Faculty of Social Sciences, Center for Research on Extremism: the Extreme Right, Hate Crime and Political Violence

Job description

Center for Research on Extremism (C-REX) at the University of Oslo seeks to recruit one excellent PhD candidate in the Social Sciences or related disciplines (e.g., Criminology, Psychology or Media and Communication) doing high quality research on right-wing violence and terrorism. The successful applicants will work full time as a PhD candidate. The appointment is for a fixed, non-tenured term of 3 years. The appointee will have no teaching requirements. The main purpose of the fellowship is to qualify researchers for work in higher academic positions within their disciplines.

C-REX is the largest research center exclusively dedicated to do innovative, updated, and high-quality research on right-wing terrorism and violence. The center was established in 2016 as a response to the July 22 attacks in 2011 and is led by professor Tore Bjørgo and researcher Anders Ravik Jupskås. It has rapidly gained a reputation for being the world-leading interdisciplinary research institution on this topic. It is a joint collaboration with six of the leading Norwegian institutions and three of the leading international universities on extremism research.

C-REX is the host institution for the RTV dataset, which documents right-wing terrorism and violence in Western Europe since 1990. Each event has been coded on a range of variables, including time and location, perpetrator and victim characteristics, organizational affiliations, weapon types, and number of casualties. The dataset is currently being expanded to cover other countries and regions, including Eastern Europe, Russia, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Qualification requirements

A comprehensive assessment of the applicant's scientific qualifications forms the basis of appointment.

Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Master’s degree (120 ECTS) in Social Sciences or related disciplines (e.g., Criminology, Psychology, Media Studies and Contemporary History) before taking up the post. For applicants who have yet to receive their Master’s degree, the Master’s thesis must have been submitted for evaluation before the application deadline (February 1, 2021). Such applicants should note the date of submission of their Master’s degree in the cover letter. Appointment is dependent on the Master thesis being approved.

Applicants must submit a project description of up to 3000 words outlining the research topic, the specific problems to be studied, the sources of data to be used, the choice of scientific theory and method, and a realistic schedule that details how the project will be completed within the fellowship period. This project should be addressing the topic of right-wing violence and terrorism. It should also make use of the RTV dataset developed by C-REX. We encourage applicants to include countries beyond Western Europe as part of the project.

In the cover letter (maximum 2 pages), the candidate should also briefly explain how his/her research profile and agenda would contribute to improving C-REX’ research on right-wing violence and terrorism.

Candidates with strong methodological skills and/or prior research experience (as part of the master thesis) on right-wing violence or related topics will have an advantage. Other desired qualifications and experiences include experiences with previous systematic data collection efforts, good organizational skills, as well as very good command of English. Finally, personal suitability for the position will be taken into consideration.

We offer

• A salary of NOK 482 200 - 526 000 per annum depending on qualifications in a position as PhD Research fellow (position code 1017)
• A budget for travel and research assistance (currently NOK 30 000 per year)
• An academically stimulating and international working environment
• A friendly and inclusive workplace
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement, in addition to Oslo’s family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities
• A good work-life balance and access to Norway's excellent public services and welfare schemes, including generous parental leave provisions and affordable and accessible childcare
• PhD Fellows may aquire pedagogical competency

How to apply

The application must include

• A cover letter statement of motivation and research interests
• A project description, including progress plan (max. 3000 words)
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work)
• A digital copy of the Master's dissertation
• Copies of transcripts: All applicants must submit their Master’s degree Diploma and transcript(s), preferably together with a class distribution of grades. The transcript must specify the grade achieved on the Master’s thesis.
• An official explanation of the grading and credit system at your university, translated into ECTS-credits.
• A complete list of publications and academic works that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee.
• A list of reference persons: 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and phone number)

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, please follow the link “Apply for this job”. Foreign applicants are advised to attach an explanation of their University's grading system. Please note that all documents should be in English (or a Scandinavian language).

When evaluating the application, emphasis will be given to the applicant's academic and personal prerequisites to carry out the project. Applicants may be called in for an interview.

The position will start in April 2021 (or a mutally agreed-upon date).

Formal regulations

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Research Fellowships at the University of Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo.

According to the Norwegian Freedom of Information Act (Offentleglova) information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.

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.

The University of Oslo has an agreement for all employees, aiming to secure rights to research results etc.

Contact information

• Director Tore Bjørgo
• Deputy director Anders Ravik Jupskås

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