About the position
One PhD Research Fellowship (SKO 1017) in Science & Technology Studies (STS) is available at TIK Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture at the University of Oslo (UiO) from August 2026.
Candidates are invited to apply for a three-year PhD Research Fellowship associated with the DataMines project (Governing data infrastructure and clouds in digitally mediated natural resource extraction and exploitation).
The position is for three years, with the possibility of extension for teaching activities.
The successful PhD candidate will define and carry out an individual subproject on the politics of bioprospecting in Norway, with a focus on legal and scientific practices. More information about the project is available in the project’s website and upon request ana.delgado@tik.uio.no
The appointed candidate will be part of the TIK Centre’s STS research group. The STS group at TIK analyses the relations between science, technology and society; how scientific knowledge and technologies emerge and how science and technology are employed in different social contexts, and with what social and political implications.
The research fellow must take part in the Faculty’s approved PhD program (TIK track) and is expected to complete the project within the set fellowship period. The main purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree. For more information, please see the Faculty of Social Sciences’ web site.
In addition to their own research work, fellows may be invited to participate in teaching and/or administration activities connected to research and teaching in the programs offered at the Centre. All such work will be compensated with an equivalent extension of the research fellowship.
About the DataMines Project
DataMines combines approaches from STS, critical data studies and political ecology, and develops “track and tracing” ethnographic methods to follow the flow of genetic resources across land, oceans, jurisdictions, and global databases. It builds on a collaboration between the University of Oslo, Fridtjof Nansens Institute and the University College London, and it brings together an interdisciplinary team of international scholars in Europe and Brazil. The project is led by Associate Professor Ana Delgado.
Biodiversity loss is a main global challenge. DataMines addresses it by studying how genetic resources are digitalized and increasingly stored in and retrieved from databases, often as open data. The project analyses the challenges that turning biodiversity into data poses for biodiversity governance. It focuses on bioprospecting, i.e. the search for commercially interesting forms of biochemistry nature. Using an ethnographic approach it follows specific forms of biodiversity (plants and microbes) in Brazil and Norway.
The digital shift in bioprospecting poses several challenges to existing regulatory mechanisms for the fair access and use of genetic resources. Genetic data on critical biodiversity resources accumulate in databases in the Global North, even when that data has been collected from organisms and microorganisms in megadiverse countries in the Global South.
The digitalization of bioprospecting, including the use of AI and datamining software to search for interesting sequences in databases, has opened up a new round of global controversies on genetic-resource extraction and exploitation, including what indigenous and activist groups see as a new form of digital biopiracy. A key problem is that regulatory and legal mechanisms are missing to regulate the flow of data, and to govern databases.
How does the governance of resource extractions change when the site of extraction is not only physical sites existing within national jurisdictions, but when resources also exist as data in databases and clouds? The project DataMines addresses this question, to produce theoretical and empirical knowledge that can be used to inform better policies, towards contributing to data sovereignty and environmental justice. You can read more about the project here: DataMines
Selection criteria
Qualification requirements
- Applicants must hold a 2 year Master’s degree or equivalent in the social sciences, the humanities or relevant interdisciplinary studies and meet the formal requirements for admittance to the Faculty of Social Sciences’ PhD program.
- The Master’s degree must be of high quality (grade A or B)
- The applicants must have:
- Fluent oral and written communication skills in English
- Good professional writing skills
- Demonstrated research capabilities
- Personal suitability and motivation for the position
Preferred qualifications
- Very good skills in Norwegian or other Scandinavian language is an advantage, but not a requirement.
- Sufficient knowledge of Science & Technology Studies (STS), strong interest in the development of STS research both theoretically and empirically, collaboration skills and an ability to work in interdisciplinary academic communities will be an advantage.
The successful candidate is expected to take active part in activities like seminars and workshops at TIK. Residency in or close to Oslo is expected.
Assessment
The evaluation of the candidates will be based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualifications - required as well as preferred - applicable to the position, including personal qualifications. The best qualified candidates will be invited for interviews.
The final hiring decision is the responsibility of the centre’s board and will be based on an evaluation of the overall qualifications of the shortlisted candidates as well as the centre’s needs.
We need different perspectives in our work
UiO is an open and internationally oriented comprehensive university that strives to be an inclusive and diverse workplace and academic environment. You can read more about UiO’s work on equality, inclusion, and diversity at uio.no.
We fulfill our mission most effectively when we draw upon our variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives. We are looking for great colleagues—could you be the next one?
We will do our best to accommodate your needs. Relevant adjustments may include modifications to working hours, task adaptations, digital, technical, or physical adjustments, or other practical measures.
If you have an immigrant background, a disability, or CV gaps, we encourage you to indicate this in the job application portal. We always invite at least one qualified candidate from each group for an interview. In this context, disability is defined as an applicant who identifies as having a disability that requires workplace or employment-related accommodations. For more details about the requirements, please refer to the Employer portal (Norwegian).
The selections made in the job application portal are used for anonymized statistics that all state employers include in their annual reports.
More information about gender equality initiatives at UiO can be found
here.We hope you will apply for the position with us.
We offer
- Salary between NOK 550 800-595 800 per annum, depending on qualifications. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund
- An academically stimulating working environment
- Attractive welfare benefits including excellent benefits for families (kindergarten, paid paternal/maternal leave etc) and a generous pension agreement.
- In addition, Oslo offers a family-friendly environment with rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities in its immediate surroundings.
Read more about the benefits of working in the public sector at Employer Portal.
Application
The application should be written in English and must include:
- Application letter (1-2 pages). Please describe your motivation for applying for a PhD and explain how your background, research and experience are relevant to this PhD position. Indicate which of the qualification requirements you meet.
- Project proposal (5-10 pages). The proposal should address how you would approach the project within your chosen research theme conceptually and methodologically and its relationship to your current experience. Please include a timeline of suggested activities.
- 3-page CV summarizing education, positions, research experience, and other activities. The period of enrolment (admission-completion) in the master's study program must be specified.
- A complete list of publications (if relevant).
- Academic diplomas and grade transcripts (university degrees only).
- List of 2 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and phone number). Please note that references will only be contacted for candidates invited to interview.
Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for the position". Foreign applicants are advised to attach an explanation of their university's grading system. Please note that all documents must be in English (or a Scandinavian language in the case of transcripts; the application materials should be in English).
Contact information
General information
The best qualified candidates will invited for interviews.
Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we cannot, you will hear from us.
Please refer to Regulations for the Act on universities and colleges chapter 3 (Norwegian), Guidelines concerning appointment to post doctoral and research posts at UiO and Regulations for the degree of Philosophiae Doctor (PhD) at the University of Oslo.
The University of Oslo has a transfer agreement with all employees that is intended to secure the rights to all research results etc.