Nord University

Global challenges demand new insight, innovative solutions and local legitimacy. Nord University is a young university with strong regional ties and a global perspective. We are committed to delivering relevant educational programmes and research, with a focus on blue and green growth, innovation and entrepreneurship, and welfare, health and education. Nord University has 12,000 students and 1,200 employees at nine study locations in central and northern Norway.

The Faculty of Education and Arts (FLU) educates the teachers of the future, from kindergarten to upper secondary school and in sports and the arts subjects. Our candidates play a key role in knowledge-based development of society, both regionally and nationally. We shall contribute to developing a praxis field about which we are passionate, which is why our research approach is profession- and praxis-oriented. The Faculty offers a PhD in Professional Praxis. The Faculty of Education and Arts has 3,500 students and 350 employees in Levanger, Bodø and Nesna.

Read more: Nord.no/FLU

About the position

The Faculty of Education and Arts, Nord University (Bodø, Norway) invites applications for a position as a PhD research fellow in English. The PhD position is for a period of three years, with the opportunity for a fourth year. In the latter case, 25 per cent of the work will be teaching and other relevant duties in the English Department at Nord University.

The place of work for the position is Bodø Campus, but applicants should also expect to participate in activities further afield.

The PhD candidate will be a member of the Nord Research Group for Children’s Literature in ELT, which is a cross-campus research group within the English Department that aims to deepen interdisciplinary and international connections for children’s literature in language education with 6–16-year-olds (grades 1 to 10). Our projects embrace children’s literature in education – image-mediated (e.g. picturebooks, graphic novels), action-mediated (e.g. drama), creative writing and intercultural competence through texts – and English Language Teaching (ELT) research. The doctoral research attached to this fellowship will be contingent on active participation in the research community. The PhD candidate will join a project investigating the current pedagogical landscape in ELT in Norway in anticipation of the future core element in the Norwegian curriculum Møte med engelskspråklige tekster (meeting with English-language texts). The doctoral fellow will be involved in the design, piloting and evaluation of an intervention programme – an in-service teacher development course on using literature in the second language classroom – and in accompanying the teachers in school following the training, in analysing the data and adjusting the intervention programme for sustainability. The project will involve several international partners, cooperation and exchange visits. The candidate will also be involved in disseminating the intervention project and research findings through publications and conference presentations.

Qualification requirements

• The PhD research fellow should have a master’s degree in English subject pedagogy or a closely related field.
• The research fellow is expected to be able to document strong interest and initial expertise in the broad field of children’s literature in education.

In addition to the required educational background, the following criteria will be evaluated:

• Competence and grades on completed course work;
• Quality of the master's thesis (excellent grade, equivalent of grade B or better on the ECTS grading system);
• Research and teaching experience;
• Research publications (if any).

The candidate must display the ability to work diligently and independently, aided by regular guidance, and is expected to carry out high-quality research and to publish the results in international conferences, and journals. The candidate must be fluent in written and spoken English.

The position is available from 1 August 2019. The research fellow must enroll in the PhD programme Professional Praxis at Nord University, and must meet the formal requirements for admission into the programme. An application for this enrolment should first be submitted after the appointment to the fellowship has been made – the supervisor(s) will help with this procedure. The candidate must be enrolled as a PhD student within three months from the start of the employment.

We offer

The annual salary for doctoral researchers, set at wage level 51 (NOK 449 400,–) in the Norwegian State Salary Scale, code 1017. There is a compulsory 2 % deduction to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund.

• Advantages within the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund for borrowing, insurance and pension
• Creative and collegial working environment
• A workplace with steady progressive development
• Flexible working hours
• Active university sports team.

General information

The person who is appointed must abide by the applicable laws, agreements, and directives. The responsibilities and duties associated with the position may change with future reorganization at Nord University.

The public sector workforce is expected to reflect the diversity of the population in general. Nord University therefore encourages qualified candidates with disabilities, gaps in their CV, immigrant backgrounds or different life experience to apply. Nord University practices moderate allocation according to gender quotas in accordance with the Basic Agreement for State Employees.

If applicants indicate they have disabilities or gaps in their CV, their details may be used anonymously for the purposes of recording whether this target is achieved or not.

Contact information

Further information about the position can be obtained by contacting:

• Professor Janice Bland, Tel: + 47 75 51 77 53, janice.m.bland@nord.no

Application process

Applicants will be evaluated by an expert committee. Short-listed applicants will be called for an interview and trial lecture. These will be decisive for the appointment.

The Faculty reserve the right to not offer employment to applicants who are scientifically qualified, but do not satisfy criteria such as language, pedagogical skills or personal qualities.

Application

Applications must be submitted electronically by the closing date of 25.03.2019. The application must contain:

• Cover letter (not exceeding two pages)
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work)
• Copies of academic certificates and transcripts
• Master thesis
• Copies of recent academic publications, where relevant
• Documentation of other activities that the applicant considers relevant and desires to be considered in the assessment
• Contact information for 2-3 referees.

All documents must be uploaded as attachments to the electronic application form.

It is the applicant's responsibility to submit the complete documentation by the deadline.

After the application deadline, an applicant list will be announced publicly. Applicants asking for confidentiality must specifically explain the reasons for this in their application. Even so, the information can be published if the reasons for confidentiality are not found relevant. In such cases, applicants will be given notice prior to the announcement, and they will have the opportunity to withdraw their application.

Refnr. 30083330

Applicationdeadline: 25.03.2019

Apply for position

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