PhD Candidate in Empirical Software Engineering

NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Norway; On-site; NOK 493,000 - 667,000; Full time

Job summary

NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology invites applications for a PhD Candidate in the Software Engineering group at the Department of Computer Science. The position focuses on continuous software development and empirical studies in real-world companies.

You will conduct studies, publish in leading venues, supervise master's students, and contribute to teaching. The role requires a Master’s degree in computer science and strong English proficiency.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree with a major independent project (min 30 ECTS).
• Strong academic background with average grade B or better on NTNU scale; or documented equivalent.
• Proficient in English as a professional language; knowledge of Norwegian or another Scandinavian language is a plus.
• Attach a project outline containing research questions and methodology (approx. 1500 words).

Responsibilities

• Develop research-based knowledge on continuous software development grounded in empirical studies.
• Carry out empirical studies in Norwegian software companies and publish in journals and conferences.
• Conduct own studies and participate in project teams with master's students.
• Contribute to teaching activities, including lab sessions and supervision.
• Engage in related research projects or collaboration with public/private sector organizations.

Skills

English professional proficiency

Team collaboration

Independent work

Education

Master’s degree in computer science or equivalent

Master's thesis project 30 ECTS

Job description

NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Organisation/Company NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology Department Department of Computer Science Research Field Computer science Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Application Deadline 8 Oct 2026 - 23:59 (Europe/Oslo) Country Norway Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

This is NTNU

NTNU is a broad-based university with atechnical-scientific profile and a focusin professional education. The university is located in three cities with headquarters in Trondheim.

At NTNU, 9,000 employees and 43,000 students work to create knowledge for a better world.

You will find more information about working at NTNU and the application process here.

About the position

As agile development scales to larger, more complex organizations, software engineering is being transformed by a set of intertwined changes. Continuous software engineering is converging development and operations to enable frequent releases, while AI is touching every stage of the software lifecycle, bringing agents that work alongside developers. Together, these changes are reshaping team composition and dynamics, as well as enabling shorter feedback loops, while introducing new roles and requiring new skillsets.

The purpose of empirical software engineering research is to study these shifts as they unfold, examining real-world practice to generate knowledge that can guide how teams and organisations build quality software. As a PhD Candidate, you will carry out this work within the Software Engineering group at the Department of Computer Science, one of Norway's leading software engineering environments. The group works closely with industry and publishes at leading international venues.

Your immediate leader will be the head of unit.

Duties of the position

• Develop research-based knowledge on continuous software development, grounded in empirical studies.
• Carry out empirical studies in Norwegian software companies, with the aim of publishing in recognised journals and conferences.
• Responsible for conducting your own studies and for taking part in project teams together with master's students.
• Contribute to teaching activities, including lab sessions and supervision
• Other career-promoting work agreed with the department, such as work on smaller related research projects or collaboration with organisations in the public and private sectors. Applicants who hold a position outside the university may, by agreement, retain part of that position as career-promoting work.

Be prepared for changes to your work duties after employment.

• You must have a relevant Master’s degree in computer science or equivalent. Your degree must include a major independent project (minimum 30 ECTS) equivalent to a master’s thesis.
• You must have a strong and relevant academic background from your previous studies and have an average grade from your Master's degree study, or equivalent education, which is equal to B or better compared to NTNU's grading scale . If you do not have letter grades from previous studies, you must have an equally good academic foundation. If you have a weaker academic background, you may be considered if you can document that you are exceptionally suited for a PhD education, for example through relevant work experience and/or peer-reviewed academic works.
• You must master English as a professional language, both written and orally.
• You must attach a project outline (1500 words) to your application. It should set out your theoretical and methodological approach to the research topic, together with proposed research questions.
  

Academically relevant background within software engineering or information systems

• Experience from the software industry
• Experience with empirical studies and scientific publishing
• Good oral and written presentation skills in Norwegian or another Scandinavian language

Personal characteristics

To complete a doctoral degree (PhD), it is important that you are able to:

• A good team player
• Eager to learn
• Results-oriented
• Work independently
  

Emphasis will be placed on personal qualities.

We offer

• An exciting job with an important mission in society
• Developing tasks in a strong and international professional environment
• Open and inclusive working environment with committed colleagues
• Free Norwegian language training at a basic level (A2)

We strive to attract employees with different skills, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to even better problem solving of our societal mission in research and education.

At NTNU we want to increase the proportion of women in scientific positions. We have a number of measures to promote equality.

Salary and conditions

In the position of PhD Candidate, code 1017, your gross salary will normally be NOK 580 000,-per annum depending on qualifications and seniority. A 2% statutory contribution to the State Pension Fund is deducted from the salary.

The employment period is 4 years for the doctoral work in addition to 1 year of career promotion work. (A minimum of three work years of the total term period must be dedicated to doctoral work.

For employment as a PhD Candidate, it is a prerequisite that you gain admission to the PhD programme in Computer Science within three months of your employment contract start date, and that you participate in an organized doctoral programme throughout the period of employment.

As an employee at NTNU, it is important that you keep yourself up to date with academic and organizational changes and adapt to them.

For the necessary professional and social interaction, it is a prerequisite that you are physically present and available to the institution on a daily basis.

The appointment is carried out in accordance with the principles of the State Employees Act , and Export control (legislation that regulates the export of knowledge, technology and services). Candidates who, after assessment of the application and attachments, are considered to be in conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to be employed.

About the application

The attachments (including a description of your scientific work) must accompany the application as these documents form the basis of the application assessment. The documents must be in Norwegian/a Scandinavian language or English.

Please note: the application will only be assessed on the basis of the information we have received by the application deadline. Therefore, make sure that your application clearly shows how your skills and experience meet the criteria described above. The application and all attachments must be sent electronically via Jobbnorge.no . If you are invited to an interview, you must bring certified copies of certificates and diplomas upon request.

The application must include:

• Transcripts and diplomas for Bachelor's and Master's degrees
• CV
• Copy of Master's thesis. If you have recently submitted your Master's thesis, you can attach a draft of the thesis. Documentation of a completed Master's degree must be presented before taking up the position.
• Project outline containing proposals for an overall description of research questions, theoretical perspectives, methodological design for the project and progress plan (maximum 1500 words/4 pages)
• Short letter of motivation (400 words/1 page)
• Possibly publications etc. other relevant research work
• Possibly certificates
• Names and contact information of three relevant referees
  

If all, or parts, of your education has been taken abroad, we also ask you to attach documentation of the scope and quality of your entire education, both Bachelor's and Master's education, in addition to other higher education. If your institution uses “diploma supplement” (normal for most European institutions), you must attach this. A description of the documentation required can also be found here . If you already have a statement from Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir) , please attach this as well.

Joint work will be considered. If it is difficult to identify your contribution to joint work, you must attach a brief description of your participation.

When assessing the best qualified, we emphasize necessary qualifications such as education, experience and personal suitability. Motivation for the position, ambitions, and potential for research will also count when assessing the candidates.

NTNU recognizes a wide range of academic contributions and has committed itself to The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment and CoARA (responsible assessment of research and recognition of a greater breadth of academic contributions in accordance with NTNU's social mission).

General information

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you wish to be exempt from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance with current legislation . You will be notified if the exemption is not granted.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Joakim Klemets (Associate Professor), phone [phone], email: [e-mail] .

If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact HR at [e-mail] .

The city of Trondheim is a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the tech capital of Norway with a population of 200,000.The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) creates knowledge for a better world and solutions that can change everyday life.

Department of Computer Science

We are the leading academic IT environment in Norway, and offer a wide range of theoretical and applied IT programmes of study at all levels. Our subject areas include hardware, algorithms, visual computing, AI, databases, software engineering, information systems, learning technology, HCI, CSCW, IT operations and applied data processing. The Department has groups in both Trondheim and Gjøvik. The Department of Computer Science is one of seven departments in the Faculty of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering .