PhD Candidate in Quantum-safe verifiable credentials

NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Norway; Presencial; NOK 420.000 - 520.000; Jornada completa

Ventajas ofrecidas por este puesto de trabajo

Free Norwegian language training

Descripción de la vacante

NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology invites applications for a PhD Candidate position in cryptology within the project on digital wallets and privacy.

The successful candidate will pursue a doctoral degree while contributing to research on lattice-based cryptography, zero knowledge proofs, and verifiable credentials, under the Head of Department at NTNU. English proficiency is required.

Formación

• Master's degree with a major independent project (min. 30 ECTS) or equivalent.
• Strong background in mathematical cryptology and related security topics.
• Excellent English writing and presentation skills.

Responsabilidades

• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate.
• Carry out high-quality research within the project scope.
• Publish academic works and disseminate results to broader audiences.
• Participate in international activities such as conferences and research stays.
• Engage in teaching and other career-promoting work.

Conocimientos

Lattice-based cryptography

Zero-knowledge proofs

Verifiable credential systems

English communication

Norwegian/Scandinavian language (bonus

Educación

Master's degree in mathematical cryptology or equivalent

Descripción del empleo

NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Organisation/Company NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology Department Department of Mathematical Sciences Research Field Communication sciences Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Application Deadline 20 Nov 2026 - 23:59 (Europe/Oslo) Country Norway Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 37,5 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

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

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 main objectives of the PhD project is to evaluate the exact security of current wallet designs to establish a baseline, develop quantum-safe, verifiable, privacy-preserving credentials, with post-quantum and hybrid constructions and accompanying formal security proofs, in such a way that we realize the principles for built-in privacy in wallet protocols, including selective disclosure, pseudonymization and minimal data sharing. We expect to use lattice-based cryptography for our designs. Close cooperation with the other PhD candidates in the project will be needed to achieve the project goals.

Your immediate leader will be the Head of Department.

About the project

The position is part of the project Cryptology and social life: Sovereignty, security and society meet digital wallets , funded by NTNU. The overall project 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. The challenges are interdisciplinary, cutting across issues of digital sovereignty, identity management and security technologies. This project will strengthen Norway's societal resilience by treating digital identity as a problem to be secured technologically, organizationally and culturally at once.

Duties of the position

• 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 international activities such as conferences and/or research stays at foreign educational institutions.
• Teaching.
• Other career-promoting work.

Be prepared for changes to your work duties after employment.

• You must have a relevant Master's degree in mathematicalcryptology or equivalent. Your degree must include a major independent project (minimum 30 ECTS) equivalent to a master’s thesis.
• Master students can apply, but the master's degree must be obtained and documented before starting the position and no later than August 31, 2027.
• 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.
• Ability to teach and perform other career‑promoting work.
• Good oral and written presentation skills in English.
• Experience with lattice‑based cryptography.
• Experience with zero knowledge proofs.
• Experience with verifiable credential systems.
• Good oral and written presentation skills in Norwegian/Scandinavian may be considered as a positive.

Personal characteristics

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

• Work independently.
• Work in a structured way, set goals and make plans to achieve them.
• Present and discuss your research with other professionals.
• Get involved and contribute constructively with feedback.
• Show curiosity and a strong motivation for the subject.

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.

regardless of gender, functional ability and cultural background, or whether you have been out of work for a period of time.

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

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.

Department of Mathematical Sciences

We are Norway’s largest university environment in mathematical sciences.
The Department has a particular responsibility for all basis education inmathematical sciences for engineering and natural science students at NTNU.We focus on long‑term basic research and applied research at a high international level.
Our aim is to meet the society’s needs for mathematical and statistical expertise inbusiness and public administration as well as in the research and education sector. The Department of Mathematical Sciences is one of seven departments in the Faculty of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering .

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.