Temporary full-time contract
Postdoctoral Researcher – Singlehood and Social Inequality
SINGLE project (ERC-2024-STG No. 101163333)
Duration: 3 years
Start Date: 01/05/2027 (earlier is possible, but no later than 01/06/2027)
Application Deadline: 02/12/2026 at 12:00PM (noon), Central European Time (CET)
The Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics (CED) is hiring a quantitative postdoctoral researcher to join the ERC-funded project, ‘SINGLE – Understanding the Demography and Stratification of Singlehood in Europe’ (PI: Dr. Ariane Ophir, Grant number 101163333). This is a full-time position for three years, based at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) campus, just outside of Barcelona.
SINGLE is a comparative 5-year project dedicated to understanding the drivers and consequences of singlehood. The project pays particular attention to the demographic and social drivers of singlehood and its diverse, complex consequences.
The project is organized around two interconnected themes: (1) Demography of Singlehood – a framework for evaluating and disseminating demographic estimates of singlehood, highlighting trends, patterns, as well as offering a population perspective to understanding selection and terminology related to singlehood; (2) Stratification of Singlehood – asking whether, how, and where social stratification is reproduced or mitigated within the single population across a wide range of social, economic, health, and interpersonal outcomes. SINGLE aims to move beyond existing scholarly narratives towards a more complex understanding of the role of context (time, country, culture, policies) in shaping diverse outcomes among singles that pertain to themselves, their choices and constraints, and their relationships with the people and community around them. Gender, life course/aging, and class are primary stratification axes of interest.
In addition to leveraging large-scale comparative secondary data (e.g., GGS, ESS, SHARE, EU-SILC, time use), SINGLE will run an original multi-country singlehood survey. The survey will address the project's core questions while also providing opportunities to develop new concepts and perspectives to advance a multidimensional, complex, and comparative understanding of contemporary singlehood.
We are looking for a motivated, curious quantitative social scientist whose work fits within or expands the project’s scope. Singlehood is an emerging area of social science research, and relevant expertise may take many forms that are not necessarily labeled as “singlehood research.” In addition to candidates studying singlehood directly, we welcome candidates whose research related to relevant demographic behaviors, populations, and life-course transitions, or the role of marriage/partnerships in shaping key social, economic, health, or interpersonal outcomes relevant to the project’s scope.
We are particularly interested in researchers who could leverage the project’s comparative framework, secondary data infrastructure, and original survey to strengthen their own research agenda. The postdoc will be encouraged to develop innovative theoretical or methodological approaches to singlehood.
The postdoc will also play a key role in the survey’s intellectual development and support its implementation, working with the PI, external survey methodology consultants, the survey company, and other research staff. Experience with original surveys and a professional interest in developing survey leadership experience is particularly valuable, but survey methodology expertise is not required.
Key research responsibilities include:
Co-authoring peer-reviewed publications with the PI using secondary and original data
Develop independent singlehood-related research within the project
Contribute intellectually to the development of the project’s original multi-country survey, helping shape research questions, modules, and measures including the potential content linked to the postdoc’s own research agenda
Support scientific coordination of the project's survey in collaboration with the PI, survey methodology external consultants, survey company, and research staff
Participating in international conferences, workshops, and other project-related activities
Contribute to the intellectual activities of the SINGLE team and the CED research community
PhD in Sociology, Demography or a related social science field
Demonstrated research expertise related to singlehood (as described above), and strong motivation to study singlehood as a substantive social phenomenon related to social inequality
Strong statistical and data skills, preferably with large-scale, complex, nationally representative data
Experience contributing to original quantitative data collection
Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
Nice to have Assets
Academic curiosity and breadth, including the ability to engage with topics beyond one’s own research area
Experience with cross-national quantitative research
Knowledge of a European language is an asset (knowledge of Spanish or Catalan is helpful for life in Barcelona)
Gross annual salary: €42,000 - €44,500 (14 payments per year). Net annual calculator for Barcelona is available here
Duration: This is a three-year contract (37.5 hours/week) with the possibility of extension through the end of the grant on 30/06/2030
The position offers full employment benefits in accordance with Spanish labor laws, including healthcare, vacation days, social security etc.
Work is based in Barcelona, with possibility of two days a week working from home
Budget for conference attendance and training courses is available as well as professional development support
Teaching is not required but optional via the Barcelona Four Seasons School of Demography
Interested candidates should submit the following materials as PDF files in English through the application form.
Academic CV
Cover Letter (2 pages maximum, one document): Please use the cover letter to address the following:
2.1 Qualifications and experience (max. 1 page): Describe your research experience relevant to the qualifications above. Candidates who have not completed their PhD should also indicate the status of their dissertation and an expected timeline to degree completion.
2.2 Research interests within SINGLE (max. 1 page): Describe the research questions you would be interested in pursuing within the project and how they align with your research agenda and the project’s aims, including interest in the original survey (e.g., a measure or module you would be interested in developing).
Writing Sample: One sample that best demonstrates the candidate’s analytical abilities and quantitative work (e.g., published article, working paper, dissertation chapter). Sole- or first-author samples are preferred.
References: Shortlisted candidates will be asked to provide the names and contact details of two referees at a later stage.
Applications are due by Wednesday 02/12/2026 at 12:00PM (noon), Central European Time (CET).
Applications will be reviewed after the closing date
Interviews will be held online and are tentatively scheduled for mid-December or Mid-January
For any question about the position, please contact [email protected]
Further information about CED at https://ced.cat
CED is committed to the principles of the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers of the European Commission and the Open, Transparent and Merit-based Recruitment principles (OTM-R). This is applied for any potential candidate in all our processes, for example by creating gender-balanced recruitment panels and recognizing career breaks etc.
CED is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We are pleased to consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or any other basis protected by applicable state or local law.