Welcome to USN
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/898549899/60305e2540About the position
We are looking for a postdoctoral fellow within the field of “Fair and Effective Pricing Model for Reactive Power in Electricity Market”.
The position is part of the CoordQ project (Enhanced Reactive Power and Voltage Coordination in the Nordic Power System), funded by the Research Council of Norway (RCN).
Project web-page: CoordQ - Universitetet i Sørøst-Norge
Are you interested in “Fair and Effective Pricing Model for Reactive Power in Electricity Market” and want to engage in research with skilled colleagues who share your interests? Maybe you can become our new colleague at Department of Electrical Engineering, IT and Cybernetics at Faculty of Technology, Natural Sciences and Maritime Sciences (TNM). The position is available from 1 October 2026 with the latest starting date on 1 January 2027.
The purpose of the position is for the person appointed to develop a research profile and expertise that qualifies them to work as an associate professor. The position can provide valuable work experience and other competencies that will be relevant to the postdoctoral fellow’s future career. You will be offered careers advice and guidance, and together we will draw up a career plan for you that includes the skills and knowledge you will acquire.
If you do not already have teaching qualifications that meet the requirements for employment as an associate professor, courses will be offered as part of the fellowship. This will be part of the career-advancing work and must be carried out within the employment period.
The postdoctoral fellowship is for a fixed term of three years.
Your personnel manager will be head of department, and your supervisors will be Sambeet Mishra and Thomas Øyvang. It is a prerequisite that you live close by so that you can be present at, and available to, the academic environment at your workplace during ordinary working hours. The place of work will be at campus Porsgrunn.
The position is externally funded from the Research Council of Norway.
About the research project
The person appointed will be affiliated with the research project CoordQ (Enhanced Reactive Power and Voltage Coordination in the Nordic Power System), which is headed by [University of South-Eastern Norway (USN).
The person appointed will be affiliated with the research group Electrical Power Systems. The research project focuses on strengthening the Nordic power system, from a Norwegian perspective, to meet growing electricity needs while enhancing energy security and reliability. The project will develop a national control framework to reduce power system losses, improve reactive power coordination, and stabilize grid operations by enhancing collaboration between grid controllers at different system layers. Fair price incentives and market participation for reactive power ancillary services will be established to improve grid efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
CoordQ brings together leading research and industry partners including USN (project owner), NTNU, Statnett (TSO), Statkraft, Skagerak Kraft, Lede (DSO), and Aker Solutions.
Recruitment and research education are an important part of the mission of CoordQ. The postdoctoral fellow funded by the project will contribute with cutting-edge knowledge and research. As a CoordQ-funded postdoctoral fellow, you will be employed by USN and take an active part in research activities. Through the project, you will have access to a forum with other PhD candidates and postdocs, and opportunities for research stays with partners, both nationally and abroad, through its international network.
This post-doctoral position "Fair and Effective Pricing Model for Reactive Power in Electricity Market" will be associated with Work Package 4 (WP4) on Fair pricing mechanism & guidelines in CoordQ. The overall objective is designing economic incentives and regulatory-aligned market guidance for reactive power/voltage services alongside of develops fair pricing models (e.g., NOK/MVArh based on cost/capacity, location/performance, penalties/investment, ancillary services), clarifies roles (TSO/DSO/market actors), and produces operational guidelines and policy recommendations supported by cost–benefit and risk-portfolio analyses, stakeholder engagement, and regulatory consultations (RME–NVE).
The work of the postdoctoral fellow will be integrated with the ongoing work carried out by the research partners in WP1. In the initial phase, the supervisors, the candidate (based on the candidate's profile), and research partners in CoordQ will work together to identify the comprehensive research questions to address the overall objective of the Ph.D. work.
Some potential specific research objectives:
- Develop pricing models and incentives for reactive power management in a flow-based market coupling.
- Build Scenarios of cost-benefit and risk portfolio comparing coordinated and standard grid solutions including producer, DSO-TSO.
- Estimate price volatility bands and fairness under different operational conditions.
- Investigate and identify policy recommendations and operational guidelines aligned with NVE.
Duties
- Complete the research project within the employment period
- Conduct high-calibre research within the framework described above
- Produce academic publications and popular science dissemination
- Participate in the research group Electrical Power Systems - Universitetet i Sørøst-Norge
- Participate in national and/or international activities such as conferences
- Participate in teaching activities
- Be prepared for changes in your work tasks after appointment
Qualifications
Required qualifications:
- A doctoral degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree (180 ECTS) within the field STEM (e.g., Electrical power engineering, control system engineering, Physics or environmental engineering, Mathematics (Operations research) or Computer Science or Machine Learning)
- The applicant must have gained the doctoral degree within the start date of the position, so applicants in the last semester of their degree are also encouraged to apply.
- Excellent written and oral English language skills
- mobility experience (cf. Charter & Code), work experience, internship experience, etc.
- Preference will be given to applicants with basic teaching qualifications
- Requirements regarding security clearance (Further information regarding security is provided below in the job advertisement).
Preferred qualifications:
- Demonstrates experience or strong interest in energy economics, electricity market, optimization, power system.
- Documented programming experience (e.g., GitHub projects) in Python, Julia, or similar.
- Knowledge of renewable energy systems, hydro power, and electricity market.
- Experience in mathematical modeling, optimization algorithms, and data-driven methods.
- Possesses a strong academic record, with relevant experience in either industry or academia.
- Shows a deep interest in interdisciplinary research, is capable of independent work, and actively engages with the supervision team.
Personal qualities that we are looking for
To be able to complete the project, it is important that you can
- work independently but also participate in teamwork. Be motivated to work interdisciplinary.
- be analytical, innovative and structured in your work-present and discuss your research with other academics and professionals, and show that you have the ability to share and learn from the other members of the academic environment
- get involved and contribute constructively with feedback. The successful candidate should be creative and actively contribute to the team.
- work constructively under pressure or in the face of adversity
- show curiosity and strong motivation for the subject area
- analyse data, assess different perspectives, and draw well-founded conclusions
- be flexible and open to adjusting the project plan as necessary
- have the academic and personal qualities to be able to complete the project within the time frame for the position
- personal skills like a positive and friendly attitude, and contributing to a sustainable social environment will also be valued
When assessing applications, particular importance will be attached to
- Formal qualifications
- Relevant publications in journals, participation at conferences, etc.
- Submitted academic work
- The scientific quality, research relevance and degree of innovation of the project
- The relevance of the project to the research area
- International experience and networks
- The personal qualities mentioned above
Language requirements
This position requires good English language skills. International applicants must document this with a valid certificate from one of the following tests. Specific requirements regarding grades can be found on our webpage English requirement for programmes and subjects taught in English at USN.
- TOEFL – Test of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based Test (IBT)
- IELTS – International English Language Testing Service
- Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) or Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) from the University of Cambridge
- PTE Academic – Pearson Test of English Academic
The following applicants are exempt from the requirements listed above:
Description of the research project
Applicants must submit a preliminary research proposal with the application. The project description for the research project should be short and concise, maximum 2–4 pages (600-1200 words). See further descriptions in the “Template for project descriptions for doctoral and postdoctoral fellowships at USN”
Introduction (the title, main problem and research questions and the background to the project)
- State of the art (the project’s research field)
- Theory
- Methodology
- Work plan
- Results and hypotheses
- Bibliography
Applications with a project description exceeding 1200 words will not be processed.
The project proposal will be included in the assessment of the applicant’s competence.
The final project description and work plan will be prepared in consultation with the supervisor(s) during the first three months of the employment period. It is a prerequisite that you complete the project during the employment period.
We offer
- Careers advice and guidance throughout the entire postdoctoral programme. Together we will draw up a career plan that includes the skills and knowledge you will acquire
- An inclusive working environment with ambitious colleagues
- The opportunity during the employment period to acquire teaching qualifications that meet the requirements for employment as an associate professor, if you do not already possess such qualifications
- The opportunity to take Norwegian language courses
- Salary in accordance with the Norwegian State salary scale for postdoctoral fellows (position code 1352), in the range NOK 643.000 – 790.000. Any further increases in pay grade will be based on length of service in the position
- Deductions will be made from your salary in order to make statutory contributions to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund on your behalf
- Membership in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund, ensuring favourable pension, insurance and loan schemess
Diversity
We believe that diversity is a resource in our work and learning environment. Different experiences and backgrounds contribute to different perspectives and better solutions to challenges that need to be solved.
We are committed to respecting each other's differences and will facilitate employees with disabilities. We take into account your needs and your situation in different phases of life.
If you find this position interesting, we encourage you to apply, regardless of gender, disability, cultural background or whether you have been out of work for a period of time.
If there are qualified applicants with disabilities, gaps in their CV or an immigrant background, we will call at least one applicant in each of these groups for an interview. If you recognize yourself in one of these categories, you can tick the box in our job search portal.
The Department has few women appointed in scientific positions, and women are therefore particularly encouraged to apply.
General information
The Appointment Committee for Teaching and Research Positions (TUF) is the appointing authority for this position. Your competence for the position will be assessed by an expert committee. The expert committee will assess your competence for the position based on the documentation you have registered in Jobbnorge.
Based on the expert committee’s assessment, relevant applicants will be invited to an interview and to hold a trial lecture. References will also be obtained for relevant candidates.
Employment at USN is carried out in accordance with the principles set out in the Norwegian Civil Service Act, and the legislation that regulates the export of knowledge, technology and services. If your application is considered to be in conflict with the criteria in the latter legislation, it will be rejected without further consideration.
The University’s Guidelines for Recruitment Positions provide a more detailed description of the criteria for appointment as a research fellow.
We are committed to adhering to the evaluation criteria for research quality laid down in The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment – DORA and the commitments in The Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment (CoARA) on a fairer, more holistic assessment of research and recognition of a broader range of research outputs and activities. This means that we attach importance to the quality, relevance and significance that can be documented in your scholarly work. Documentation of participation in research projects and research leadership and management will be taken into account in the assessment. We will attach greatest importance to your scholarly work from the past five years.
The University’s competence assessment matrix for teaching and research positions (USN-CAM) can be a useful tool in the work of documenting and reflecting on your competence in relation to the qualification criteria in the application.
As an employee of USN, you must at all times adapt to changes in the field and all organisational changes that are adopted.
Requirements regarding a licence and/or security clearance
- The position may involve access to and handling of unclassified, sensitive information.
The person appointed must demonstrate a high level of integrity, loyalty, and security awareness, and comply with applicable regulations and internal security procedures.
- The position requires a background check prior to employment, pursuant to the Emergency Preparedness Regulations for the Power Supply § 6.7. You can read more about the background check here. USN carries out background checks on applicants in order to verify the information provided in their CV and available documents. The background checks are conducted by an external provider. Applicants will be contacted for their consent if this becomes relevant.
How to apply
If you think this position looks interesting and matches your qualifications, you can submit an application electronically by clicking on “Apply for the position” on this page. Here you will need to enter a short application text and information about your relevant education and work experience. In the application text, you must clearly describe your skills and motivation for the position.
The application must include:
- Documentation of a completed doctoral degree. If you have not completed your doctoral degree at the time of applying, you can enclose confirmation from the institution of the expected date of completion of your doctoral degree. All diplomas must be in a Scandinavian language or English
- Your CV with a complete overview of your education and experience
- As relevant: documentation of basic teaching qualifications
- Other relevant certificates and diplomas
- A 2–4-page project proposal describing the research project and a personal statement explaining your motivation for the position
- Documentation of your English language skills
- Language proficiency in English can be documented in the following ways (see above: Requirements for proficiency in English)
- A complete list of your scholarly works with information about where they have been published. You can also upload/add links to up to five scholarly works, including your doctoral thesis or published monograph based on the thesis
- Contact information for up to three references
The application will be assessed based on the information available in Jobbnorge at the expiry of the application deadline. Make sure your application shows clearly how your skills and experience meet the competence requirements described in the job advertisement.
We take collaborative work into account. If it is difficult to identify your contribution to collaborative work, include a short statement detailing your involvement.
When assessing who is best qualified for the position, we attach weight to education, experience and personal qualities.
All documentation must be provided in a Scandinavian language or English. If the attachments exceed 30 MB in total, they must be compressed before uploading.
Please note that information about you as an applicant may be disclosed publicly even if you have requested not to be included on the public list of applicants (cf. Section 25 of the Norwegian Freedom of Information Act). You will be notified if your request for exemption from public disclosure is denied.
We only consider applications and attachments registered in Jobbnorge. Each applicant is responsible for ensuring that the required documentation has been uploaded with the application deadline. On request, you must be able to provide certified copies of your documentation.
Contact information
For more information about the position, please contact:
Head of department Svein Thore Hagen, epost:
svein.t.hagen@usn.no For questions regarding the recruitment process, please contact:
HR-Advisor Live Rykkje Lindgård, email: liverl@usn.no