3-year
full time PhD position on the ethnography of Northern landscapes, at
the Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO) and the Barents
Institute in Kirkenes
The position is associated to the Future North
project, funded by the Norwegian Research Council within its SAMKUL
Program. Future North aims to map and document the current Arctic and
Subarctic landscapes through experimental interactive modes of mapping.
The team includes 4 researchers from architecture, landscape, design, media, and social sciences, as well as 3 PhD fellows.
Founded on a conception of landscape as a shared human experience, the
PhD project should aim to bring to the foreground the voices of
Northern residents -indigenous, non-indigenous, and new-comers.
Eligible PhD-proposals should aim to develop strategies for mapping the
landscapes of aspirations, disappointments, and desires as the Arctic
advances headlong into massive industrialization, exploration for more
resources, and speculative planning.
The fellowship will commence
in September 2013, and the candidate will undertake research training
(45 ECTS) at AHO in Oslo for the first year, and will be located at The
Barents Institute at the University of Tromsø in Kirkenes for the
rest of the three-year project period. This attachment will be under
the chief supervision of its leader Aileen A. Espiritu, with support
from the rest of the Future North team. Article based publication is
encouraged as a form of thesis production. The position requires full
time residency for the full 3 year period. Research stay at a relevant
international academic institution is a possibility.
Requirements:
Applicants must hold a relevant master’s degree within the
interdisciplinary field of social sciences, and/or landscape and design
studies.
The successful candidate should be able to formulate and
resolve questions of methodology and theory with regards to the
ethnography of landscape, and have experience and/or training in
ethnographic methods.
Within the ambition of Future North to focus
on the material and action-oriented formation of landscape, the
successful candidate should be able to experiment with methods of
mapping, including participatory approaches.
To take full advantage
of the residency in Kirkenes, the PhD project should focus on the
trans-border context of the Northern regions of Norway, Russia, Finland
and Sweden, or other relevant comparative situations in the
Circumpolar North.
Applicants should have knowledge of collaborative ethnography, GIS, and mapping in general.
The working language of the project is English. Good English proficiency (both written and oral) is therefore a prerequisite.
For more information on the Future North project, see
The application must include:
An application letter – describing relevant background, research experience and network.
A fully completed application form.
A tentative project description of maximum 5 pages, formulating
research problem and aim, as well as an overview of relevant approaches
and methods (including motivation for possible research stay).
Curriculum vitae.
Copies of educational certificates (applicants with education from
abroad must attach an explanation of their university’s grading
system).
2 references or recommendations explaining why, in the
referee’s opinion, the candidate is qualified to undertake the
prospective research at AHO.
If research stay is intended, include invitation letters from relevant academic institution.
If relevant: List of publications and/or academic or design work.
Preferably some documentation of English proficiency (i.e. diplomas
from Upper Secondary School, confirmation of previous education in
English, a TOEFL-test, etc.)
All applications should be submitted via our electronic application
form (Note: the application and all documents have to be in English,
except for copies of educational certificates)
The material for the PhD application will be assessed according to the following criteria:
The quality of the project description and its relevance for the research project
The academic competence of the applicant
The applicant’s suitability within the research project
Position & salary:
The PhD research fellow position (SKO 1017) has the pay grade: 50 (NOK
416.600.- per year). Normal employment conditions for state employees
apply to the position. AHO has its own company health service. There is a
compulsory 2 % deduction to the State pension fund. The employment
period is three years, and will start 1st of September 2013.
More information about PhD fellowships at AHO can be found at www.aho.no/en/ RD/The-PhD- program/
For further information, please contact:
Research administrator Steinar Heldal (steinar.heldal at adm.aho.no) or
Project leader Janike Kampevold Larsen (janike.larsen at aho.no) or
Application Deadline : 31 March 2013
