In 1995, he obtained his MSc in Business Administration and Economics from the Linköping University in Sweden.
[4] After his graduation Söderlund started teaching and continued his studies at the Linköping University, In 1998 he obtained his Licentiate of Business Administration, and in 2000 his PhD in its International Graduate School of Management and Industrial Engineering (IMIE).
His thesis was entitled "Time-limited and complex interaction – studies of industrial projects".
In 1998, he had attended the Program in General Management at the Harvard Business School as visiting doctoral student.
In 2007, he was appointed Professor in Project Management at the BI Norwegian Business School.