PhD Research Fellowship “Planning for Quality in Medium-Sized Norwegian Cities”
Deadline: 23.02.2026
Publisert
The Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO) is a specialized university and a leading international architecture and design school that provides education within architecture, landscape architecture, urbanism and design. AHOs fields of knowledge focus on design in all scales; objects, buildings, urban areas and landscaping. AHO is organized into three institutes, and has approx. 750 students and 210 employees.
The institute emphasizes interplay and dialogue between urbanism and landscape architectural approaches. A productive exchange between teaching and research addresses current urban, landscape and architectural challenges and explores multi-scalar urban and territorial development processes. Urban, planning and landscape architectural history and theory are central to teaching and research at the institute.
The department’s activities aim to contribute to both local and global discourses by focusing on conditions in the Northern region which have international relevance. Examples include questions of Norwegian urbanity and public space, challenges and futures of urban and peri-urban landscapes, as well as Arctic and Subarctic habitats as laboratories for exploring the impacts of climate change.
The institute maintains and develops close contact and dialogue with professional, public and civic actors to further significant urban development agendas and issues across all levels and sectors.
The institute has a strong international profile, featuring an established network of cooperating institutions within practice, teaching and research.
The institute maintains and develops close contact and dialogue with professional, public and civic actors to further significant urban development agendas and issues across all levels and sectors. The institute has a strong international profile, featuring an established network of cooperating institutions within practice, teaching and research.
The institute co-manages the Master in Architecture programme and offers two Master programmes in Landscape Architecture: one five-year integrated Master in collaboration with the Arctic University of Norway UiT in Tromsø, and one two-year International Master in Oslo. The institute also offers an Executive Master in Urbanism, and partakes in the AHO PhD program.
About the Position
Contemporary urbanisation in Norway is increasingly guided by transit-oriented development (TOD) strategies and compact city principles, promoted as pathways to sustainable urbanisation with lower carbon footprints, shorter travel distances, and stronger local communities. These models underpin urban development strategies and regulations and are now applied almost universally—in large and small cities alike, as well as in suburban and semi-rural settlements. Yet, despite their good intentions, such strategies often fall short of their ambitions to create qualitatively strong, socially central, and spatially coherent environments. The results, in terms of new urban neighbourhoods/districts, frequently lack the intended sense of place and everyday centrality used to justify their development, both within and outside the traditional city core.
We ask for PhD proposals that take the discrepancy between planning intentions and built results as their starting point. Proposals should focus on the material and spatial dimensions of urban development, asking how the analytical tools and representational methods used in early-phase planning shape end outcomes on the ground.
Specifically, the PhD project should investigate to what extent current practices of place analysis (stedsanalyser)—intended to mediate between political goals, technical demands, and design intentions—can identify and translate local identities, spatial potentials, and physical preconditions into urban development of genuine quality. The proposed research should develop and test new analytical approaches that clarify how urban environments are produced across different types of territories, with particular emphasis on medium-sized Norwegian cities and their urban regions, where multiple nodes and centres coexist in complex relational networks.
The PhD project should critically assess the assumptions embedded in models such as TOD, compact city ideals, and the 15-minute city, by examining how they are materialised in a Norwegian context.
Emphasis should be placed on how analytical and design-based methods can strengthen the link between place-based knowledges and the creation of built form, for purposes of ensuring that urban development responds to both spatial context and social life. Addressing the gap between planning intentions and built outcomes—particularly visible in recent developments in medium-sized city regions—the PhD project should aim to develop and test methods that strengthen the connection between strategic spatial analysis (including place analysis), planning instruments, and the physical and experiential qualities of the built environment.
Research Environment and Supervision:
The PhD position will be situated within the Institute of Urbanism and Landscape at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO), in close collaboration with the research group Norwegian Urbanism. The institute conducts research and design-based inquiry on the transformation of cities and landscapes under changing environmental, social, and economic conditions.
The project will be linked to ongoing work on urban form, strategic planning, and peri-urban transformation in Norwegian cities.
Supervision will be provided by Professor Jonny Aspen and Professor Halvor W. Ellefsen. Aspen is an experienced researcher who has published extensively on urban cultures, contemporary urban development, and digital cities.
Ellefsen is a researcher and practitioner focusing on strategic planning, architectural production, and political economy, and coordinates the Norwegian Urbanism Research Group at the Institute of Urbanism and Landscape.
Formal requirements:
The candidate must:
Hold a master’s degree or equivalent in architecture, urbanism/planning or related fields of social sciences/humanities. The master’s degree must be formally completed by May 2026
Document basic competence in Norwegian or another Scandinavian language (B2 level)
Personal characteristics
Ambitious, curious and highly motivated
Ability to work systematically and complete work tasks within given deadlines
Strong motivation to contribute to a good working and social environment
Professional and personal ability to complete the PhD project on time
Requirements for the project description
We offer
The PhD scholarship is a fully funded 4-year position, with 25 % teaching and there is no tuition fee. The position is remunerated according to position code 1017 PhD Research Fellow, with an annual salary of NOK 550,800. From the salary, a 2 % contribution is deducted for the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund. Standard employment conditions for state employees in Norway apply for the position
An annual allowance of 25 000 NOK (in total 75 000 NOK) for literature and other necessary academic activities
Office space in a professionally stimulating working environment
Information meeting:
The PhD Programme at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO) will arrange an online information webinar about the AHO PhD Programme 22 January at 15:00 CET. Click this link to register for the Zoom webinar.
Formal regulations:
A tentative project outline of maximum 5 pages. This should contain 1) the research field and research questions, 2) theoretical approach/methods, 3) empirical and/or case study material, 4) educational relevance and 5) mobility.
The application must include:
Project description (max 5 pages)
An application letter describing the applicant’s qualifications and motivation for the position (two A4 pages maximum)
CV
A list of publications (if you have any published)
Examples of work written by the applicant (three works maximum)
Certified copies of educational certificates, transcripts of records, diplomas and letters of recommendation
3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail address and telephone number)
The application with all attachments must be submitted via Jobbnorge.no. Applications that do not comply with the formal requirements will not be considered. Attachments beyond the required documents will not be taken into consideration.
The PhD application will be assessed according to the following criteria:
The quality of the project description (outline)
The applicant's suitability for the research tasks
The academic competence of the applicantThe educational component in the AHO PhD Programme is mandatory and requires fulltime attendance. Residency in Oslo for the employment period is mandatory. Research stay at a relevant international academic institution is encouraged. The PhD fellowship will start September 1, 2026
No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the AHO.
A public applicant list may be published even if the applicant has requested an exemption, cf. Section 25 of the Freedom of Information Act. Applicants will be notified in advance.
The appointment may be shortened/given a more limited scope within the framework of the applicable guidelines on account of any previous employment in academic positions.Applications, including all required attachments, must be submitted electronically via Jobbnorge.no.
Inclusion and diversity are a strength. AHO has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. Furthermore, we want employees with diverse professional expertise, life experience and perspectives.
AHO values diversity and encourages qualified candidates to apply regardless of age, gender, or background. Arrangements will be made for applicants with disabilities.
The engagement is to be made in accordance with the regulations in force concerning State Employees and Civil Servants, and the acts relating to Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who by assessment of the application and attachment are seen to conflict with the criteria in the latter law will be prohibited from recruitment to AHO.
Questions about the position
For further information about the position, please contact:
