Job description

The Department of Political Science wants to recruit an excellent graduate with a background from political science or closely related fields. The appointment is for a period of four years with a 25% teaching requirement, on the Norwegian Research Council funded project ‘Moral Beliefs about Violent Political Conflict (MoViCon)”.

MoViCon will study how citizens form moral beliefs about different forms of political violence, ranging from low-scale types of political violence such as violent protests to civil- and interstate wars. The project will conceptualize and theorize moral beliefs about political violence and investigate these beliefs in a set of survey experiments in different countries. More specifically, MoViCon explores when and under what conditions citizens condone or condemn political violence, and on what moral grounds they do so.

MoViCon also investigates how these moral beliefs among citizens affect actual political violence in different societies. The project seeks to make three innovations to address these questions. First, it will develop a concept of “moral beliefs about political violence”, and a new survey-experimental template to be used to measure this concept. Second, it will develop and test a theory of how moral beliefs about political violence are formed and evolve in different societies. Third, MoViCon will conduct surveys in different societies to explore how these moral beliefs vary within and between communities. Finally, the project will investigate whether within- and between-country variation in moral beliefs about political violence predict actual occurrences of political violence. More details on the project can be found here.

The PhD candidate is expected to pursue research ideas in close connection with the research questions in the MoViCon-project.

The project is led by Professor Tore Wig and is funded by a Norwegian Research Council grant. It runs from 2021 to 2025. The project team includes several internationally leading scholars within conflict research and political science, at UiO and collaborating institutions. As a member of MoViCon, the successful applicant will also be part of the Department’s internationally leading research group on Comparative Institutions and Regimes (CIR).

For more information about MoViCon and the project team, see the project proposal.

Formal qualification requirements

• To be appointed to the position, the prior education must be equivalent of five years at the university level in Norway, with two years (120 credits) at the master's level. The MA thesis must have at least half a year’s workload/30ECTS.
• The Master degree must include relevant education in research methods.
• Successful candidates must document top grades and an MA Thesis of very high quality.

Other qualifications:

• English language skills
• Personal suitability and motivation for woriking with the PhD project

We offer

• Salary according to “SKO 1017 PhD fellow”, pay grade 54-59, NOK 491 200 – 534 400 per year
• Budget for travel and research assistance (currently NOK 30 000 per year). Staff can apply for additional research support from the department and faculty
• An academically stimulating and international working environment
• A friendly and inclusive workplace
• A good pension scheme through the Norwegian Public Service Fund
• 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 acquire pedagogical competency upon agreement

How to apply

The online application must include the following items:

• A cover letter (maximum 2 pages), including a statement of motivation
• A research proposal (maximum 3000 words including references). The proposal should clarify the research theme, main research questions, how the research plan fits with the MoViCon project, how the research contributes to the existing literature, theoretical approach, methodology, and a time line.
• A CV summarizing education, positions, research and pedagogical experience, administrative experience, and other qualifying activities
• Copy of Master’s dissertation (in English or Scandinavian language)
• 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.
• Official explanation of the grading and credit system at your university. Names and contact details for 2-3 reference persons (name, relation to candidate, e-mail, and phone number). Reference letter not needed.

The application with attachments must be submitted in our electronic recruiting system. Please follow the link “Apply for this job”. Please note that all documents should be in English or a Scandinavian Language

The application deadline is 15 August 2021. The screening and evaluation of the candidates will begin immediately. We expect the whole evaluation process, from the application date to an offer is made, to take 5-10 weeks, depending on the number of applications. Expected starting month is November/December 2021 (or a mutually agreed date).

The evaluation of applications is based primarily on documented, academic qualifications, the quality and relevance of the project description and the personal suitability of the candidate. The most promising candidates are invited to interviews.

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) pursuant to section 25, information concerning the applicant may be disclosed to the public, even if the applicant has requested not to appear on the list of applicants.

The University of Oslo has an Acquisition of Rights Agreement for all employees for the purpose of securing intellectual property 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.

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.

Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. We also want to have employees with diverse expertise, combinations of subjects, life experience and perspectives. We will make adjustments for employees who require this.

If there are qualified applicants with special needs, gaps in their CVs or immigrant backgrounds, we will invite at least one applicant in each of these groups to an interview.

Contact information

• Head of Department: Bjørn Erik Rasch
• Project leader: Professor Tore Wig

Questions regarding the electronic application from may be sent to HR-adviser Anders Haave.

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