A PhD position is available at the Department of Child Welfare and Social Work (IBS), Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education (HSL) with the research group Professions and welfare society (ProVel) and the research school NORWEL.
The objective of the position is to complete research training to the level of a doctoral degree. Admission to the PhD programme is a prerequisite for employment, and the programme period starts on commencement of the position.
The PhD fellow position is for a period of three years and full time studies with the possibility of an extension of the appointment period. If the doctoral dissertation is submitted for appraisal within 3 years or within 3,5 year, the PhD candidate is qualified for a completion grant for either 12 or 6 months. The completion grant should be used to further qualification measures such as courses in teaching in higher education, lecturing and other relevant work at the faculty. More information about the completion grant scheme here.
The department is present at three campuses, Alta, Tromsø and Harstad. The candidate can decide where the workplace will be. You must be able to start in the position within a reasonable time after receiving the offer.
Thematic focus for the project
In several welfare reforms, the Norwegian authorities aimed at improving cooperation between different welfare service providers. Among others, the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (KS) has outlined an action plan to improve cooperation across the welfare services, with particular emphasis on preventive measures. In spite of various attempts to improve service cooperation and coordination, the ambition to develop and implement effective preventive measures to counter social problems is rarely realized in and between different front-line services in the Norwegian welfare administration.
It is well documentet that a lack of attention to preventive measures has serious consequences, amongst others, with regard to fight poverty and other social problems. Furthermore, it is well documented that growing up in poverty increases the risk of being dependent on welfare services and benefits in adulthood, thus reproducing poverty over generations. Child welfare are one among several welfare services that are tasked with contributing to preventing poverty and other social problems. However, available knowledge is limited regarding the assessment criteria for interventions from child welfare services, the extent to which socio-economic factors are taken into consideration in the decision-making process, whether adopted interventions are actually followed through. and whether they function as intended. Equally, there is very little research-based knowledge available about the extent and quality of cooperation between different parts of the welfare administration; particularly regarding the cooperationbetween child welfare services and the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV).
The aims of this project are:
1. To explore the consequences of recent legislative changes in the field of child welfare for cooperation with other agencies
2. To identify best practices for poverty prevention and the reproduction of poverty, across different welfare services
3. To investigate if contextual factors are part of the welfare services’ assessment criteria and if interventions by different welfare services to prevent poverty work as intended.
Applicants are encouraged to develop suitable research questions that can provide new knowledge about one or several of these aims. The project must take its point of departure in social work perspectives on socio-economic status differences and low income families. The applicants are free to design their project with an exclusive Norwegian or an international, comparative perspective.
Contact
For further information about the position, please contact Associate Professor Oddbjørn Stenberg:
- telephone: +47 78 45 02 79
- email: oddbjorn.stenberg@uit.no
or Head of Department Veronica Haug:
- telephone: +47 92 05 64 26
- email: veronica.haug@uit.no
Kvalifikasjoner
This position requires a master’s degree or equivalent in subject social work, child welfare or other relevant social studies.
Knowledge about and/or work experience from child welfare and/or social work will be emphasized.
Applicants must document fluency of in English and be able to work in an international environment. Working knowledge of Norwegian or a Scandinavian language is also beneficial.
Applicants must develop a project outline of up to 5 pages, including references. It should indicate a suitable theoretical framework, research questions, methodical research design and a reasoning for the choices. The final project description will be developed in cooperation with the supervisor.
In the assessment, the emphasis is on the applicant’s potential to complete a research education based on the master’s thesis or equivalent, and any other scientific work. The project outline will also be considered. In addition, other experience of significance for the completion of the doctoral programme may be given consideration.
We will also emphasize motivation and personal suitability for the position. We are looking for candidates who:
- have good collaboration and communication skills
- interest in interdisciplinary collaboration and teaching
- the ability to work independently
As many as possible should have the opportunity to undertake organized research training. If you already hold a PhD or have equivalent competence, we will not appoint you to this position.
Admission to the PhD programme
For employment in the PhD position, you must be qualified for admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education and participate in organized doctoral studies within the employment period. Admission normally requires:
- A bachelor’s degree of 180 ECTS and a master’s degree of 120 ECTS, or an integrated master’s degree of 300 ECTS
- A master’s thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 30 ECTS for a master’s degree of 120 ECTS
- A master’s thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 20 ECTS for an integrated master’s degree of 300 ECTS
All applicants should have a grade point average of B (or equivalent) on their master’s degree in order to be admitted to the PhD programme. The grade point average also applies to 300 ECTS points integrated five-year master’s degrees, in which all courses are to be included in the grade point average. A more detailed description of admission requirements can be found here.
Applicants with a foreign education will be subjected to an evaluation of whether the educational background is equal to Norwegian higher education, following national guidelines from NOKUT. Depending on which country the education is from, one or two additional years of university education may be required to fulfil admission requirements, e.g. a 4-year bachelor’s degree and a 2-year master’s degree.
Inclusion and diversity
UiT The Arctic University of Norway is working actively to promote equality, gender balance and diversity among employees and students, and to create an inclusive and safe working environment. We believe that inclusion and diversity are a strength and we want employees with different competencies, professional experience, life experience and perspectives.
If you have a disability, a gap in your CV or immigrant background, we encourage you to tick the box for this in your application. If there are qualified applicants, we invite at least one in each group for an interview. If you get the job, we will adapt the working conditions if you need it. Apart from selecting the right candidates, we will only use the information for anonymous statistics.
We offer
- Involvement in an interesting research project
- Good career opportunities
- A good academic environment with dedicated colleagues
- Flexible working hours and a state collective pay agreement
- Pension scheme through the state pension fund
More practical information for working and living in Norway can be found here: https://uit.no/staffmobility
Application
Your application must include:
- Cover letter explaining your motivation and research interests
- CV
- Project description (max five pages, incl. references)
- Diploma for bachelor’s and master’s degree
- Transcript of grades/academic record for bachelor’s and master’s degree
- Explanation of the grading system for foreign education (Diploma Supplement if available)
- Documentation of English proficiency
- 2-3 references with contact information
- Master’s thesis, and any other academic works
Qualification with a master’s degree is required before commencement in the position. If you are near completion of your master’s degree, you may still apply and submit a draft version of the thesis and a statement from your supervisor or institution indicating when the degree will be obtained. You must still submit your transcripts for the master’s degree with your application.
All documentation to be considered must be in a Scandinavian language or English. Diplomas and transcripts must also be submitted in the original language, if not in English or a Scandinavian language. We only accept applications and documentation sent via Jobbnorge within the application deadline.
General information
The appointment is made in accordance with State regulations and guidelines at UiT. At our website, you will find more information for applicants.
A shorter period of appointment may be decided when the PhD Fellow has already completed parts of their research training programme or when the appointment is based on a previous qualifying position PhD Fellow, research assistant, or the like in such a way that the total time used for research training amounts to three years.
Remuneration for the position of PhD Fellow is in accordance with the State salary scale code 1017. A compulsory contribution of 2 % to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund will be deducted.
In Finnmark County there is an arrangement which allows you to have parts of your loan at the Norwegian State Educational Loan Fund remitted.
We process personal data given in an application or CV in accordance with the Personal Data Act (Offentleglova). According to the Personal Data Act information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure. You will receive advance notification in the event of such publication, if you have requested non-disclosure.
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