2-4 Associate Professors in Political Science

About

The University of Oslo is Norway's oldest and highest ranked educational and research institution with 28 000 students and 7000 employees in abroad range of academic disciplines. UiO has shaped society for over 200 years. As a leading European university, it promotes independent, pioneering and long-term research and offers outstanding education.

The Department of Political Science is part of the Faculty of Social Sciences. It is the largest political science department in Norway and covers all subfields of the discipline: international politics, public policy and administration, comparative politics, political theory and research methods. The department offers a vibrant academic environment with a good mix of permanent staff, postdoctoral and PhD fellows. Around 1,400 students are currently enrolled at BA, MA and PhD level. The department runs two large political science programs at BA and MA level, and a specialized program in Peace and Conflict Studies at MA level. In addition, the department hosts interdisciplinary study programs in International Studies, and in Public Administration and Leadership. The department has several research groups, including Comparative Institutions and Regimes, Policy, Bureaucracy and Organization, Oslo Political Theory, and Political Data Science. The Department also hosts the interdisciplinary Center for Research on Extremism (C-REX).

Job description

The Department of Political Science at University of Oslo is seeking to hire multiple faculty members (2-4) at the rank of Associate Professor (tenured) in Political Science. 

The successful candidates are expected to initiate and lead research, supervise, participate in teaching and assessment at all levels (BA, MA and PhD) and to carry out administrative duties in accordance with the needs of the department. 

We are open to candidates at different career stages and will consider qualifications relative to the length of the candidate's academic career. Applicants who are qualified for full professorship can be promoted after a formal review process once they have taken up their position. 

The Department of Political Science focuses on basic research with high impact and offers high quality education for students both in Norwegian and English. We seek new colleagues with a promising research agenda, an excellent teaching record, and strong leadership/administrative skills.

More about the position

The call is open to candidates from all subfields of political science. We seek candidates who advance theoretical and empirical research on important questions both in their subfield and in the discipline in general. Within this broad search, it will be considered as an advantage if candidates specialize and can teach in one or more of the following areas:

• Political behaviour and/or electoral politics                                           
• International organizations, international political economy, and/or security studies 
• Normative political theory 
• Data science (programming in R, computational text analysis etc.)
• Qualitative research methods (including qualitative field work) 

We expect that the successful candidates will contribute to the long-term academic development of the department and to take active part in our research community. 

Permanent staff are expected to divide their time evenly between assigned teaching and administration, and independent research, in accordance with university regulations. Candidates who cannot document basic pedagogical competencies at the time of appointment must acquire such within the first two years of employment by attending a pedagogical course at the University of Oslo as a part of their teaching load.

The department offers courses taught both in Norwegian and English. If a successful candidate is not fluent in a Scandinavian language, they will be expected to complete organized language training leading up to Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) level B2 within two years. Employees are expected to acquire sufficient knowledge of a Scandinavian language to be able carry out teaching-related activities in Norwegian after about three years. From August 2025, Norwegian level B2 will be required for promotion to full professorship according to the regulations specifying the Act relating to universities and university colleges. The Faculty of Social Sciences and the Department will aid and facilitate the appointee in reaching said proficiency.

We seek to have a diverse research community and welcome applications from diverse candidates.

Qualification requirements and assessment criteria

Pursuant to applicable regulations, applicants will be evaluated based on their documented academic qualifications as well as qualifications in teaching, and leadership and administration.

• Candidates must have PhD in political science or equivalent and a demonstrated ability to contribute to the continued development of political science as a discipline at the department through research activities, publications and education.
• Research excellence is the main selection criteria. Candidates must document this and a record of publications in refereed high-quality international journals or with renowned book publishers within political science. 
• When evaluating research quality, publications from the last five years, as well as a clear and viable strategy for future top-quality research, will be given greatest weight. In the assessment of publications, originality, quality and scope will be emphasized.
• It is essential that applicants can demonstrate a strong record of teaching (commensurable with the length of their academic career). 
• Candidates should be able to advise graduate students on both substantive and methodological issues.
• Ability and willingness to teach classes within the aforementioned areas will be considered as an advantage in the final screening and ranking of candidates. 
• Demonstrated ability to contribute to the academic community as well as society at large through administrative responsibilities, editorial work, communication, and outreach will be part of the evaluation.
• Prior experience leading research projects, a track record of external funding as well as national and international collaborations, will also be considered. 
• Finally, personal suitability for the position will be assessed.  

The full range of these criteria will be explicitly applied in the evaluation of candidates but note that we will take the length of the academic career (based on the length of the PhD program, the number of years since PhD, and career breaks) into account when assessing the applicants.

Interviews will be part of the appointment process, along with a trial lecture.

We offer

• Salary NOK 693 000 to NOK 846 000 per annum depending on qualifications.
• Associate Professors may apply for full Professorship once they have taken up their position Competence promotion for academic staff - For employees - University of Oslo (uio.no) (https://www.uio.no/english/for-employees/employment/career-development/competence/). There is an opportunity for pay adjustments on an individual basis in the case of promotion. 
• Women can take part in the Career development scheme for female associate professors (https://www.uio.no/english/for-employees/competence/gender-equality/career-female-associate-professors/index.html)
• Budget for travel and research assistance (currently NOK 50 000 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
• An excellent pension scheme (https://www.uio.no/english/for-employees/employment/payments/pension/) through the Norwegian Public Service Fund
• Access to Norway's excellent public services and welfare schemes, including generous parental leave provisions and affordable and accessible childcare. 
• Oslo's family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities.

How to apply

The application must include:

• Cover letter (statement of motivation and a summary of scientific work and research interests; max. 2 pages).
• CV (complete list of education, positions, teaching experience, administrative experience, project acquisition and leadership experience, and other qualifying activities)
• Complete list of publications

Applicants should use the cover letter to account for how their work relates to the Department's research and teaching profile and how they plan to contribute to the Department's long-term academic development.

We encourage all applicants who have taken a break from their scientific career to care for a child as a parent to include the parental leave period(s) in their CVs. The same goes for any other care responsibilities of relevance for the work situation. The breaks will be taken into consideration when assessing the length of the academic career.

All documents must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

Publications and a teaching portfolio should not be submitted with the application.

About the procedure

The application deadline is 3 February 2025. 

An internal screening committee will review all applications and forward a recommendation to an expert committee. Applicants selected by the screening committee will be invited to submit a portfolio of publications from the last five years that are particularly relevant for the position, their educational certificates and diplomas, a teaching portfolio and a list of reference persons (2 or 3 references (name, relationship to candidate, e-mail, and phone number).

The expert committee, consisting of both UiO-affiliated and external members, will assess candidates using the full range of criteria listed above and in accordance with the formal regulations for appointment to Professor and Associate Professor positions at UiO. The committee is free to assess more applicants than the screening committee identifies.

Applicants short-listed by the expert committee will be invited to an interview and to hold a trial lecture. It is anticipated these will take place in May/June 2025. References will also be contacted at this stage. 

The report from the expert committee, including the evaluation of the top candidates, will be made available to all applicants. 

The final hiring decision is the responsibility of the Faculty Board's appointments committee.

Start-up date by mutual agreement.

Formal regulations

Please see the rules for the appointments to professorships and associate professorships (https://www.uio.no/english/about/regulations/personnel/academic/rules-appointment-professor.html). See section 9 for the list of qualifications considered by the evaluation committee.

According to the Norwegian Freedom and Information Act (https://lovdata.no/dokument/NLE/lov/2006-05-19-16) (Offentleglova), information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, even in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.

The University of Oslo has a policy for intellectual property rights for researchers at the University of Oslo (https://www.uio.no/english/about/regulations/research/intellectual-property/)

Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. Furthermore, we want employees with diverse professional expertise, life experience and perspectives.

Contact information

Head of Department, Professor Elin Haugsgjerd Allern: e.h.allern@stv.uio.no 

Deputy Head of Department, Professor Tobias Bach: tobias.bach@stv.uio.no 

JobbNorge-questions: HR-adviser Christine F. Tollefsen: c.f.tollefsen@sv.uio.no