Daniel Braun

Three PhD scholarships are available at Marburg University in the NLP research group for the junior research group “Human-in-Control: Implementing employee co-determination in the design, development, and deployment of artificial intelligence” (NFG 033). The project is funded by the Hans Böckler Foundation and focuses on how to move from human-in-the-loop to human-in-control in AI systems, with a strong emphasis on employee participation , system design , and workplace impact . Research directions include integrating employee perspectives into AI design and requirements engineering, technical methods to strengthen human oversight and control in NLP/AI systems, and organizational processes that improve job quality and worker influence in AI-supported environments. The scholarships start between November 2026 and February 2027 , run for up to 3 years , and are based in Marburg, Germany . Doctoral candidates receive a monthly tax-free stipend of €1,750 (€1,650 basic stipend + €100 research allowance), plus a health insurance subsidy of up to €100 and possible family allowances. Students may also earn up to €500 per month through teaching responsibilities. Applicants should have an above-average academic degree and demonstrate socio-political or trade union engagement . The doctoral project should fit the group’s thematic focus, and applicants must submit an exposé of up to 10 pages . Projects may be written in German or English . A scientific reference letter is not required at the initial stage. The application deadline is 2026-05-02 . Applications must be submitted exclusively via the Hans Böckler Foundation online application portal . For questions, contact [email protected] . The post also points to the full call and application instructions online.