Job description

A position as PhD Research Fellow is available at the Department of Informatics, University of Oslo, in the Section for Digital Infrastructures and Security (DIS).

The fellowship period is 3 years devoted to research education. Candidates may be offered one additional year by the Department of Informatics; the 4 years position then entails a compulsory work load of 25% that consists of teaching, supervision duties, and research assistance.

No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo. Starting date no later than 01.01.2022

More about the position

This fellowship is aimed at research at the intersection of Internet protocol design and machine reading of standardization and discussion documents. It is planned that the successful candidate will develop and apply Machine Learning (ML), and in particular Natural Language Processing (NLP) methods on the text archives of the Internet standardization body, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). Internet protocol design decisions are often taken as a result of email discussions, or discussions at meetings which are also transcribed.

The IETF email and meeting archives therefore constitute a large body of very valuable textual data, containing detailed historic information about the decisions that were made.

Through the application of NLP techniques (i.e. machine reading), this information could automatically be brought into a form that is suitable for e.g. faceted semantic search, question answering, automated reasoning, including detection of contradictions, and more. Applications of these technologies would for example benefit both computer networks education and research on designing future Internet standards.

For more details and inspiration, we suggest to read the following article, which was written as a starting point towards the envisioned work:

M. Welzl, S. Oepen, C. Jaskula, C. Griwodz, S. Islam: "Collaboration in the IETF: An Initial Analysis of Two Decades in Email Discussions", editorial note (not peer reviewed), ACM Computer Communication Review (CCR) 51(3), July 2021.

Freely available from this link.

Qualification requirements

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.

Applicants must hold

• a Master's degree or equivalent in Informatics, Computer Science, or Computer Engineering, with some specialisation in machine learning.
• Foreign completed degree (M.Sc.-level) corresponding to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system
• The ideal candidate for this position has good prior expertise in either natural language processing or computer networking protocols and some background (or at least a documented keen interest) in the other of these specializations.

As contemporary NLP predominantly relies on Machine Learning (ML) methods, candidates with a strong ML background but no prior NLP experience will also be considered.

Candidates without a Master’s degree have until 31 October, 2021 to complete the final exam.

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
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English.
• English requirements for applicants from outside of EU/ EEA countries

The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree.

The fellowship requires admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. The application to the PhD programme must be submitted to the department no later than two months after taking up the position. For more information see:

http://www.uio.no/english/research/phd/

http://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/

We offer

• Salary NOK 491 200 – 534 400 per annum depending on qualifications and seniority as PhD Research Fellow (position code 1017)
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement
• Vibrant international academic environment
• Career development programmes
• Oslo’s family-friendly surroundings with their rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities

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, transcripts of records and letters of recommendation
• Documentation of English proficiency
• 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)

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).

Applicants may be called in for an interview.

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

The University of Oslo aims to achieve a balanced gender composition in the workforce and to recruit people with ethnic minority backgrounds.

Contact information

For further information please contact:

• Dr Andrey Kutuzov, e-mail: andreku@ifi.uio.no or
  
• Professor Michael Welzl, phone: +47 22852420, e-mail: michawe@ifi.uio.no or
  
• Professor Stephan Oepen, phone: +47 22840125, e-mail: oe@ifi.uio.no

For questions regarding the recruitment system, please contact HR Adviser Torunn Standal Guttormsen, phone:+47 22854272,e-mail:t.s.guttormsen@mn.uio.no

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