The position

The position: An exciting researcher position is available in the Department of Computer Science in collaboration with the Department of Clinical Medicine at UiT - The Arctic University of Norway. The position is funded for a period of three years. The research will be conducted within thriving research groups that have recently received grants of excellence. The main focus will be on developing novel voice and language-based natural language processing (NLP) methods for languages with less data than ideal for the development of cognitive tests.

The ideal applicant: We are looking for applicants who have demonstrated research interests in computational approaches for speech and / or neuro technologies for low-resource languages, work well in interdisciplinary teams, and who are interested in practical applications of their research.

Goal: Contribute broadly to research on applications of artificial intelligence in behavioral science and medicine, and in particular to the development and validation of novel computational language models, algorithms, and tools for spoken language-based cognitive tests for low-resource languages, and their integration with measures of health.

Start date: Autumn 2025. The workplace is at UiT in Tromsø. You must be able to start in the position in Tromsø, within four months after receiving the offer.

The position is fixed term for a duration of three years. Appointment to the position of Postdoctoral Research Fellow is mainly intended to provide qualification for work in top academic positions. It is a prerequisite that the applicant can carry out the project over the full course of the employment period. No person may hold more than one fixed term position as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the same institution.

The position's field of research

The postdoctoral researcher position is affiliated with two EU projects (TRUSTING - and DELTA-LANG) that concern themselves with medical applications of speech technologies to prevent clinical worsening in patients with mental illness. We have a large team working on developing technological solutions for these applications. We are seeking a computer science researcher to take an active role in developing novel machine learning based systems and tools on the path towards clinical use and implementation of AI for the treatment and care of individuals also from minority populations. The candidate will contribute to the development of algorithms suitable for heterogenous, language/speech-based data specifically in the languages of the far north, notably the Sámi languages, and health-related data (e.g., genomic (SNP) data) from these populations (e.g., Sámi). The activity will focus on the development of suitable assessment and analysis (e.g., natural language processing) methods and data collection in order to study the effectiveness and safety of these tests when used by those speaking the low-resourced languages (e.g., Sámi language(s)). This includes designing data collection of relevant data. The project will focus on interaction with psychologists and clinicians, with a goal of closing the gap between foundational research in machine learning and the practical application and clinical use of machine learning methods for the benefit of Sámi patients from a healthcare point of view. Hence, the work will be conducted in a highly interdisciplinary research environment and the candidates will collaborate with international teams consisting of psychologists, clinicians, researchers in science and technology, health, industry partners, as well as personnel responsible for ICT, data security, privacy concerns and more.

Working environment

The Health Data Lab (HDL) is a research group at the Department of Computer Science at UiT - The Arctic University of Norway. HDL’s mission is to build and experimentally evaluate the systems, methods, and tools needed to analyze and interpret complex health datasets. The group collaborates with the Psychiatry Research Group at the Department of Clinical Medicine at UiT – the Arctic University of Norway where NLP methods are used to complement traditional methods of evaluating the mental state of psychiatric patients. The project will also work with The Norwegian Centre for Clinical Artificial Intelligence at the University Hospital of North Norway. In SPKI, the focus is patient-centered AI, in the sense that implementation and actual use of AI for the benefit of the patients and clinicians is considered to be equally important as the research activity of the SPKI centre. All three research groups are in Tromsø, Norway. Our research groups work with the development of computer systems for data analysis, development of machine learning methods, and the clinical use of technology. Within the research groups you will therefore work together with computer scientists with expertise in data management, distributed systems, security, machine learning, and development of health technology solutions. In addition, you will work with experts in psychology and psychiatry. The HDL and SPKI research groups are part of the Centre of Research-based Innovation SFI Visual Intelligence that is a center-of excellence in machine learning research. The research groups are also active in entrepreneurship, clinical process innovation, and industry collaboration.

Contact

For further information about the position, please contact:

Professor Brita Elvevåg: phone +47 91993063; email: brita.elvevag@uit.no
Professor Lars Ailo Bongo: phone +47 92015508; email: lars.ailo.bongo@uit.no
Associate Professor Karl Øyvind Mikalsen; phone +47 91565867; email: karl.o.mikalsen@uit.no
For administrative questions, contact: Martin Fjellvang Osima: phone: +47 77 64 62 44, email: martin.osima@uit.no.

Qualifications

The position requires:

a PhD degree in computer science or a related field
a publication record that documents solid expertise in computer science and interdisciplinary research
strong technical skills
documented fluency in English and good communication skills. The position is part of interdisciplinary projects, and close interaction with other project participants will be required. Nordic applicants can document their English capabilities by attaching their high school diploma

If you are at the final stages of your PhD, you may still apply if you have submitted your PhD thesis for evaluation within the application deadline. You must submit the thesis with your application, and you must have received your PhD before the start date of the position.

We are looking for applicants with:

a strong interest and expertise in computer science research with a focus on machine learning methods for the health domain
strong coding skills and familiarity with state-of-the-art machine learning frameworks

We are especially interested in applicants with experience working with complex real-world data and with experience translating research results to clinical applications. Applicants with research experience and relevant publications in conferences and journals will be considered with higher priority.

We consider it an advantage if applicants have:

demonstrated research results or interests in computational approaches for speech and / or neuro technologies
experience working with NLP for low-resource languages, experience with health data (especially genomics data),
interdisciplinary research experience,
previous practical applications of their research
working knowledge of Norwegian or a Scandinavian language

We are looking for interested, active and highly motivated candidates who like to explore new technologies, and who are independent thinkers but also team players who will enjoy collaborating with other researchers and clinicians.

During this assessment process, emphasis will be placed on your potential for research as evidenced by your PhD thesis and any other academic works. In addition, we may consider work experience or other activities of significance. The assessment will emphasize motivation and personal suitability for the position. At UiT we put emphasis on the quality, relevance and significance of the research work and not on where the work is published, in accordance with the principles of The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA).

Inclusion and diversity

UiT The Arctic University i Norway is working actively to promote equality, gender balance and diversity among employees and students, and to create an inclusive and safe working environment. We believe that inclusion and diversity is a strength, and we want employees with different competencies, professional experience, life experience and perspectives.

If you have a disability, a gap in your CV or immigrant background, we encourage you to tick the box for this in your application. If there are qualified applicants, we invite least one in each group for an interview. If you get the job, we will adapt the working conditions if you need it. Apart from selecting the right candidates, we will only use the information for anonymous statistics.

We offer

Participation in an excellent and thriving research group that has recently received a prestigious ERC Synergy grant
A productive, collaborative, and stimulating environment with researchers working on cutting-edge medical applications of artificial intelligence and speech technologies
Good career opportunities
A good academic environment with dedicated colleagues 
Flexible working hours and a state collective pay agreement 
Pension scheme through the state pension fund 
The possibility to balance professional development with a location to experience the liberating arctic nature: ski under the northern lights, hike and bike along the fjords under the midnight sun
If you have to relocate to Tromsø then the Faculty of Science and Technology may reimburse your moving costs. Further details regarding this matter will be made available if you receive an offer from us.

Norwegian health policy aims to ensure that everyone, irrespective of their personal finances and where they live, has access to good health and care services of equal standard. As an employee you will become member of the National Insurance Scheme which also include health care services.

More practical information for working and living in Norway can be found here: https://uit.no/staffmobility

Application

Your application must include:

Application letter, including a 1-page summary of your motivation for applying for this position, why you are qualified for this position and how you will strengthen the research activity in the research team.
CV, with complete overview of education, supervised professional training, professional experience, and list of scientific publications.
Description of your academic production, stating which works you consider most important and of relevance to this position. A brief description of the other listed works should also be included to demonstrate breadth of production. These descriptions shall be an attachment to the application.
Description of your academic and software production and links to any open-source code.
Diplomas and transcripts (all degrees)
Documentation of English proficiency
Contact information to 2-3 references
Academic works, up to five. The doctoral thesis is regarded as one work.

If you’re at the final stages of your PhD, you may still apply if you have submitted your PhD thesis for doctoral degree evaluation within the application deadline. You must submit the thesis with your application. Documentation of your completed PhD degree must be submitted before commencement.

All documentation to be considered must be in a Scandinavian language or English. If English proficiency is not documented in the application, it must be documented before starting in the position. We only accept applications and documentation sent via Jobbnorge within the application deadline.

Assessment

The applicants will be assessed by an expert committee. The committee's mandate is to undertake an assessment of the applicants' qualifications based on the written material presented by the applicants, and the detailed description draw up for the position. A copy of the assessment report will be sent to all applicants. UiT wishes to increase the proportion of females in academic positions. In cases where two or more applicants are found to be approximately equally qualified, female applicants will be given priority.

The applicants who are assessed as best qualified will be called to an interview. The interview should among other things, aim to clarify the applicant’s motivation and personal suitability for the position. A trial lecture may also be held.

General information

The appointment is made in accordance with State regulations and guidelines at UiT. At our website, you will find more information for applicants.

The engagement is to be made in accordance with the acts relating to Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who by assessment of the application and attachment are seen to conflict with the criteria in the latter law will be prohibited from recruitment. After the appointment you must assume that there may be changes in the area of work.

The remuneration for Postdoctoral research fellow is in accordance with the State salary scale code 1352. A compulsory contribution of 2 % to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund will be deducted. You will become a member of the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund, which gives you many benefits in addition to a lifelong pension: You may be entitled to financial support if you become ill or disabled, your family may be entitled to financial support when you die, you become insured against occupational injury or occupational disease, and you can get good terms on a mortgage. Read more about your employee benefits at: spk.no.

The successful candidate must be willing to get involved in the ongoing development of their department and the university as a whole.

UiT wishes to promote gender equality. In cases where two or more applicants are found to be approximately equally qualified, female applicants will be given priority.

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.

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