PhD Candidate in Information Systems

Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU); Trondheim; Presencial; NOK 522.000 - 638.000; Jornada completa

Ventajas ofrecidas por este puesto de trabajo

Mentor programme for new employees

Favourable pension plan (SPK)

Free Norwegian language training (A2)

Career guidance and academic follow-up

Open and inclusive working environment

Descripción de la vacante

NTNU in Trondheim invites applications for a PhD research fellow in Information Systems. The position focuses on sociotechnical analysis of digital wallet projects within an interdisciplinary NTNU program.

You will conduct empirical research, work with interviews, observations and document analysis, and contribute to the doctoral programme and international research community. The job is part of the interdisciplinary project “Cryptology and social life” and affiliates with ISCHI, with

Formación

• Master in Information Systems with a major independent project (minimum 30 ECTS).
• Solid understanding of sociotechnical perspectives.
• Solid experience with qualitative research methods.
• Strong English fluency, written and spoken.
• Eligibility for admission to NTNU PhD programme in Computer Science.
• Strong academic background with average grade of B or better (or equivalent).

Responsabilidades

• Actively participate in and contribute to the Cryptology and social life project.
• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate.
• Carry out high-quality research within the described framework.
• Publish academic works and disseminate results.
• Participate in the ISCHI research group.
• Collaborate in research activities and meetings within the project and affiliated groups.
• Participate in international activities such as conferences or research stays.
• Teaching duties in relevant courses at the department.
• Engage in other career-promoting work.

Conocimientos

Sociotechnical perspective

Qualitative research methods

English fluency

Educación

Master in Information Systems

Descripción del empleo

About The Position

The Department of Computer science (IDI) has a vacancy for a PhD research fellow within the field of Information Systems (IS). The position is suited for candidates with a critical yet constructive sociotechnical analysis of complex technological development, adoption and use. Candidates need expertise and interest in qualitative, interpretative and critical research methods as the work will entail working empirically with data collection from a wide set of stakeholders, drawing on interviews, observations and document analysis.

About The Position

The Department of Computer science (IDI) has a vacancy for a PhD research fellow within the field of Information Systems (IS). The position is suited for candidates with a critical yet constructive sociotechnical analysis of complex technological development, adoption and use. Candidates need expertise and interest in qualitative, interpretative and critical research methods as the work will entail working empirically with data collection from a wide set of stakeholders, drawing on interviews, observations and document analysis. In this position, you will conduct research as part of the interdisciplinary project Cryptology and social life: Sovereignty, security and society meet digital wallets, while achieving your doctorate degree. In this manner, you will gain valuable experience that qualifies you for a further career in higher education, research and other sectors requiring analytic skills, both within and outside academia. The position is situated within NTNU’s interdisciplinary area “A more resilient society” (“Et mer motstandsdyktig samfunn”), and affiliated with the interdisciplinary research project “Cryptology and social life” and NTNU’s interdisciplinary team “Democratic resilience” (Demokratisk motstandskraft). You will also become part of the research groups “Information systems and computer-human interaction, ISCHI” and become a member of our vibrant research community with seminars, guests and visits. Thus, the position offers excellent opportunities for academic development, research collaboration, conference participation, international publication, and engagement with societal actors. Are you motivated to take a step towards a doctorate and open up exciting career opportunities? As a PhD Candidate with us, you will work to achieve your doctorate, and at the same time gain valuable experience that qualifies you for a further career in higher education and research, in and outside academia. The position is for 4 years. Your immediate leader will be the head of the ISCHI unit.

About The Project

The PhD position is part of a group of four PhD’s forming the core of the NTNU funded interdisciplinary project “Cryptology and social life: Sovereignty, security and society meet digital wallets, combining information systems, STS, sociology, ethnography, and cryptology perspectives. The EU Digital Identity (EUDI) Wallet is currently being deployed, with the intention to provide citizens with easier and expanded access to public and private services. Digital identity wallets will potentially become a critical socio-technical infrastructure also in Norway, and raises challenges related to issues such as privacy, fairness, stakeholder engagement and securityi. On this background the project's overall goal is to develop knowledge, methodologies and competencies that strengthen Norway's ability to deploy and maintain secure, privacy-preserving and democratically aligned digital identity wallets. Truly interdisciplinary, the challenges cut across issues of digital sovereignty, identity management, security technologies, and sociotechnical practices and imaginaries. Presently, critical, digital infrastructures are strongly dependent on foreign technology platforms, which limits the options for maintaining national and democratic control and accountabilityi. Safe, digital identities are part of the critical infrastructure of our everyday societies. They enable a wide set of public and private services (cf. DigDir for Norwegian context). However, existing solutions and infrastructures for digital identites come with several challenges including but not limited to the following. Many are operated and controlled by corporate entities typically from Big Tech. Having our critical, digital infrastructures dependent on Big Tech make them vulnerable hence undermines our digital sovereignty. While sufficient up till now, the type of security methods and technology in widespread use today are not quantum-safe, i.e., they are vulnerable to breaches with the advent of working quantum algorithms. To illustrate, the widely used RSA public key scheme underpinning many existing solutions including Norway’s BankID is not quantum safe. EUID involves the standardisation and coordination across countries in Europe with diverging existing solutions, experiences and expectations, which suggests that actually achieving comprehensive standardisation could be challenging. The present PhD project is to analyse the technical, political, institutional and cultural conditions for digital wallets in a Norwegian context. More specifically, important aspects of the PhD project are to understand: (i) the ecosystem (‘infrastructure’, ‘assemblage’) of existing solutions, practices and habits where new, digital wallets are to fit, (ii) the historic evolution of digital identity infrastructures (partly extending, partly substituting, partly competing with alternatives) and (iii) a comparative perspective contrasting Norway’s experience with relevant other European efforts.

Duties of the position

• Actively participate in and contribute to the “Cryptology and social life” project
• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate
• Carry out research of good quality within the framework described above
• Academic publications and popular science dissemination
• Participate in the research group ISCHI
• Contribute to collaborative research activities and meetings within the project and the affiliated teams and research groups
• Participate in international activities such as conferences and/or research stays at foreign educational institutions
• Teaching duties in relevant courses at the department
• Other career-promoting work

Required Selection Criteria

• Master in Information Systems or what corresponds. Your degree must include a major independent project (minimum 30 ECTS) equivalent to a master’s thesis
• Solid, documented expertise in sociotechnical perspective
• Solid, documented expertise in qualitative research methods
• Good fluency in English, orally and written
• The quality and relevance of the project outline (see details below) will be an important part of the overall assessment of candidates.
• You must meet the requirements for admission to the faculty’s PhD programme in Computer science, see Section 6-1 of the PhD regulations for more information.
• 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.

Preferred Selection Criteria

• While not strictly required, fluency of a Scandinavian language is a strength because of qualitative research methods
• Experience with research and scientific publication is a strength

Personal characteristics

• Are intellectually curious and strongly motivated for the subject.
• Are able to work independently and take initiative
• Are eager to collaborate and invite others in
• Have strong professional and analytical skills.
• Are open to feedback and willing to develop your ideas through discussion and collaboration with colleagues and supervisors.

We offer

• An exciting job with an important mission in society
• Developing tasks in a strong and international professional environment
• Career guidance and follow-up during the PhD period
• Open and inclusive working environment with committed colleagues
• Working capital that can be used to implement the project
• Mentor programme as a new employee at NTNU
• Favourable terms as a member of the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund (SPK)
• Free Norwegian language training at a basic level (A2)

Diversity

Diversity is a strength, and at NTNU we aim to be an employer that reflects the diversity in society and that makes use of the potential of the population's collective skills. Our vision is Knowledge for a better world and our values are creative, critical, constructive and respectful. We believe that an organization that is equal, diverse and gender-balanced is essential for us to achieve our goals. 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.

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 for four years for the PhD project. For employment as a PhD Candidate, it is a prerequisite that you gain admission to the PhD programme in [subject area] (link to possible website)within three months of your employment contract start date, and that you participate in an organized doctoral programme through out 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 bein conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to be employed.

Application deadline

20.11.2026

For practical information about working at NTNU, please visit this webpage.

The city of Trondheim

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.

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 .

Questions About The Position

Eric Monteiro

Professor

[e-mail]