Stilling:

Two Postdoctoral fellowships in Educational Assessment and Measurement

Deadline 30.09.2018

University of Oslo

The University of Oslo is Norway’s oldest and highest ranked educational and research institution, with 28 000 students and 7000 employees. With its broad range of academic disciplines and internationally recognised research communities, UiO is an important contributor to society.

The Centre for Educational Measurement at the University of Oslo (CEMO) provides a stimulating research environmentby bringing internationally renowned substantive and methodological experts together. Research at CEMO combines basic research and applications of advanced measurement techniques to solve core educational problems.

CEMO also contributes to the development of measurement competence through teaching and outreach. The centre is part of a broad international network and manages several externally funded research grants.

Job description

Applications are invited for 2 positions as Postdoctoral Fellow in Educational Assessment and Measurement to be based at the Centre for Educational Measurement (CEMO), University of Oslo. CEMO is primarily a research unit but offers its own Master program in Assessment and Evaluation. The Centre comprises about 25 employees from 10 countries, thus providing ample opportunities to develop joint research projects on an international scale.

The available positions are fulltime and with a duration of four years (25 % of which is devoted to teaching).

The two postdoctoral positions will be related to one of the three following strands:

1) Modern test design: CEMO encourages applicants to apply with a proposal emphasising modern test design methodology within a strong item-level validation framework: Explanatory item response models for item-level validation experiments through radical and incidental item features or Automatic item generation & pre-calibration to systematically build effective item banks or Adaptive testing for efficient test administration

Example projects:

  • Validation of basal/ceiling rules in adaptive screening tests
  • Impact of item types on fraction problem solving

For questions regarding potential projects in this strand please contact Professor Johan Braeken (johan.braeken@cemo.uio.no)

2) International large-scale assessments: CEMO is part of a doctoral network and school around large-scale assessments in education with 12 international partners. We would like to strengthen this portfolio of research addressing fundamental methodological aspects of the international large-scale assessments. In particular we would welcome projects addressing methodological aspects of measuring non-cognitive characteristics of teachers, principals and students or innovative approaches to the analysis of the measures of trends across educational systems.

For questions regarding potential projects in this strand please contact Professor Rolf V. Olsen (r.v.olsen@cemo.uio.no)

3) Latent variable modelling: CEMO supports research on fundamental methodological issues in educational measurement. In this strand, the focus is on methodological challenges related to latent variable modelling and modelling of longitudinal development with specific application to large-scale assessment and/or equating/linking.

For questions regarding potential projects in this strand please contact Associate Professor Bjørn Andersson (bjorn.andersson@cemo.uio.no).

Applicants should deliver a short (3-5) research proposal addressing one of these three strands. One of the positions will be prioritized to the first strand.

More about the position

Postdoctoral fellows who are appointed for a period of four years will have 75% of their working time reserved for research. Within the remaining 25%, they are expected to take part in the centre’s teaching activities and committee work.

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 %. The main purpose of the fellowship is to qualify researchers for work in higher academic positions within their disciplines.

Qualification requirements

  • Doctorate in education/psychology/social sciences with a thesis applying advanced quantitative methods or doctorate in quantitative methods/psychometrics/statistics (the thesis must be submitted by the application deadline; an appointment is dependent on the defence of the doctoral thesis being approved)
  • Publication record of high quality (how recent the PhD has been finished will be taken into account)
  • Plans for high-quality research in one of the areas outlined above. Research in the intersection between the two areas is also possible
  • Preferably some teaching experience
  • Personal suitability and willingness to collaborate with other team members at CEMO
  • Fluent oral and written communication skills in English are required

In the evaluation of the qualified candidates the full range of these criteria will be assessed. Emphasis will be given to high quality in terms of publications. A research profile related to the field of education is an advantage. However, applicants with a background from other fields are also welcome.

We offer

  • Salary from NOK 505 800 - 576 100 per annum depending on qualifications in position as Postdoctoral Research Fellow (position code 1352)
  • A professionally stimulating working environment
  • 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

How to apply

The application must include:

  • Cover letter including a brief outline of the motivation for the application
  • A description of of research plans and/or interests related to the outlined research strands (max 3-5 pages)
  • CV (summarizing education, positions, pedagogical experience, administrative experience and other qualifying activity, such as experience with supervision of Master students)
  • A list of publications

Short-listed applicants may be asked to submit their PhD-thesis and other journal papers, reports or material of relevance for the evaluation. Short-listed applicants will also be asked to provide contact information to two colleagues we can ask for references, and they will also be interviewed. The final rank-ordering of applicants will take into account the total need for research in the areas outlined above

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).

Formal regulations

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

No one can be appointed as Postdoctoral Fellow for more than one specified period at the same institution.

According to the Norwegian Freedom and 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

  • Interim CEMO Director, Professor Rolf V. Olsen, phone number: +4722 84 45 10, email: rolfvo@cemo.uio.no
  • Senior Adviser Anne-Catherine Lehre, phone number: +47 22 85 41 51, email: c.w.g.lehre@cemo.uio.no

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