Doctoral Position in Cultural History and Museology

Job description

A Doctoral Research Fellowship (SKO 1017) is available at the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages, University of Oslo. The fellowship is part of the project ‘Afterlives of Natural History’ – funded by the Research Council of Norway.

In the Afterlives of Natural History project we investigate natural history as a set of specific practices. Following the “end of natural history” in the late 18th century (Lepenies 1976), knowledge about the vast, infinitely complex object of nature was distributed across a wide range of disciplines, including biology, geology, chemistry, and physics, but also history, folklore and anthropology. We look for a fellow that will study collecting practices in the 19th century, with a focus on natural history collecting. How was 19th century Norwegian natural history collecting organized and practiced? And how were humanist and naturalist practices intertwined? The person appointed will be an important contributor to one subproject, as well as an important participant in the entire research team. We will develop experimental workshops and labs where we probe and discuss the history and contemporary importance of natural history as well as how natural history practices can help us develop new ways of working across disciplines.

To apply you must submit a project proposal that focuses on collecting in the 19th century, outlining research questions, methodological choices and what kind of empirical material you plan to use. This fellowship will be part of subproject 3, which will investigate the relationship between natural history and humanist collecting in the 18th century. For more, see the project described here.

The person appointed will be affiliated with the Faculty's organized research training. The academic work is to result in a doctoral thesis that will be defended at the Faculty with a view to obtaining the degree of PhD. The successful candidate is expected to join the existing research milieu or network and contribute to its development. Read more about the doctoral degree.

The appointment is for a duration of 3 years. All PhD Candidates who submit their doctoral dissertation for assessment with a written recommendation from their supervisor within 3 years or 3 ½ years after the start of their PhD position, will be offered, respectively, a 12 or 6 month Completion Grant.

Qualification requirements

• A Master's degree or equivalent in cultural history, museology or other relevant disciplines for the topic. The Master's degree must have been obtained and the final evaluation must be available by the application deadline.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English, see Language requirements.
• Applicants who can read and use Norwegian source material may be preferred.
• Personal suitability and motivation for the position.

To be eligible for admission to the doctoral programmes at the University of Oslo, applicants must, as a minimum, have completed a five-year graduation course (Master’s degree or equivalent), including a Master’s thesis of at least 30 ECTS. In special cases, the Faculty may grant admission on the basis of a one-year Master course following an assessment of the study programme’s scope and quality.

In assessing the applications, special emphasis will be placed on:

• The project's scientific merit, research-related relevance and innovation
• The applicant's estimated academic and personal ability to complete the project within the time frame
• The applicant's ability to complete research training
• Good collaboration skills and an ability to join interdisciplinary academic communities

Applicants who have recently graduated with excellent results may be given preference.

We offer

• Salary NOK 491 200– 534 400 per annum depending on qualifications
• A professionally stimulating working environment
• Membership in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
Attractive welfare benefits

How to apply

The application must include:

• Application letter describing the applicant’s qualifications and motivation for the position
• Curriculum Vitae (with a list of education, positions, teaching experience, administrative experience and other qualifying activities, including a complete list of publications)
• Transcript of records of your Bachelor’s and Master's degrees. Applicants with education from a foreign university must attach an explanation of their university's grading system
• Documentation of Language requirements (if applicable)
• Project description, including a detailed progress plan for the project (3 - 5 pages, maximum 14,000 characters. See Template for project descriptions)

Please note that all documents must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

Educational certificates, master theses and the like are not to be submitted with the application, but applicants may be asked to submit such information or works later.

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, jobbnorge.no.

Short-listed candidates will be invited for an interview.

Formal regulations

See also regulations as well as guidelines for the application assessment process and appointments to research fellowships.

Following the Freedom of Information Act (Offentleglova) § 25, Chapter 2, demographic information about the applicant may be used in the public list of applicants even if the applicant opts out from the entry in the public application list.

The University of Oslo has an Acquisition of Rights Agreement for the purpose of securing rights to intellectual property created by its employees, including research results.

The University of Oslo aims to achieve a balanced gender composition in the workforce and to recruit people with ethnic minority backgrounds.

Contact information

For questions about the position:

Professor Brita Brenna

Associate Professor Line Esborg

Professor Jacob Høigilt

For questions on how to apply:

HR-Officer Natali Helgesen