fluency in written and spoken English

Knowledge of design

Data analysis and visualization

UX

Social innovation

Intersectionality

Inequality

Social impact

Sustainability

Educación

Master Degree or equivalent

Descripción del empleo

Organisation/Company ELISAVA Department Elisava Research Research Field Other Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Country Spain Application Deadline 29 Jun 2025 - 23:59 (Europe/Madrid) Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 30 Offer Starting Date 1 Sep 2025 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

[CAT]

[ENG]

Nowadays, we are experiencing an emergency period for graphic narrative languages in the fields of art and visual communication, and specifically, within these environments, in comics and graphic storytelling. Graphic languages have gained enormous visibility, significant growth in both labor opportunities and market demand, and increasing cultural validation. These transformations are impacting the academic conception of comics and graphic languages, which are increasingly legitimized as an area of research, in their sociological, semiotic, and aesthetic dimensions. The Càtedra de Recerca i Experimentació en Còmic FINESTRES-ELISAVA (CREC) was created in the academic and research context to meet the needs of a language such as comics, which is currently experiencing conceptual growth.

The Càtedra FINESTRES-ELISAVA (CREC) aims to:

1. Promote academic and professional research, and experimental creation in comics;
2. Introduce and consolidate comics within the academic environment;
3. Train and professionalize researchers and educators in comics.

One of the action lines of the Càtedra is the production of thought and theoretical research. This line involves the incorporation of a PhD researcher with a scholarship intended to explore the possibilities of graphic essay within the academic field. The PhD candidate must enroll in one of the lines at the UVic-UCC doctoral school.

Priority will be given to research that:

• Expands the limits of comics and hybridizes it with other languages;
• Delves into graphic essays and/or presents their research in graphic format.

Within this context, Elisava, School of Design and Engineering of Barcelona (UVic-UCC), invites applications for a PhD student position supervised by professors Dr. Mery Cuesta and Dr. Massimo Menichinelli within the framework of the Càtedra de Recerca i Experimentació en Còmic FINESTRES-ELISAVA (CREC), founded in June 2025 through an agreement between ELISAVA and the Fundació Finestres as part of their “Impuls al Còmic” project.

The selected candidate will:

a) Study how the language of comics and graphic storytelling can be used as a research tool, as well as to test pedagogical methodologies.

b) Work on European, national, and regional research and innovation projects;

c) Teach courses in undergraduate or postgraduate programs (60 hours per year).

Where to apply

E-mail [e-mail]

Requirements

Research Field Other Education Level Master Degree or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

• Fluency in written and spoken English is appreciated.
• Knowledge of design (strsategic design, service design, interaction design, graphic design), data analysis and visualization, UX.
• A strong interest in social innovation, intersectionality, inequality, social impact, sustainability.

This offer is made within the framework of the FINESTRES-ELISAVA Chair of Research and Experimentation in Comics (CREC).

The fellowship is worth €25,000 per year for 3 years.

Eligibility criteria

[CAT]

[ENG]

• Residents in Catalonia and/or, alternatively, have graduated from a Catalan university and hold a university degree or equivalent from the Catalan system.
• Regulated permit to work in Spain.
• Be at least 18 years of age and not have reached retirement age.
• Hold the qualifications that are determined. In the case of qualifications obtained abroad, it would be necessary to present the credential accrediting the homologation of the qualification.

Have the functional capacity to carry out the functions of the post to be filled.

Candidates shall submit these documents:

• Scanned copy of a valid ID (national ID, passport or equivalent)

• Copy of your official academic transcripts and Master’s Diploma (or declaration of equivalence of the requested diploma if applicable)

A board will assess the evaluation of the curriculum vitae and arrange an interview.

Additional comments

Elisava, Barcelona School of Design and Engineering of the Universitat de Vic – Universitat Central de Catalunya (UVic-UCC), fourth best Catalan university and sixth in Spain, promotes education, knowledge and research in the fields of design, industrial design engineering and communication.At Elisava we understand design and industrial design engineering as instruments to transform the world through innovation and critical reflection. Located on an urban campus in the centre of Barcelona, we have a direct impact on the city and are closely involved in its cultural life. Elisava Research , the R+D+i Center of Elisava, is a vibrant community of academic researchers in the fields of design and engineering and a solid ecosystem of international partners and collaborators. We lead the official Consolidated Research Group ‘Research through Design’ (GRC – 2021 SGR 01497) and publish Temes de Disseny , an open-access scientific journal currently a first quartile journal (Q1) in the ‘Architecture’, ‘Cultural Studies’ and ‘Visual Arts and Performing Arts’ categories, according to the SCImago Journal & Country Rank.