PhD Research Fellows in Human Geography

About the position​ Position as PhD Research Fellow in transport mode detection with location privacy available at IFI (Informatics Department) / PT (Programming Technology). The fellowship period is 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 PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo. Place of work is IFI (Informatics Department) / PT (Programming Technology), at Blindern, Oslo. Project description​ Automatic human activity detection (HAR), mainly transport-wise (transport mode detection), has been gaining interest since 2000. It allows us to better plan our cities, and new approaches have been made possible with the widespread use of smartphones carrying several different sensors. As a matter of fact, in most developed countries, smartphone penetration exceeds 80%. The automatic transport mode detection (TMD), when effectively exploited, possibly using some kind of machine learning algorithm, provides more accurate data than traditional data collection methods, e.g. paper-based surveys. This data is valuable to several stakeholders: i) architects and urban planners when designing cities or roads, ii) public transportation systems (e.g., as an automatic way for issuing tickets for the travelers, particularly when they are using public transport means such as train, bus, subway, etc.), iii) mobile users with a need to navigate, iv) healthcare (e.g., it is a useful way of detecting abnormal activities of patients with Alzheimer, dementia or any other mental pathologies, and v) entertainment, and more (e.g., a football match, a national festival or a bad weather condition may change the regular public transportation demands in a particular period of time). In addition, the information obtained by TMD systems is essential for providing mobile users with various value-added services, without tracking the user, for location-privacy. This proposal aims at solving the challenge of location-privacy by developing a) a system that can perform TMD with the capacity of generalization (not significantly affected by the geographical location, user variation, smartphone type, or smartphone position, e.g., in a bag or pocket), without tracking the user for location-privacy. Software lies at the core of all IT-systems. The Programming Section, in which the candidate should be integrated, performs research and teaching on how to develop high quality software that benefits society and that is useful for both individuals and organizations. Development plan:​ In this PhD project you will develop a system that will be able to perform TMD, without the GPS to ensure location-privacy, with the capacity of generalization (not significantly affected by the geographical location, user variation, smartphone type, or smartphone position, e.g., in a bag or pocket). 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 Informatics or equivalent • The candidate should know the issue of knowing related apps, for example Strava, in which the running is identified • 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 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 For more information see: The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree.  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:​ • Ability to work both independently and as part of a team • Good communication and collaboration skills • You are a person who prefers being present at work and actively contributes to the professional and social environment you are a part of 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 • CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work - scientific publications) • Copies of the original Bachelor and Master’s degree diploma and transcripts of records(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.

About the Department​ The Department of Physical Performance contributes through education, research, and dissemination, to an understanding of what determines physical performance with a focus on exercise physiology, biomechanics and technology. The department is responsible for teaching and conducting research within areas of how physical performance is influenced by optimal training and technique in both a sport and health perspective as well as in rehabilitation of patients.  The department's activities take place in "state of the art" laboratories, equipped for studying human motions.  The department's target groups incorporate various populations; youth, elite athletes, the elderly population and patients.  We carry specific responsibility for research within the sports of cross-country skiing, alpine skiing, swimming, orienteering, and track and field. The position and the research project​ The Department of Physical Performance at NIH offers a three- to four-year PhD fellowship from September/October 2026, four-year if teaching 25%.  The fellowship is in Exercise Physiology, with the PhD project focusing on: • biological sex differences in performance-limiting factors • durability • metabolism • fatigue development • and the influence of nutritional strategies in well-trained individuals to elite athletes in endurance sports.                       This will be achieved through a combination of laboratory- and field-based studies. The exact research questions and methodological approaches will be further refined in collaboration with the successful candidate. The PhD candidate will play an active role in all aspects of the project, including planning and development of study design, participant recruitment, data collection (assessments of performance, indirect calorimetry and gas exchanges, metabolic measurements, muscle biopsy allocation and analysis, etc.), data analysis, and dissemination of findings. The candidate will work closely with researchers at NIH and external collaborators. There will be opportunities for international collaboration, and periods of research exchange at international institutions are encouraged, although not mandatory. The project will be under the supervision of Associate Professor Øyvind Skattebo, Associate Professor Kristin Lundanes Jonvik and Professor Jostein Hallén. The successful candidate will be requested to formally apply for enrolment as a PhD student at NIH. Employment as a PhD fellow will be conditional on successful enrolment in the PhD program. Job Description​ Your main tasks as a PhD fellow at NIH are to: • Complete an independent research project under supervision. • Complete PhD courses or other equivalent educational activities corresponding to 30 ECTS points. • Actively participate in research environments, including collaboration with fellow researchers. • Dissemination of results from your PhD project, both at international conferences and in scientific journals. • Write a PhD thesis based on your project. • Optional: The candidate may gain teaching experience, depending on the department's teaching needs and the candidate's competencies. Qualification requirements and the Selection Process​ The applicant must be eligible for admission to the doctoral program at NIH: PhD program - Norwegian School of Sport Sciences. Applicants should hold a two-year master’s degree in Sport Sciences or equivalent with the grade B or better. It is the candidate responsibility to document and eventually transform the grade. Selection Criteria​ • Experience in human studies and experience in scientific writing, i.e. publications in scientific peer reviewed journals, are considered an advantage. • Demonstrate competence/experience and motivation to conduct independent research using advanced methods to investigate determinants of endurance performance such as, but not limited to, the study of metabolism and cardiorespiratory fitness using indirect calorimetry, the measurements of hemoglobin mass and blood volume using carbon monoxide rebreathing, and the analysis of metabolic markers in blood and muscle.  • Experience with performance- and cardiopulmonary exercise testing of well-trained individuals or highly trained athletes is considered a requisite • Familiarity with handling and interpreting complex datasets is an advantage. • Programming experience is advantageous but not required; willingness to learn will be considered a strength • Quality of the master's thesis and the relevance of the master's thesis to the project topic, both academically and methodologically. • Good collaboration skills, and ability to independently find innovative solutions. • Good written and oral skills in English is required. • Structured, reliable, and motivated to contribute to all phases of a research project. The purpose of the recruitment position is for the candidate to achieve a PhD during the fellowship period. Admission to the doctoral program is therefore a condition for employment as a research fellow. The candidate must be able to complete the project during the fellowship period.  The employment period is three or four years, depending on teaching qualifications and needs. The fellow will have their workplace at the Department of Physical Performance, NIH, Oslo, Norway. The candidate is required to submit an admission to the PhD program no later than six weeks after employment. A complete project description, including a proposal for the plan for the doctoral education/progress plan, will be developed in consultation with supervisors with the aim of formal admission to the doctoral program at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences. The application will be processed in accordance with applicable guidelines for employment in fellowship positions, and employment is contingent upon admission to the PhD program. The study plan for all required coursework must be approved no later than three months after commencement. NIH offers​ • Salary as a doctoral research fellow in position code 1017 (starting salary gross annual salary NOK 550 800) • A good and active working environment at the Department of Physical Performance at NIH • Good arrangements for pension, loans, and insurance in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund • Excellent training facilities, corporate sports teams, and opportunities for exercise during working hours • Immediate proximity to the metro and locked bicycle parking Application should inlcude​ The application should be written in English; all attachments must be written in a Scandinavian language or English. The application with attachments must be submitted via our electronic recruitment system Jobbnorge, and comprise: • A cover letter, stating your motivation and background for applying for the specific PhD project (max. one page).  • Full CV, including a short description of relevant methodological competencies. • Diploma and transcripts of records (BSc and MSc including grade transcripts) • A list of 2-3 relevant references or recommendations, if any • A copy of the master’s Thesis  • Publication records, if any When assessing applicants, emphasis will be placed on the applicant's academic and personal qualifications to complete the project. Suitable candidates will be invited for an interview. For education outside Scandinavia, we request an explanation of the grading system. Applicants with a foreign master's degree are encouraged to apply to HKDIR for recognition of foreign education: Apply for recognition of your foreign higher education | HK-dir. Formal regulations​ For more information about the PhD program at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, please refer to the following website: PhD program - Norwegian School of Sport Sciences. Employment is subject to the conditions applicable to state employees. NIH has mandatory membership in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund. According to the Freedom of Information Act § 25, second paragraph, information about the applicant may be disclosed even if the applicant has requested not to be included on the applicant list. Inclusion and diversity are strengths, and NIH has a personnel policy goal of achieving a balanced gender composition. Furthermore, NIH seeks employees with diverse skills, subject combinations, life experiences, and perspectives. If you are a qualified applicant with a disability, a gap in your CV, or an immigrant background, we encourage you to tick the box in the job applicant portal for this. NIH will invite at least one applicant for an interview if they are qualified, and if you get the job, we will accommodate any needs you may have. The ticking is used solely for anonymized statistics, apart from selecting the right candidate. The further process​ After the deadline for applications has expired, an expert committee will be appointed in order to make an assessment of the selected applicants. Selected applicants will be called for interview, and a final decision is expected within the end of September.  Please note that the applicant will be contacted if the assessment committee requires further documentation. Contact and questions​ Interested applicants are advised to contact the academic community in preparing the application.  Further details can be obtained by contacting:  • Main Supervisor, Associate Professor Øyvind Skattebo, oyvindsk@nih.no  • Co-Supervisor, Kristin Lundanes Jonvik, kristinlj@nih.no  • Co-Supervisor, Professor Jostein Hallén, josteinh@nih.no  • Head of Department, Truls Raastad, trulsr@nih.no  Contact administration:  • HR Department, Senior Advisor Bente Johansen-Aarbostad; email: bentejoh@nih.no  • PhD Program/Study Department, Senior Advisor, Mari Corell; email: maric@nih.no