Postdoctoral Fellow in Innovation and Entrepreneurship Capacity Building

About the position

USN Scool of Business has a vacancy for a three-year position as Postdoctoral Fellow in Innovation and Entrepreneurship Capacity Building at universities. The research activities are tied to USN’s strategic research area Regional Value Creation and the project on innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Commencement date august 1st , 2025 or after agreement. The position is associated with the Department of Economics, History, and Social Sciences and the place of employment is Campus Vestfold.

About the Project

The position is part of USN’s initiative to build competence in innovation and entrepreneurship management.

Inspired by recent innovation literature and pressing societal challenges, universities are increasingly expected to play a significant role in fostering a society based on balanced economic, social, and sustainable development. 

However, several reports highlight, such as the Draghi report on EU competitiveness, that universities are not adequately addressing national, regional, and European challenges related to industrial productivity growth following the necessity to increase the speed of green transitions, phasing demographic changes of the workforce, global value chain challenges and race from advanced technologies. 

One response from the European Union is to increase greater and better collaboration between European universities aimed to increase their capacity to support industry and societies with change capacities. Alliances such as EDUC is therefore seen as one of the key strategies to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness and advance the green transition. However, there is much more knowledge needed to understand better how such alliances and universities can build capacities to handle the mentioned societal challenges and how universities can support digital transformation for better competitiveness. 

The applicants are encouraged to position their research within one of the following two areas based on the mentioned challenges:

1. The role of the university in innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem evolution. 
2. Enabling digital transformation and new business creation. 

The research activities are tied to USN’s strategic research area Regional Value Creation and the project on innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems. 

The project involves extensive collaboration with respected international research institutions within USN’s EDUC network and regional/local partnerships with public and private organizations. It is expected that the candidate has at least one scientific stay at one of the EDUC partner universities.

The candidate will work under the guidance of Scientific Leader Thomas Brekke. Detailed information on the objectives, structure, and activities of these projects is available upon request. Please comtact Thomas Brekke at thomas.brekke@usn.no.

The appointment is for a term of three years.

Qualifications

• Norwegian doctorate or equivalent education abroad in in innovation, entrepreneurship, sustainable development, or related fields.
• The degree must be completed by the application deadline.
• Fluency in both Norwegian and English, written and spoken.
• Industrial experience is not required but is considered an advantage.
• Academic publication in high-ranked journals is considered an advantage

 

The following personal characteristic will be emphasized

• Strong collaboration and communication skills.
• Abilities to work systematically and independently.
• Abilities to collaborate with colleagues at USN and external partners.
• Motivation and proven abilities to work effectively in teams to achieve share goals.
• Active engagement in relevant research environments and international networks is expected

We offer

• A developing academic environment with excellent opportunities for professional growth.
• A friendly and inclusive social environment.
• Opportunities for exercise during working hours.
• Attractive welfare benefits in the State Pension Plan
• Opportunity for physical activities within working hours

 

Salary

The position as postdoctoral fellow (postdoktor) (code 1352) is placed in the range 604 900 – 759 100 NOK a year , depending on seniority.  A statutory contribution will be made from the employee’s salary to the state pension plan. 

Additional information

The Academic Appointments Board is responsible for appointments to academic positions at University of Southeast Norway. An expert assessment of applicants will be carried out. Short-listed candidates will be called in for interviews and must be prepared to present and discuss their projects.

It is an aim of personnel policy that the academic staff of University of Southeast Norway should reflect the composition of the general population. It is therefore a personnel policy objective to achieve a balanced age and gender composition on the faculty and to recruit people from ethnic minority backgrounds. People from ethnic minority backgrounds are encouraged to apply for the position.

According to the Norwegian Freedom of Information act § 25 2 paragraph, information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, even though the applicant has requested non-disclosure. The applicant will be informed if his/her request has been declined.

How to apply

University of Southeast Norway uses online applications.The application must include the following documents:

1. Certified diplomas and certificates from university college/university

   If your higher education is from a university outside of Norway, we require it to be recognized by the Norwegian Directorate of Higher Education and Skills. You must apply for the recognition before the application deadline for this position expires. Add a receipt on your application or recognition when applying. The recognition must be sent to us and is a requirement for being hired. 

2. Master’s thesis
3. A 5-page (maximum) project description
4. Any scientific publications and a list of these
5. Contact informationof three references
6. For applicants from outside the EU who do not have one of the Scandinavian languages as their native language, language proficiency (Norwegian, Danish or Swedish) must be documented and correspond to a minimum B2 level in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages  (CEFR).

Please note that all documents must be translated into English or a Scandinavian language by an authorized translator.

Each applicant is responsible for ensuring that the requested documentation has been uploaded with the application within the application deadline!

The University has been awarded a Charter & Code certificate by the European Commission, and is entitled to use the HR Excellence in Research (HRS4R) logo. The University is also a member of the EURAXESS network, which contributes to good working conditions for mobile researchers.

About us

The University of Southeastern Norway (USN) ranks as the country's fourth largest higher education institution. We are a vibrant community of approximately 18,000 students and 1,900 employees.

. Video: https://vimeo.com/898549899/60305e2540