Job description

Applicants are invited for a three-year fulltime position as PhD Research Fellow at the Centre for Research on Equality in Education (CREATE), University of Oslo, Norway. 

CREATE is an interdisciplinary Centre of Excellence funded by the Research Council of Norway with the objective to generate novel knowledge about how to reduce inequalities in education. The interdisciplinary centre integrates researchers with substantive expertise from education, psychology, sociology, economics, and genetics, and methodological expertise from educational measurement, psychometrics, econometrics, statistics, and biostatistics. The PhD fellowship is affiliated with CREATE’s research strand 1 «Identifying the barriers to equality in education».  

More about the position

CREATE is an interdisciplinary Centre of Excellence funded by the Research Council of Norway with the objective to generate novel knowledge about how to reduce inequalities in education. Strand 1 aims to disentangle the causal mechanisms hindering equality and to understand for whom, how, and why these mechanisms operate over time and over the life course. 

The successful candidate is expected to conduct advanced research on these topics, using existing data linkages available in CREATE. These include linkages of registry data across several decades, as well as registry data linked to multiple large surveys with longitudinal individual-level data, school-level aggregated data, and genetic data. The successful candidate is expected to use state-of-the-art research methods for drawing causal inferences from non-experimental data. The successful candidate should have prior knowledge of quasi-experimental methods and, preferably, large data sources such as register data.

The research fellow must take part in the faculty’s approved PhD program and is expected to complete the project within the set fellowship period. The main purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree. For more information, please see our web site: https://www.uv.uio.no/forskning/phd/

For more information about CREATE and the position, please contact Prof. Astrid M. J. Sandsør (CREATE & ISP; [email protected]).

Qualification requirements

Applicants must satisfy the requirements for admission to the faculty´s PhD programme. This normally includes:

• Applicants must hold a Master’s degree or equivalent in Economics, Sociology, Education, Psychology, Special Needs Education, or other relevant fields
• Master’s degree (120 ECTS) with a minimum grade B (ECTS grading scale) or equivalent. The Master’s degree must include a thesis of at least 30 ECTS, with a minimum grade B
• A bachelor’s degree with a minimum grade C (ECTS grading scale)
• For 5-year studies, the average grade must be C or better for the first three years, and B or better for the last two years (ECTS grading scale). The Master thesis must have been graded with a minimum grade B.
• Applicants who have submitted their MA thesis for evaluation are eligible to apply even if they have not yet received their final grade and diploma. The thesis and a confirmation that the thesis has been submitted for evaluation should in this case be included with the application. Applicants will be fully considered for this position, once the Master thesis has been graded. The final diploma with the grades must be sent to senior adviser Anne Line Bjarke, e-mail. [email protected] no later than June 21th
• Advanced quantitative research skills
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English

The following qualifications are not required but will give applicants an advantage:

• The quality of the project description and the research topic’s relevance to CREATE
• Familiarity with methods for causal inference
• Familiarity with administrative register data or other types of big data
• Familiarity with Stata, R, or other relevant computing languages

Personal skills

• A collaborative, friendly, and team-oriented style of work
• Ability to join interdisciplinary academic communities
• Creativity and ability to work independently 
• Personal suitability and motivation for the position
   

We offer

• Salary NOK 537 000 - 580  000 per annum depending on qualifications in a position as PhD Research Fellow (position code 1017)
• An interdisciplinary and international work environment, recognized as a Centre of Excellence
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement, in addition to Oslo’s family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities

How to apply and what to include in your application

The application must include:

• Cover letter, including statement of motivation and research interests
• A project description, including progress plan (5-7 pages). Please see our guidelines. 
  • Choose a topic relevant for strand 1 and motivate your interest
  • Situate the research field in your chosen research topic by identifying what you consider to be three key references
  • Identify a potential research question and suggest a methodological approach and study design to pursue this question.
  • Include a tentative progress plan for the PhD including coursework you would benefit from
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work)
• Copies of educational certificates (academic transcripts only). Foreign applicants must attach an explanation of their grading system
• Documentation of English proficiency (for information on required documentation, see information on this webpage)
• Master thesis, and in case the thesis has not yet been graded, a confirmation from the relevant university that it has been submitted for evaluation must be included
• A complete list of publications and academic works, if any
• List of reference persons: 2-3 references incl. the supervisor of the Master’s thesis 
   (name, relation to candidate, e-mail, and phone number)

Incomplete applications will not be assessed.

Please note that all documents should be in English (or a Scandinavian language).

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, please follow the link: “Apply for this job”. 

When evaluating the application, emphasis will be given to the project description and the applicant’s academic and personal prerequisites to carry out the project. Applicants may be called in for an interview.

Formal regulations

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Research Fellowships at the University of Oslo.

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

According to the Norwegian Freedom and Information Act (Offentleglova) information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.

The appointment may be shortened/given a more limited scope within the framework of the applicable guidelines on account of any previous employment in academic positions.

The University of Oslo has an agreement for all employees, aiming to secure rights to research results etc.

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.