PhD Fellow position in Psychology (Gene-Environment Interplay and Neurodevelopment)
Deadline: 31.03.2026
Publisert
The University of Oslo is Norway’s oldest and highest ranked educational and research institution, with 26 500 students and 7 200 employees. With its broad range of academic disciplines and internationally recognised research communities, UiO is an important contributor to society.
The Department of Psychology is one of seven units of the Faculty of Social Sciences, and has 75 permanent and 70 temporary members of scientific staff. Degrees are offered at bachelor and master level, plus a clinical training programme, and the PhD programme has 140 students.
Join the Department of Psychology as a PhD Fellow!
About the position
A PhD Fellow position in psychology is available at the PROMENTA Research Center, the Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway.
The position is full-time for a duration of four years and includes 25% career-promoting work, which may consist of teaching, dissemination, and contributions to NeuroPathways’ interdisciplinary and convergence activities.
Starting date no later than 01.10.2026.
About the PROMENTA Research Center and the project
At PROMENTA, we study mental health and quality of life from a holistic perspective — from genetics and biology to local communities and policy. We aim to identify the factors that shape good and poor mental health, understand how social inequalities arise, and develop and evaluate effective interventions that promote wellbeing.
We ensure that our postdoctoral fellows can develop high-quality research competence across disciplines, in collaboration with leading experts. With us, you will be part of a dynamic and interdisciplinary research environment, with ample opportunities for both scientific and social engagement throughout the academic year.
PROMENTA has more than 50 scientific staff members and was established with funding from the Research Council of Norway and the Department of Psychology at the University of Oslo (UiO). Learn more about working at PROMENTA here.
About the NeuroPathways Convergence Environment and the PhD projectConvergence Environments are interdisciplinary research groups that aim to solve grand challenges related to health and environment. They are funded by UiO's interdisciplinary strategic area UiO:Life Science.
Neurodevelopmental conditions such as ADHD and autism are being diagnosed more than ever — but why, and with what consequences? NeuroPathways is an interdisciplinary Convergence Environment that brings together psychology, genetics, pharmacology, education, and clinical research to address questions about neurodevelopmental variability that cannot be answered within disciplinary silos. The NeuroPathways research environment bridges biomedical and social science perspectives to examine how genetic predispositions and environments — from clinics to classrooms — jointly shape developmental outcomes, using Norway’s exceptional registry and cohort data to study why diagnoses are rising, who receives assessment and support, which interventions work best for whom, and how support systems can become more equitable and inclusive.
This PhD position has a genetics-oriented focus. The PhD fellow will work with large-scale longitudinal and family-based data, including genomic data, population registers, and cohort studies, to investigate how genetic predispositions relate to neurodevelopmental outcomes across childhood and adolescence, and how these relationships vary across social and environmental contexts.
The PhD fellow will be embedded in the interdisciplinary NeuroPathways Convergence Environment. Dr Rosa Cheesman (PROMENTA, University of Oslo) will serve as primary supervisor with overall responsibility for the PhD project. Dr Nicolai Borgen and Prof Astrid Sandsør (Centre for Research on Equality in Education – CREATE, University of Oslo) will serve as secondary supervisors, contributing expertise in education, inequality, and population register-based research. The fellow will collaborate closely with researchers across the NeuroPathways Team, including experts in developmental and clinical psychology and pharmacoepidemiology (Prof. Alexandra Havdahl, Prof. Krister W. Fjermestad and Prof. Hedvig Nordeng).
Your main tasks will be
Develop and preregister analysis plans
Prepare data for analyses
Participate in interdisciplinary seminars and training activities within the NeuroPathways project
Contribute to work on user participation within the NeuroPathways project
Perform statistical analyses, including advanced gene-environment interplay methods
Write at least three scientific articles as first author
Communicate results in various national and international scientific journals and popular science forums
Present at international conferences (some travel is expected)
The PhD fellow will take part in the approved PhD program at the Department of Psychology. The main purpose of the PhD fellowship is to qualify the candidate for a research career within or beyond academia. To support a strategic and well-structured PhD trajectory, the PhD fellow will be required to develop a career and competence development plan in dialogue with the supervisory team early in the appointment period.
Qualifications
Qualification requirements
To be admitted to the PhD programmes at the University of Oslo, an applicant must have a five year master's degree or equivalent in psychology, genetics, statistics, biostatistics, health sciences, economics, sociology, education, or other relevant quantitative disciplines.
To be employed as a PhD Research Fellow, admission to a doctoral program is required, or there must be a binding agreement for admission. Normally, one must apply for admission to a Ph.D. program within 3 months after the start of the research project leading to the Ph.D. degree. Read about admission to the Faculty's PhD program here.
Advanced statistical and quantitative skills, ideally including experience with management and analysis of large data sources using software such as R
Demonstrated ambition and potential for high-quality research, as evidenced by the application letter and previous research experience
Interest in genetics, developmental research, neurodevelopmental variability, and gene-environment interplay.
Excellent oral and written communication skills in English. Applicants must meet the English language requirements for admission to the PhD programme at the University of Oslo. Information about requirements and possible exemptions can be found here.
Desired qualifications
Experience with statistical genetics, polygenic methods, or genetically informed designs
Experience working with longitudinal, cohort, or register-based data
Familiarity with causal inference or quasi-experimental methods
Personal suitability and motivation for interdisciplinary collaborative work
Personal skills
We are looking for a motivated and engaged PhD fellow with strong potential for high-quality research.
Personal suitability will be emphasized and assessed based on the following qualities:
Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
Good communication skills
Ability to give and receive constructive scientific feedback
Structured, reliable, and results-oriented working style
Positive, innovative and enterprising
Employment in the position is based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualification requirements applicable to the position, including personal qualifications.
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, 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.
We offer
Exciting and meaningful tasks in an organization with an important societal mission, contributing to knowledge development, education, and enlightenment that promote sustainable, fair, and knowledge-based societal development.
Opportunity to work with world-class research data and cutting-edge genetic methods with a socially responsible approach
Inclusion in the NeuroPathways Convergence Environment’s professional and social activities and broad network of early career researchers (doctoral and postdoctoral fellows)
Dedicated colleagues in a friendly and international research environment
A workplace with good development and career opportunities.
Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes.
Salary in position as Doctoral Research Fellow, position code 1017 in salary range NOK from 550 800 to 615 000, depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund.
Read more about the benefits of working in the public sector at Employer Portal.
Application
Your application should include:
Application letter (max. 2 pages) describing motivation for applying, previous research experience, research interests, and how your qualifications match the position
CV with complete overview of education, work experience, and other qualifying activities
Publication list, including Master’s thesis and any other academic work (including preprints, talks, or posters)
Copies of educational certificates (academic transcripts only). Foreign applicants must attach an explanation of their university’s grading system
Contact information for 2–3 references (name, title, email, phone number, and relationship to the applicant). The Master’s supervisor should be one of the references.
Incomplete applications will not be assessed.
Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for the position".
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 cannot, you will hear from us.
