PhD Research Fellow in Maritim Operations

31st May 2025
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English

• English

English
PhD Research Fellow in Maritim Operations
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This is Western Norway University of Applied Sciences

With about 17,000 students, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences is one of the largest higher education institutions in Norway. A broad range of academic programmes are offered at Bachelor, Master and PhD levels, spread out on five campuses Førde, Sogndal, Bergen, Stord og Haugesund.

Our ambition is to build stronger and more solid academic and research environments that will interact nationally and internationally. The aim is to become a recognized actor on the international higher education arena. Increased international cooperation and engagement in externally funded projects will work towards this goal.

 

Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Technology, Environmental and Social Sciences, campus Haugesund, has two available PhD positions within maritime operations

About the position:

The Department of Mechanical engineering and Maritime Studies at the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL), Faculty of Technology, Environmental and Social Sciences, campus Haugesund, has two available PhD positions within maritime operations. The desired start date is September 2025.

The duration of the position is four years, where 25% of the time will be dedicated to duty work such as teaching, development work, and/or administration. Read more about HVLs guidelines for duty work here.

The PhD candidates will be part of a creative and diverse academic research and teaching environment at the department and of the MarSafe research group. The MarSafe research group is crossdisciplinary. The members have backgrounds within nautical science, engineering, law, safety science, and social sciences including anthropology and psychology. Read more about MarSafe here.

The PhD candidates will also be part of the PhD program within Nautical Operations, a joint degree between the four national higher education institutions offering professional maritime education. Read more about the PhD program in Nautical Operations here.

It is a prerequisite that the appointed candidate has a workplace at the Department of Mechanical and Maritime Studies at the Haugesund campus during the employment period.

About the PhD project/ work tasks:

The PhD positions are linked to technologies to support the green or digital transitions of maritime operations. Areas of interest include the development and use of new green (including propulsion systems, fuels, optimisation) or digital technologies (including AI, remote operations and cybersecurity), but the focus can be linked to human safety, safety management, workforce development,or other related topics. Key tasks include:

• Plan and conduct research related to maritime operations
• Plan and conduct research, applying relevant methods within quantitative and qualitative studies, analyse data, interpret and form conclusions 
• Write scientific manuscripts for conferences and peer-reviewed journals
• 25% of the PhD position is dedicated to teaching or other mandatory work at the institute
• Some travel must be expected, with great opportunities for developing professional networks

Qualifications:

• A relevant master’s degree within the maritime or other relevant field. The master's thesis must be submitted for evaluation within the application deadline, and the master’s degree (120 ECTS or equivalent) must be approved no later than four weeks after the application deadline.
• The grade on the master’s thesis should normally be B or better, and the average grade for coursework should also normally be B or better. Applicants who do not meet the grade requirements may apply if they can document exceptional suitability for the position.
• The applicants must meet the admission requirements for the PhD program in Nautical Operations. More information here .
• Excellent communication skills in English, written and oral.
• Ability to work both independently and as a part of an international, interdisciplinary team.
• Good information and communication technology (ICT) skills.

Additional qualifications:

• Applicants with experience from the maritime industry.
• Proficiency in Norwegian, Swedish, or Danish is desirable.

The candidate must be diligent and display the ability to work independently, supplemented with regular guidance, and is expected to carry out high-quality research and to publish the results in national seminars, international workshops, conferences, and journals.

 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), publications (if any), communication skills, research and teaching experience, practical software engineering skills and experience.

The PhD candidate will be assigned two academic supervisors at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences. An application for enrolment should first be submitted after an appointment is made and the supervisor(s) will help with this procedure.  Normally the candidate apply for enrolment within three (3) months after the start of the employment according to Regulations relating to programmes of study and examniations at Western Norway University of Applied SciencesHVL § 2-4. 

Applicants who cannot document proficiency in Norwegian, Swedish, or Danish at level A2 upon employment, must complete Norwegian language training equivalent to at least 15 ECTS credits by the end of the term of appointment. For terms shorter than four years, the term can be extended accordingly.

HVL/Ingvild F. Melien via Unsplash HVL/Ingvild F. Melien
Application procedure:

Applications will be evaluated by an expert panel of three members.

Applicants are asked to submit their application and CV to jobbnorge-portal.

Applications must include:

• A cover letter detailing your motivation for applying and your research interests in relation to the position
• A CV including academic and professional achievements
• A preliminary project description
• A copy of your Master’s thesis and other relevant academic publications (if available)
• Certified copies of diplomas and transcripts
• Names and contact information of two referees

 

The application must contain a project description of up to five pages, explaining the topic, the problem, the choice of theory and method, as well as the plan for implementation of a potential project. The project description will be used in the assessment of the applicants’ qualifications. 

A final project description along with an application for enrolment in the PhD programme in Nautical Operations should first be developed and submitted after an appointment is made and the supervisor(s) will help with this procedure.  Normally the candidate apply for enrolment within three (3) months after the start of the employment.

If the documents submitted are not in a Scandinavian language or in English, the applicants must submit certified translations of these. The transcripts must specify the topics, the course works, and the grades at the bachelor’s and master’s degree levels. 

Applicants with a degree from a country other than Norway, need to attach a certified translation of the diploma and transcripts of grades to English or a Scandinavian language, in addition to the original documents, if the original is not in any of these languages. It is required that the applicant encloses a recognition document showing that their degree is equivalent to a Norwegian bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, or PhD. You can read more about applying for recognition of foreign higher education here.  

The Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir) offers an automatic recognition document for certain degrees from selected countries. If the applicant’s degree is covered by the automatic recognition, it will be sufficient to attach this document. Read more about automatic recognition here.

As the HK-dir application process may take some time it is recommended to apply to HK-dir as soon as possible. If you have not received a recognition document from HK-dir within the  application deadline, please enclose documentation from HK-dir showing that they have received your application.

Applicants should note that the evaluation will be based on the documentation submitted electronically via Jobbnorge within the submission deadline. The applicants are responsible for ensuring that all the documentation is submitted before the closing date. It is of utmost importance that all publications to be considered in the evaluation are uploaded as an attachment with the application, since these are sent electronically to the expert panel. Applications cannot be sent by e-mail or to individuals at the college.

Further details on PhD employment at HVL can be found on the university’s website: PhD employment at HVL.

Salary:

• Good occupational pension, insurance and loan schemes from The Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
• Exciting academic environment with the possibility of competence enhancement and development
• Opportunities for training within the working hours 

The Research Fellow position is compensated according to position code 1017 Research Fellow.

There is a compulsory 2 % deduction to the pension fund (see http://www.spk.no for more information). The successful applicant must comply with the guidelines that apply to the position at any time.

General information:

The appointment will be made in accordance with the regulations for State employees Law in Norway ("Lov om statens ansatte)". Organizational changes and changes in the duties and responsibilities associated with the position must be expected.

State employment shall reflect the multiplicity of the population at large to the highest possible degree. Western Norway University of Applied Sciences Bergen has therefore adopted a personnel policy objective to ensure that we achieve a balanced age and gender composition and the recruitment of persons of various ethnic backgrounds.

Information about the applicant may be made public even though the applicant has requested not to be named in the list of applicants. The applicant will be notified if his/her request is not respected.

Short-listed applicants will be called in for an interview.

Employed on condition that you are granted a work and residence permit (must be considered individually).

Western Norway University of Applied Sciences is subjected to the regulation for export control system. The regulation will be applied in the processing of the applications. 

Contacts:

1) Robert Drønen, Assistant Head of Department: rodr@hvl.no

2) Silvia Encheva, Professor and PhD Coordinator: sbe@hvl.no

via Unsplash
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Deadline

31st May 2025

Employer

Western Norway University of Applied Sciences

Municipality

Haugesund

Scope

Fulltime (2 positions) Fulltime (%)

Duration

Fixed Term

Place of service
Bjørnsonsgate 45, 5528 Haugesund

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