[Commlist] GAMEINDEX – 2 funded PhD positions, Charles University, Prague

GAMEINDEX – 2 funded PhD positions, Charles University, Prague

We are seeking two PhD students to work on dissertations aligned with 
the ERC grant “GAMEINDEX: Politics and aesthetics of indexical 
representation in digital games and VR.“ The project starts in October 
2025, is headed by Dr. Jaroslav Švelch, and located at Charles 
University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Institute of Communication 
Studies and Journalism within the Prague Game Production Studies 
research group (https://gameproductionstudies.fsv.cuni.cz/).

Dissertation topic:

GAMEINDEX focuses on indexical representation in games – both as traces 
of real-life objects or people in the simulated worlds of digital games 
and VR, and as references to physical locations. PhD students will be 
involved in the work package that analyzes indexical representation in 
games and/or VR apps as media artifacts. The applicants are invited to 
propose a project within the scope of GAMEINDEX, focusing on 
representation of a certain region and its locations, culture, and/or 
history in games and VR apps produced both within and outside that 
region. We are looking for applicants from a diverse set of regional 
backgrounds including locations deemed peripheral by mainstream game 
culture. The research is expected to involve qualitative content 
analysis/close reading, discourse analysis, and interviews with 
developers or stakeholders. For more information about the project, see 
the project at the link below. Besides their main focus on in-game 
representation, the PhD students will also take part in the analysis of 
discourse about indexical techniques and contribute to a database that 
is a part of the project’s output.

Candidate requirements:

Candidates must complete their Master’s degree by August 30, 2025. They 
are expected to be well-versed in literature related to game production 
and game representation and be skilled in qualitative content analysis 
or related methods. During their PhD, the candidates will be required to 
present papers at academic conferences and produce publications for 
international peer-reviewed journals.

Practical arrangements:

Starting in the Fall semester of 2025, the successful applicants will 
enroll into the Media and Communication Studies 4-year English-language 
PhD program in the combined form. They will be employed by the GAMEINDEX 
project and will receive a full-time salary for the duration of four 
years. Successful applicants are expected to relocate to Prague and are 
eligible for a relocation fee from the project budget.

Application procedure:

The deadline for the application is APRIL 30, 2025. To apply, the 
candidate must submit a structured CV, a 10-page dissertation project 
and a list of literature they wish to discuss at the admission 
interview. We strongly encourage prospective applicants to get in touch 
earlier to consult their application. The admission interview will focus 
on the dissertation project and the list of literature and will be 
conducted remotely. The application and the interview will be evaluated 
by the selection committee, chaired by the guarantor of the PhD program. 
If accepted for the PhD program, the applicant’s employment on the ERC 
project will then be confirmed by GAMEINDEX’s PI.

More information about the admissions process, along with a link to the 
online application form, is available here: 
https://iksz.fsv.cuni.cz/en/admissions/phd-programme-media-and-communication-studies/how-apply
When applying, please choose the “combined” rather than “full-time” form 
of study. For administrative purposes, externally funded full-time PhD 
students fall under the “combined” form.

For more information about the positions and GAMEINDEX, please contact 
Jaroslav Švelch at (Jaroslav.Svelch /at/ fsv.cuni.cz). The project description 
can be found here: 
https://gameproductionstudies.fsv.cuni.cz/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/svelch_gameindex_b1.pdf

To learn more about the doctoral program, please check this webpage: 
https://iksz.fsv.cuni.cz/en/study/phd-studies.

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