PhD Research Fellow in Information Systems

About the position

Position as Ph.D. Research Fellow in Information Systems available at the Department of Informatics.

The research fellowship is a full-time position with a fixed-term period of three years. 

Depending on the candidate and the teaching needs of the department, the fellowship period can be extended either for compulsory work consisting of e.g., teaching and supervision duties and research assistance up top four years.

Starting date no later than October 1, 2026.

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

Place of work is Department of Informatics at University of Oslo. The candidate will be actively involved and contribute to the daily research and social activities in our office space at Ole Johan Dahls house.

Job description

The position is devoted to carrying out research focusing on digital platforms and digital ecosystems in a large organization preferably the financial sector or the health sector. Particularly, the research in the position is devoted to the role of IT architecture in enabling digital platforms and digital ecosystems. This includes but is not limited to various strategies chosen by the organization to transform silo-oriented legacy systems towards a more agile and innovation-friendly IT architecture. Computing capabilities such as artificial intelligence are also highly relevant. 

Even though the doctoral candidate is expected to use a socio-technical approach, we stress that the study is particularly occupied with the role of, as well as the changes enabled by the capabilities of innovative digital technology. 
The doctoral candidate will be connected to an ongoing project in a large organization that investigates, develops, and implement flexible and innovative IT architectures as a part of the platformization strategies. 

For this position, we are looking for a research candidate who will:

• Use an engaged scholarship approach, which emphasizes the tight collaboration between practitioners and researchers in the development of knowledge. Qualitative methods and techniques like interviews, observations, and action research are preferred, but a mix of qualitative and quantitative may also be relevant.
• Use a socio-technical perspective on development, implementation, and use. This entails investigating the relationship between the capabilities of digital technology, and organizational and user-oriented issues.
• Strengthen the research team's interdisciplinary approach and outcomes. The doctoral candidate will be part of a research group and is expected to share insights derived from the investigation with fellow researchers. 

The project is an intersection of information systems and software engineering and involves working with either public or private organizations (e.g, in the healthcare or financial services) that are transitioning to modern and innovative IT architectures and digital platforms crucial for developing competitive advantages.

What skills are important in this role?

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.

Required qualifications:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Information Systems or other relevant disciplines
• Foreign completed degree (M.Sc.-level) corresponding to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English

Desired qualifications:

• Experience in work in projects related to programming and IT architecture
• You have experience in working in interdisciplinary teams
• You speak Norwegian or a related Scandinavian language
• Documented knowledge about digital innovation and digital transformation
• Documented knowledge and experience in qualitative research methods

Candidates without a master’s degree have until June 30, 2026 to complete the final exam.

Language requirement:

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

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

The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree. For more information see:
http://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/

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.

What are we looking for in you?

Personal skills:

• You are open to learning
• You have or are open to, developing communication skills across various research disciplines
• You have the capacity to conduct empirical research and are resilient to cope with setbacks in the process
• You are a team player who is interested in co-developing research ideas and in playing an active role in the team – yet you also (and like to) work independently
• You enjoy organizing workshops and seminars both in academia and industry

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

We can offer you

• A pleasant and stimulating work environment
• Good welfare schemes
• Opportunity of up to 1.5 hours a week of exercise during working hours
• A workplace with good development and career opportunities
• Career development programmes
• Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes
• Oslo’s family-friendly surroundings with their rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities
• Salary in position as PhD Research Fellow, position code 1017 in salary range NOK from 550 800 - 595 000, depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund 

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.

How to apply

The application must include:

• Cover letter - statement of motivation and research interests
• A high-level sketch of the project with activities and milestones
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work - scientific publications)
• Transcripts of records, copies of the original Bachelor and Master’s degree diploma (see below)
• Letters of recommendation
• Documentation of English proficiency if applicable
• List of publications and academic work that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)

Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for this job". Foreign applicants should attach an official explanation of their University's grading system.

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.

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.