PhD Research Fellow in interdisciplinary education research at the INTED Center 

About the position 

A position as PhD Research Fellow is available at the Center for Interdisciplinary Education at the University of Oslo, under the direction of associate professor Tor Ole Odden and professor Anders Malthe-Sørenssen. 

Starting date no later than September 1st, 2025.

The fellowship period is 3 years. A fourth year may be considered with a workload of 25 % that normally consists of teaching. This is dependent upon the qualification of the applicant and the current needs of the department.

No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo.

Job description 

Interdisciplinary education is important for addressing the world’s wicked problems, for breakthroughs in science and innovation, and to prepare students for tomorrow’s work life. INTED seeks to better our understanding of teaching and learning in interdisciplinary education at universities. Interdisciplinary competences include capabilities such as being able to collaborate, integrate and draw on knowledge from different disciplines, or translate knowledge or methods from one discipline for colleagues from another discipline. Based on INTED’s research, the group is developing educational recommendations to prepare students for further study or work in interdisciplinary contexts.

The use of learning assistants for institutional change and to improve learning outcomes is well developed. However, less focus has been on learning assistants’ roles in interdisciplinary learning and for developing interdisciplinary competence. INTED has started an interdisciplinary learning assistant (I-LA) program to support learning of interdisciplinary competencies and to build a community for interdisciplinary learning. The PhD research fellow is expected to contribute to the development of a research-based understanding of the impact of the I-LA program on student and LA learning and on institutional adoption and change. This research will be done using a mixture of traditional qualitative methods, situated within a design-based research framework, and cutting-edge text analysis methods that use large language models as a tool for qualitative research. The candidate is expected to take active part in the research group at INTED.

Qualification requirements

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has a strategic ambition to be among Europe’s leading communities for research, education and innovation. Candidates for these fellowships will be selected in accordance with this and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

• Master’s degree or equivalent in the natural sciences, education research, psychology, or other social sciences. Foreign completed degrees (M.Sc.-level) must correspond to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system. Preference will be given to candidates with experience from education research in higher education (university level) or equivalent. It is an advantage to have experience from studies of Learning Assistants programs.
• Preference will be given to candidates with strong oral and written communication skills in a Scandinavian language in order to collect and work with data from Norwegian students and Learning Assistants
• Interest for interdisciplinary research.

Candidates without a Master’s degree have until June 30, 2025 to complete the final exam.
 

Grade requirements:
The norm is as follows:

• The average grade point for courses included in the Bachelor’s degree must be C or better in the Norwegian educational system
• The average grade point for courses included in the Master’s degree must be B or better in the Norwegian educational system
• The Master’s thesis must have the grade B or better in the Norwegian educational system
   

Language requirements:

• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English
• English requirements for applicants from outside of EU/EEA/EFTA countries and exemptions from the requirements:
  https://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/regulations/regulations.html#toc8

For candidates who would like to apply for a fourth year including teaching, good knowledge of Norwegian or another Scandinavian language is strongly preferred.

The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree. The fellowship requires admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. The application to the PhD programme must be submitted to the department no later than two months after taking up the position. For more information see: http://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/

Personal skills

We are seeking a highly motivated, enthusiastic and hard-working candidate with the ambition to gain new insights and publish papers in leading, international journals. Applicants must show good interpersonal skills and be willing to work in close collaboration with the project PIs and other members of the project team, as well as have the ability to work independently. 

We offer

• Vibrant international academic environment
• Oslo’s family-friendly surroundings with their rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities
• Good welfare schemes.
• Career development programmes
• Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes.
• Salary in position as PhD Research Fellow, position code 1017, in salary range NOK from 536 200 – 575 400, depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund.

Read more about the benefits of working in the public sector at Employer Portal.

Inclusive worklife and diversity at UiO

Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. Furthermore, we want employees with diverse professional expertise, life experience and perspectives.

If there are qualified applicants with disabilities, employment gaps or immigrant background, we will invite at least one applicant from each of these categories to an interview.

We hope that you will apply for the position. 

More information about gender equality initiatives at UiO can be found here.

Application

Your application should include:

• Application cover letter: a brief account (no more than one page, as a separate file) of the applicant’s interest and motivation for applying for the position including a brief description of how the applicant envisions his/her experience could be used to address the project goals
• CV (summarizing education, positions, research experience, pedagogical experience, and other relevant activities)
• A complete list of publications and academic works that the applicant wishes to be con-sidered by the evaluation committee, including exercises or problem sets the applicant has designed 
• Copies of educational certificates, academic transcript of records and letters of recom-mendation
• Names and contact details of 1-2 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)
• For applicants who are interested in teaching: a description of their motivation for and (if any) experience with teaching

Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click «Apply for the position».

When applying for the position, we ask you to retrieve your education results from Vitnemålsportalen.no. If your education results are not available through Vitnemålsportalen, we ask you to upload copies of your transcripts or grades. Please note that all documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

General information

The best qualified candidates will invited for interviews. 

All candidates and projects will have to undergo a check versus national export, sanctions and security regulations. Candidates may be excluded based on these checks. Primary checkpoints are the Export Control regulation, the Sanctions regulation, and the national security regulation.

Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we can't, you will hear from us.

Please refer to Regulations for the Act on universities and colleges chapter 3 (Norwegian),  Guidelines concerning appointment to post doctoral and research posts at UiO (Norwegian) and Regulations for the degree of Philosophiae Doctor (PhD) at the University of Oslo.

The University of Oslo has a transfer agreement with all employees that is intended to secure the rights to all research results etc.

DIVERSE INFO

Kilde: NAV stillingsannonser
https://arbeidsplassen.nav.no/stillinger/stilling/147e8601-cfc6-43b1-9757-80c30854d605
IMPORTAPI
https://www.jobbnorge.no/ledige-stillinger/stilling/277338