Postdoctoral research fellowship in AI for Music Analysis

About the position

A Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (SKO 1352) is available at the Department of Musicology, University of Oslo.

The position is part of MishMash Centre for AI and Creativity, which is a Norwegian AI centre funded by the Research Council of Norway (2025-2030). It comprises more than 200 faculty members from many higher education institutions in Norway, in collaboration with numerous public and private sector partners. The primary objective of MishMash is to create, explore, and reflect on AI for, through, and in creative practices. MishMash researchers will investigate AI’s impact on creative processes, develop innovative CoCreative AI systems and educational strategies, and address AI’s ethical, cultural, legal, and societal implications in creative domains. See MishMash Centre for AI and Creativity | A Norwegian AI centre funded by the Research Council of Norway (2025-2030) for more information. 

This postdoc position will be part of WP6 (AI for cultural heritage) of MishMash, with the possibility of contributing also to other work packages. The position would focus on the development of AI-based systems to curate music collections from the Nordic Heritage, including Norwegian folk and Sami joik. Particular tasks of interest would be to transcribe, analyse, classify, interconnect, and showcase vast, unstructured multimedia datasets. Extension of the AI tools for the analysis of other creative artistic realms would be welcome, but not obligatory.

The appointed candidate is expected to collaborate across the MishMash network and participate in all relevant MishMash activities. 

Research Proposal

Applicants are required to upload a Research proposal (hf.uio.no) stating research questions and theoretical and methodological approaches as well as a feasible progress plan.

More about the position

The position is available for a period of 3 years. There is a 10 % component of the position which is devoted to teaching and administrative duties / other career-promoting work. Given additional funding and a good match with the Department’s teaching needs, the position may be extended to 4 years including 25% teaching and administrative duties.

The successful candidate is expected to become part of the research environment of both MishMash and the Department of Musicology and contribute to its development. The purpose of a postdoctoral position is for the employee to develop a research profile and competence that qualifies them to apply for an Associate Professor position. The position may also provide other competencies relevant to the postdoctoral fellow's future career. 

A career plan shall be developed for the Postdoctoral Fellow, specifying the competencies the Postdoctoral Fellow should acquire. UiO is responsible for following up on the career plan and ensuring that the Postdoctoral Fellow has access to career guidance throughout the postdoctoral term.

If the Postdoctoral Fellow does not already have educational qualifications that meet the requirements for an associate professor position, UiO shall facilitate the acquisition of such competence during the employment period.

 Selection criteria 

Mandatory requirements

• PhD or equivalent academic qualifications with a specialization in AI in areas relevant for the project (e.g., MIR, computational music analysis). The applicant is required to demonstrate how the degree corresponds to the profile of the post.  
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English
• Personal suitability and motivation for the position

The doctoral dissertation must be submitted for evaluation by the application deadline. Appointment is dependent on the public defense of the doctoral thesis being approved. 

Desired qualifications and competencies

• PhD thesis relevant to the proposed research project
• Expertise in machine learning
• Additional expertise in one or more of the following: digital signal processing, statistics, multimodal processing, FAIR data management, music theory, or musicology

Personal skills

• Strong ability to work purposefully, systematically, and independently
• Time management and ability to carry out the project within the allotted time frame
• Very good collaboration skills and an ability to join interdisciplinary academic communities

Employment in the position is based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualification requirements applicable to the position, including personal qualifications and assessment of Research proposal.

Assessment criteria for the research proposal

• The candidate's research project must be closely connected to the call and to MishMash’s aims and objectives, particularly those of WP6. 
• The scientific merit and quality of the research proposal
• The research project's feasibility within the time frame of the position

We need different perspectives in our work 

UiO is an open and internationally oriented comprehensive university that strives to be an inclusive and diverse workplace and academic environment. You can read more about UiO’s work on equality, inclusion, and diversity at uio.no.

We fulfill our mission most effectively when we draw upon our variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives. We are looking for great colleagues—could you be the next one?

We will do our best to accommodate your needs. Relevant adjustments may include modifications to working hours, task adaptations, digital, technical, or physical adjustments, or other practical measures.

If you have an immigrant background, a disability, or CV gaps (Norwegian), we encourage you to indicate this in the job application portal. We always invite at least one qualified candidate from each group for an interview. In this context, disability is defined as an applicant who identifies as having a disability that requires workplace or employment-related accommodations. For more details about the requirements, please refer to the Employer portal (Norwegian).

The selections made in the job application portal are used for anonymized statistics that all state employers include in their annual reports.

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

We hope you will apply for the position with us. 

We offer

• Exciting and meaningful tasks in an organization with an important societal mission, contributing to knowledge development, education, and enlightenment that promote sustainable, fair, and knowledge-based societal development.
• An exciting working environment, including all the benefits of being part of a large Norwegian AI Centre and its many events, workshops, and career development opportunities
• Good welfare schemes (uio.no).
• Opportunity of up to 1.5 hours a week of exercise during working hours (uio.no).
• 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 Postdoctoral Fellow, position code 1352 in salary range NOK from 595 000 to 677 000, 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 (dfo.no).

Application

Your application should include:

• Application letter describing your qualifications and motivation for the position
• CV with a list of education, positions, teaching experience, administrative experience and other qualifying activities 
• A complete list of publications
• Research proposal, including a detailed progress plan for the project (3 - 5 pages, maximum 14.000 characters. See Template for research proposal (hf.uio.no)

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

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

Do not submit other certificates, articles, and the like unless specifically requested. If further documentation is wanted for assessment, you will be asked to submit it later. 

Short-listed candidates will be invited for an interview.

General information

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 cannot, you will hear from us.

Please refer to Regulations for the Act on universities and colleges chapter 3 (Norwegian) and Guidelines concerning appointment to post doctoral and research posts at UiO. Note that no one can be employed for more than one fixed-term period in the same position category at the same institution.

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