This is NTNU

NTNU is a broad-based university with a technical-scientific profile and a focus in professional education. The university is located in three cities with headquarters in Trondheim.

At NTNU, 8,6000 employees and 44,000 students work to create knowledge for a better world.

You will find more information about working at NTNU and the application process here.   

About the position

The Department of Interdisciplinary Studies of Culture (KULT) is a leading Norwegian centre in (amongst others) the field of Science and Technology Studies (STS). The department falls under the Faculty of Humanities of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology NTNU and is located in Trondheim, Norway. We are currently recruiting a PhD Research Fellow in STS who wants to work at the crossroads of infrastructures, security, resilience, and interdisciplinary work across these fields. 

Are you motivated to take a step towards a doctorate and open up exciting career opportunities? As a PhD research fellow, you will work to achieve your doctorate, and at the same time gain valuable experience that qualifies you for a range of leading positions in higher education and research as well as business and administration. 

Your immediate leader will be the Head of Department. You will have a daily supervisor at the department, and one or more co-supervisors from across the project team. 

About the project

How do we build a society that is resilient to crises, attacks, and unexpected shocks? A More Resilient Society is a major strategic initiative at NTNU that requires interdisciplinarity and innovative thinking to address complex and socially relevant challenges. A total of 16 PhD candidates will work across faculties and academic communities within the fields of critical societal infrastructure and health preparedness. The aim is to support research that challenges established assumptions and contributes to a safer and more resilient society.  

STRIDE (Synergizing Transport Resilience, Infrastructure, and Defense in Extremes) is one of the projects under the More Resilient Society initiative. STRIDE is a multidisciplinary research project developing a dynamic, multi-risk modeling framework to enhance the resilience of Norway's transport infrastructure against converging climate-driven hazards, such as severe floods and landslides, and geopolitical threats, including targeted sabotage. Moving beyond traditional, brittle "fail-safe" design paradigms, STRIDE operationalizes a "safe-to-fail" approach focused on maintaining critical transport functionality through graceful degradation and rapid recovery across the entire disaster management cycle. As a PhD candidate, you will work within a collaborative, cross-faculty team spanning civil engineering, artificial intelligence, operations research, and science and technology studies.

You will focus on integration of knowledge across academic domains, the operationalization of concepts such as ‘comprehensive resilience’ (Norwegian: totalberedskap) in a multidisciplinary context, and the sociotechnical analysis of infrastructures and their vulnerabilities. 

Duties of the position

You will be offered a position for 4 years as a paid PhD Research Fellow (stipendiat). This will consist of 2,5 years independent research, 0,5 year of courses at PhD level, and 1 year of career-relevant work which may or may not include teaching. More specifically, your duties will be to:

• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate
• Carry out high-quality research within the framework described above
• Produce academic publications and popular science dissemination
• Participate in several research groups at KULT, notably the newly established group on Security Studies (and the related university-wide research group on Security Narratives), and the longstanding Center for Climate, Energy and the Environment (CLEEN).
• Participate in international activities such as conferences and/or research stays at foreign educational institutions
• Teaching (dependent on the Department’s needs and opportunities)
• Other career-promoting work, such as project support and assistance in grant acquisition.

Changes to your work duties may occur after employment, and flexibility is appreciated.

Required selection criteria

• You must meet the requirements for admission to the Doctoral Programme in Interdisciplinary Studies of Culture (PHKULT, https://www.ntnu.edu/studies/phkult), see also Section 6-1 of the PhD regulations for more information.
• You must have a Master's degree in a relevant subject area. Relevant areas include: Science and Technology Studies (STS), fields such as philosophy, history, sociology and anthropology with a distinctly technology-oriented focus, innovation studies and innovation management, and history and philosophy of science (HPS). Within these fields, it is crucial that you demonstrate an affinity with and aptitude for qualitative and interpretive research. We will also consider candidates from the natural and engineering sciences, provided that they can demonstrate affinity and aptitude for humanities and social sciences. 
• Your degree must include a major independent project (minimum 30 ECTS) equivalent to a master’s thesis.
• Master students can apply, but the master's degree must be obtained and documented before starting the position and no later than August 2027. Documentation needs to be provided with the application, certifying that this is a realistic expectation (e.g. letter from supervisor). 
• You must have a strong and relevant academic background from your previous studies and have an average grade from your Master's degree study, or equivalent education, which is equal to B or better compared to NTNU's grading scale. If you do not have letter grades from previous studies, you must have an equally good academic foundation. If you have a weaker academic background, you may be considered if you can document that you are exceptionally suited for a PhD education, for example through relevant work experience and/or peer-reviewed academic works.
• Excellent command of the English language, both written and orally.

The appointment is to be made in accordance with NTNUs guidelines for recruitment positions for general criteria for the position.

In order to secure a good fit with the project, candidates are strongly recommended to seek informal contact with the envisioned daily supervisor, Govert Valkenburg (see below), in good time before submitting the application, to acquire more detailed information about the project. 

Preferred selection criteria

• Demonstrable interdisciplinary experience, either within the humanities and social sciences (HSS), or even outside HSS, with fields like engineering, natural science or medical science.
• Demonstrable collaborative research experience, including possible internships.
• Good oral and written presentation skills in Norwegian/Scandinavian. If this is not the case, willingness to learn will be considered an advantage. 

Personal characteristics

To complete a doctoral degree (PhD), it is important that you are able to: 

• Work independently
• Work in a structured way, set goals and make plans to achieve them
• Present and discuss your research with other professionals
• Get involved and contribute constructively with feedback
• Work constructively under pressure or in the face of adversity 
• Show curiosity and a strong motivation for the subject
• Analyze data, assess different perspectives and draw well-founded conclusions 
• Be flexible and open to adjusting the plan for the project as needed

Emphasis will be placed on personal qualities.

We offer

Evaluate and remove/add what is relevant for the position.

• An exciting job with an important mission in society
• Developing tasks in a strong and international professional environment
• Career guidance and follow-up during the PhD period
• Open and inclusive working environment with committed colleagues
• Working capital that can be used to implement the project
• Mentor programme as a new employee at NTNU
• Favorable terms as a member of the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund (SPK)
• Free Norwegian language training at a basic level (A2)

As a PhD Candidate at NTNU, you will have access to employee benefits.

Diversity

Diversity is a strength, and at NTNU we aim to be an employer that reflects the diversity in society and that makes use of the potential of the population's collective skills. Our vision is Knowledge for a better world and our values ​​are creative, critical, constructive and respectful. We believe that an organization that is equal, diverse and gender-balanced is essential for us to achieve our goals. 

We strive to attract employees with different skills, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to even better problem solving of our societal mission in research and education. 

If you think this position is relevant and interesting, we encourage you to apply, regardless of gender, functional ability and cultural background, or whether you have been out of work for a period of time.

Salary and conditions

In the position of PhD Candidate, code 1017, your gross salary will normally be NOK 580 000,- per annum depending on qualifications and seniority. A 2% statutory contribution to the State Pension Fund is deducted from the salary. 

The employment period is 3 years for the doctoral work in addition to 1 year of career promotion work. 

The successful candidate will be granted conditional admission to the PHKULT doctoral programme when employed in the PhD research fellow position. It is a prerequisite for continued employment that the requirements for full admission are met within three months, and that you continue to participate in the organized doctoral programme for the remainder of the employment period. For more information about the requirements for full admission, please see Section 6 of the PhD regulations. 

As an employee at NTNU, it is important that you keep yourself up to date with academic and organizational changes and adapt to them.

For the necessary professional and social interaction, it is a prerequisite that you are physically present and available to the institution on a daily basis.

The appointment is carried out in accordance with the principles of the State Employees Act, and Export control (legislation that regulates the export of knowledge, technology and services). Candidates who, after assessment of the application and attachments, are considered to be in conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to be employed.

About the application

The application and all required attachments must be sent electronically via Jobbnorge.no before the deadline. The documents must be in Norwegian, another Scandinavian language or English. 

Please note: the application will only be assessed on the basis of the information we have received by the application deadline. Therefore, make sure that your application clearly shows how your skills and experience meet the criteria described above. If you are invited for an interview, you must present certified copies of certificates and diplomas upon request.

The application must include: 

• Transcripts and diplomas for Bachelor's and Master's degrees. Include a diploma supplement if your institution offers one, or otherwise a description of the Higher Education system and its grading scales from the country where the degree was obtained.
• CV filled out in Jobbnorge
• Copy of Master's thesis. If the thesis is not in English or a Scandinavian language, add an extended summary in English or Norwegian. If you have recently submitted your Master's thesis, you can attach a draft of the thesis. Documentation of a completed Master's degree must be presented before taking up the position.
• Project outline proposing your approach to the project in terms of research questions, theoretical perspectives and methodological design, as well as a tentativeprogress plan (maximum 1500 words/4 pages).
• Short letter of motivation (400 words/1 page)
• Any publications or other relevant research work
• Any relevant certificates
• Names and contact information of three relevant referees

If all, or parts of, your education has been taken outside Norway, we also ask you to attach documentation of the scope and quality of your entire education, both Bachelor's and Master's education, in addition to other higher education. If your institution does not offer a “diploma supplement”, you must attach information about the grading scale from the education institution. 

We further recommend that you enclose a statement about your education abroad from the Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir). Follow the link to their web site for more information about how to obtain such a statement: Apply for recognition of foreign higher education. See also NTNU’s web site for documentation requirements for education obtained outside Norway. 

When assessing the best qualified, we emphasize necessary qualifications such as education, experience and personal suitability. Motivation for the position, ambitions, and potential for research will also count when assessing the candidates.

NTNU recognizes a wide range of academic contributions and has committed itself to The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment and CoARA (responsible assessment of research and recognition of a greater breadth of academic contributions in accordance with NTNU's social mission).

General information

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you wish to be exempt from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance with current legislation. You will be notified if the exemption is not granted.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact research professor Govert Valkenburg, govert.valkenburg@ntnu.no. If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Elisabeth Leite, email: elisabeth.leite@ntnu.no.

Application deadline: 20.11.2026

For practical information about working at NTNU, please visit this webpage. 

The city of Trondheim is a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the tech capital of Norway with a population of 200,000. The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.