Kristiania University College offers study programs in management, organization, marketing, communication, computer science, information technology, health sciences, innovation and creative arts. Kristiania University College is Norway's largest independent comprehensive university college with its 18,000 students and a large education offering in Oslo, Bergen and online. Our mission is to strongly contribute to the country's social and economic development through problem-driven and applied knowledge development and dissemination, in close cooperation with society at large.
PhD fellowship in Communication and Leadership
Kristiania University College, School of Communication, Leadership, and Marketing (SCLM), is offering two fully funded PhD fellowships in Communication and Leadership. We seek candidates with a solid background in social science, media and/or communication, leadership, management, game studies, marketing, sociology, anthropology, or related fields. The successful applicants will be included in a team of researchers with ambitious plans to further develop research and pedagogical activities at the university college.
Thematically, the positions concern technological, economic, and social aspects of media use or media practices with special attention to the smartphone.
Some general themes include:
Features related to app design and app technology
Platformization and platform economy
Smartphone users and their everyday online/offline life
The PhD fellowships will be associated with two cooperating projects, DIGITOX and DIGILOVE, and the fellows will collaborate with each other and other researchers within this framework.
DIGILOVE
The DIGILOVE project focuses on dating platforms, dating apps, and users of these technologies. Some possible research topics would be:
Digital dating practices
Persuasive media design and user patterns in dating apps
Discourses pertaining to love, relationship, and technology
Platform economy, datafication, and monetization models
Full description of the DIGILOVE project can be found here.
DIGITOX
The DIGITOX project focuses on invasive media technology and disconnection practices. Various media sectors and user segments are relevant. Some possible research topics include:
Platform characteristics and monetization models that enhance involvement
Persuasive or gamified smartphone or app design
Manufacture of disconnection (e.g., digital detox apps, detox retreats)
Disconnection practices and discourses
Full description of the DIGITOX project can be found here.
The PhD programme addresses the relation between communication and leadership in societal and organisational phenomena. Kristiania offers a comprehensive supervision of PhD candidates who will have at least two academic supervisors, one of whom will be the main supervisor. They will also be offered a mentor as a supplement to the supervisor team. PhD candidates will be members of one of Kristiania’s research groups and are expected to participate actively in scientific discussions at meetings and seminars organised by the group. Activities include lunch seminars/coffee breaks and the bi-monthly PhD forum, which support PhD candidates on professional, practical and psychosocial matters.
The candidates must be accepted to the PhD program at the latest three months after signing the employment contract. To be accepted for this programme, it is required that the applicant holds a relevant 180 ECTS bachelor’s degree, and a relevant 120 ECTS master’s degree (or integrated bachelor and master) or equivalent, and with grade similar to the Norwegian/European grade B or higher in average and for the master thesis.
The application must include:
Motivation letter for the position
Approved Diplomas and Transcripts (in Scandinavian or English language)
CV
At least two references
Master’s thesis
A proposal for a research project of a maximum of five pages. It must include a brief overview of the specific issue the applicant wishes to focus on; ideas regarding planned subprojects and how they relate to the overarching goal of the project; and reflections on methods and theoretical perspectives
Templates for the research proposal and the application form can be found here.
The starting salary is 492,000 NOK per year.
The PhD research fellowship is 3 years and is scheduled to start as soon as possible.
Place of work is School of Communication, Leadership, and Marketing. Kristiania is located in downtown Oslo, with numerous amenities, recreational spaces, and urban fun right next door.
Kristiania University College value diversity, and we encourage all qualified applicants to apply for this position.
Application deadline : January 6, 2023
If you have any questions regarding DIGILOVE, please contact Associate Professor Lene Pettersen at Lene.pettersen@kristiania.no (+47 411 35 061).
If you have any questions regarding DIGITOX, please contact Professor Faltin Karlsen at Faltin.karlsen@kristiania.no (+47 907 37 088).
We use Semac background checks in our recruitment process.
Only applications received through our application portal will be considered.
