PhD Research Fellow in organisational ethics

Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences (HiOA) is Norway’s largest state University College, with approximately 17000 students and 2000 employees. We conduct research in areas that are important for welfare and value creation, for instance health, education, social sciences, technology and design. HiOA has an academic stimulating environment with a variety of welfare schemes.

Our goal is to become a leading university in the Nordics within the field of applied sciences.

A position as PhD Research Fellow is available at the Work Research Institute, Research Group for Responsible Innovation, at Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences. The PhD candidate will be enrolled at the PhD program at the HiOA Center for the Study of Professions (SPS). For more information about the research group and the program, see our websites https://hioaresponsibleinnovation.wordpress.com/, http://www.hioa.no/eng/Om-HiOA/Senter-for-velferds-og-arbeidslivsforskning/AFI and http://www.hioa.no/eng/Om-HiOA/SPS.  

The position is related to the European Horizon 2020 PRINTEGER project: Promoting Integrity as an Integral Dimension of Excellence in Research (see www.printeger.eu). PRINTEGER analyses the incidence and individual, social, and organisational causes and dynamics of misconduct. It also analyses how institutions respond to allegations, specifically in interaction with neighbouring law, the media, complex research organisations, and systemic changes in research. From the perspective of the research work floor, including the daily work of journal editors or research managers, PRINTEGER will analyse how current instruments of integrity policy operate in practice. How do guidelines best contribute to integrity? What other instruments and procedures will promote integrity? The aim of PRINTEGER is to provide concrete tools and advice to promote research integrity in Europe. The project includes eight partners and will be carried out in the period 2015 – 2018.

The successful candidate for this position will contribute to HiOA’s work in the project, which focuses on organisational ethics. This is described in a note that can be accessed by contacting the Norwegian project leader (Ellen-Marie Forsberg, see contact details below).

Area of research

The candidate will be expected to contribute to all HiOA’s tasks in the project, in collaboration with the rest of the project team. HiOA’s responsibilities in the project are primarily related to the organizational, or work floor, perspective:

• Literature studies of organisational mechanisms that function as drivers and barriers to research integrity and misconduct.
• Web-based survey, focus groups and misconduct case studies to understand such drivers and barriers in practice.
• Exploration and identification of best practice examples of organisations that have successfully built a strong culture for research integrity.
• Systematic assessment of leadership tools that can be used to build such a strong integrity culture.

The PhD candidate will be expected to participate in the survey work, in addition to the more qualitative work. He/she will be expected to participate in PRINTEGER consortium meetings and collaborate with other project partners on specific project tasks, to be agreed with the successful candidate. He/she will also be expected to collaborate with the other project researchers on reports or articles, where this is reasonable. As the candidate will be enrolled in the doctoral program for the Study of the Professions, perspectives from professional ethics will be expected to be integrated into the PhD work.

The fellowship will be for a period of three years with no compulsory work at the Department.

Application

The application shall include your motivation for applying to this fellowship as well as the skills, experience, and personal characteristics that make you an attractive candidate for this position.

Please include a 2-3 pages note in English with your current thoughts and ideas as to what this fellowship could aim at and what you think may be relevant and interesting to include in this work based on your current understanding of the project as well as your own research interests, skills, and work preferences. Please also include any reflection on the critical factors and challenges you anticipate may be encountered in the Project.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Applied Philosophy, Ethics, Organisational Theory or Management – or equivalent.
• The fellowship requires admission to the SPS PhD programme. See requirements for admission: http://www.hioa.no/eng/Studies/Sps/Ph.d/PhD-in-the-Study-of-Professions. The application to the programme must be submitted and approved no later than three months after taking-up the position.
• The candidate must be fluent in English, both written and spoken. Good command of Norwegian (or Swedish/Danish) is a requirement as the PhD program is conducted in Norwegian.
• Experience in working with organisational development is an advantage, but not a requirement.

Desired skills

The successful candidate should:

• Have strong analytical skills and be systematic and thorough in his/her research and communication practices
• Have good writing skills, preferably documented by publications
• Be able to work independently, take initiative, plan, dimension and direct own work.
• Have excellent communication skills and ability to collaborate in interdisciplinary teams.
• Have interest in organisational ethics, professional ethics and/or research and innovation ethics
• Have experience in or interest for both qualitative and quantitative research methods

We offer:

• The possibility to take a PhD in an integrated project setting with daily interaction with the project’s researchers
• Opportunity to be a part of a dynamic professional environment and a high quality international and interdisciplinary research consortium
• A good work environment.
• Flexible hours and good social benefits.

Type of employment: Temporary position

Contract type: Full time

First day of employment: By appointment

Salary: NOK 430 500- 459 700 before tax

Expert committee

As an applicant you may be assessed by an expert committee. In addition to the online application, you must submit, within the application deadline:

• application, CV and copies of diplomas/certificates.
• a short description (2-3 pages) of your current thoughts and suggestions for this fellowship as described under Application above. This note must be written in English.
• your master thesis
• any other papers or publications you wish to be considered, including a full list of any publications you may have. Although scientific publications are not required of a PhD candidate it will clearly be an advantage.
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, email, and telephone number).

The position adheres to the Norwegian Government’s policy that the national labour force should to the greatest possible extent reflect the diversity of the population. Therefore, we encourage qualified candidates with immigrant background or reduced functional ability to apply for this position. HiOA is an IA (Inclusive Workplace) enterprise and operates in compliance with the Norwegian IA agreement.  Questions about adaptation and the working environment may be directed to the contact persons.

Contact information:

Dr. Ellen-Marie Forsberg, Head of Research at Work Research Institute and Principal Investigator for HiOA in PRINTEGER, mobile: (+47) 9706 1971, ellenmarie.forsberg@hioa.no