Job description

The Department of Political Science is recruiting a Postdoctoral Fellow (Assistant Professor) (SKO 1352) with a specialization in public administration. The successful applicant will be part of the project ‘Public leadership, organizational performance, and trust in government’ (PART) funded by the Norwegian Research Council. The appointment is for a fixed period of 4 years, with a 25% teaching requirement.

The PART project assesses the impact of administrative leadership on organizational performance and on citizens’ trust in government. PART studies how the professional background of administrative leaders affects (1) organizational performance; (2) employee motivation and task prioritization; and (3) citizens’ trust in bureaucracy. The focus will be on the heads of agencies (regulatory, executive) and state-owned enterprises, comparing leadership backgrounds in politics and business to public sector backgrounds. PART will collect and analyse multiple types of data, including biographical data, survey data, and survey experiments with bureaucrats and citizens. The project primarily focuses on Norway, but also includes cross-country analyses. The Postdoctoral Fellow is expected to actively contribute to the research agenda and the research environment of the PART project.

The project is headed by Professor Tobias Bach and funded under the ‘Young Researcher Talents’ scheme of the Norwegian Research council. PART runs for four years from 2020-2024. The project will be part of the department’s research group on Policy, Bureaucracy, and Organization (PBO). We encourage all applicants to read about PART on the project website:

https://www.sv.uio.no/isv/english/research/projects/part/index.html

The main purpose of the fellowship is to qualify researchers for work in higher academic positions. Successful applicants must therefore be prepared to teach Bachelor's and Master's level courses within the Department's course portfolio as well as tutor Master's students.

Qualification requirements

A comprehensive assessment of the applicant's scientific qualifications forms the basis of appointment. Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree in Political Science or a closely related discipline before taking up the post. The Doctoral dissertation must be submitted for evaluation by the application date. Appointment is dependent on the public defense of the doctoral thesis being approved.

In assessing the applications, special emphasis will be placed on the candidates’ scientific qualifications, including their publication record in high-quality outlets; their familiarity with one or more of the topics covered by PART; the quality and relevance of the research proposal to the project; teamwork and organizational skills; and personal suitability for the position. For this position, experience with the design and/or analysis of survey experiments or related methods is an advantage. The applicants' teaching experiences and qualifications will also be taken into consideration.

For this position, applicants must have a very good command of English (written and orally). A good command of Norwegian or another Scandinavian language is an advantage.

Postdoctoral fellows who are appointed for a period of four years are expected to acquire “basic pedagogical competency” in the course of their fellowship period within the duty component of 25 %.

We offer

• Salary according to "SKO 1352 postdoktor", pay grade 59-67, NOK 523 200-605 500 per year (approx. 52 000 – 61 000 Euro)
• budget for travel and research assistance (currently NOK 45 000 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 Pension 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
• We expect that postdocs acquire formal pedagogical competency during the first half of the four years period
• Female postdocs can take part in the UiO Mentorprogram for female postdocs

How to apply

The application must include all of the following items:

• A cover letter (statement of motivation, summarizing scientific work and research interests) (max. 2 pages)
• A research proposal related to the project's research agenda, including progress plan (max. 3000 words)
• CV (summarising education, positions, pedagogical experience, administrative experience, and other qualifying activities)
• Copies of educational certificates (academic transcripts only)
• A complete list of publications
• A copy of (what you consider to be) your best publication to date (one publication only), preferably a single-authored article published in an international peer-reviewed journal. If a co-authored work is uploaded instead, the applicant’s individual contribution must be clarified and confirmed by co-authors.
• List of reference persons: 2 or 3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail, and phone number)

The application deadline is 1 November 2020. The screening and evaluation of the candidates will begin immediately, and the aim is to fill the position as soon as possible.

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system. 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).

The best qualified candidates will be interviewed.

The expected start of the project is late 2020. It is expected that the successful candidate will be able to complete his/her postdoctoral project in the course of the period of employment.

We aim to increase the diversity of backgrounds in our staff in terms of gender and ethnicity. We especially encourage female researchers to apply.

Formal regulations

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Fellow 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

• Principal Investigator of PART Professor Tobias Bach: tobias.bach@stv.uio.no Tel. +47 22 85 47 62
• Head of Department Bjørn Erik Rasch: b.e.rasch@stv.uio.no Tel. +47 22 85 51 83

Questions regarding the electronic application should be directed to HR Officer Helle Fritzsønn; helle.fritzsonn@sv.uio.no

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