About the position

The PhD Fellowship period is 3 years and is devoted to carrying out a project entitled “Structured training and exercise with mixed reality for crisis management” (MixStrex). The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree.

As a successful candidate you will work with fundamental research that is also close to innovation. You will gain experience that will qualify for future positions in both Academia and Industry. You will gain timely expertise within current technology trends within augmented and virtual reality, simulations, data fusion, big data and machine learning that are highly relevant for industry in general, and for crisis management in both the private sector (e.g., oil & gas) and the public sector (defense, fire & rescue, etc.) in particular.

UiO will be the main working place, but shorter or longer stays at the collaborating institutions can be envisaged, depending on the focus of the research. We encourage a research stay overseas during the course of the project.

Project description

The fellowship is part of the MixStrex project funded by the Norwegian Research Council’s User-driven Research based Innovation (BIA) program. The project is hosted by EON Reality Norway AS https://www.eonreality.com in collaboration with, among others, Gexcon AS https://gexcon.com, Forsvarets forskningsinstitutt (FFI), the University of Oslo (UiO), Handelshøyskolen BI and Høgskolen i Innlandet.

The objective of the project is to develop technology for planning, conducting and analyzing crisis management training that uses mixed reality simulations. Mixed reality simulations involve a mix of live training scenarios, virtual gaming, computer-controlled simulations and augmented and virtual reality technology. Synthetic and live objects and events influence each other.

The fellowship is dedicated to research on the information-technological aspects of the objective under on or more of three main themes:

• The structure of information that must flow between exercise management tools and simulations in virtual and augmented reality technology
• The division of simulation functionality into services hosted in a cloud so that simulations can be composed quickly according to the learning task at hand
• The analysis of performance data in simulations using big data and machine learning technologies

In addition, you will investigate how exercise management tools should be designed to cater for different types of crisis exercises, and which mixed reality simulation scenarios and vignettes should be designed for such exercises.

Qualification requirements

• Applicants must hold a Master’s degree or equivalent in computer science, formal logic, distributed systems, physics or mathematics. Applicants from other fields (even outside the natural sciences) may also apply if they have relevant skills in modelling and simulation, formal languages or distributed systems architecture
• The Master’s degree (120 ECTS) must have received a minimum grade B (ECTS grading scale) or equivalent. The Master’s degree must include a thesis of at least 30 ECTS
• Applicants must be especially well motivated and ready for dedicated work toward the project’s objectives together with other participants in the project. Successful candidates will be expected to take the lead (with the support of supervisors) on their respective research areas in harmony with the project’s objectives
• Applicants must have fluent oral and written communication skills in English and/or a Scandinavian language
• Successful candidates must be eligible for Norwegian security clearance at the level required for the project

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has an ambition of being a leading research faculty. Candidates for these fellowships will be selected in accordance with this, and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

The fellowship requires admission to the PhD program at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. The application to the PhD program must be submitted to the department no later than two months after taking up the position.

For more information see: http://www.uio.no/english/research/phd/ and here http://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/

We offer

• Salary NOK 449 400 – 505 800 per annum depending on qualifications and seniority as PhD Research Fellow, (position code 1017)
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement, in addition to Oslo’s family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities

How to apply

The application must include:

• Cover letter. Statement of motivation and research interests
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work - scientific publications)
• Copies of educational certificates, transcript of records and letters of recommendation
• Documentation of English proficiency
• List of publications and academic work that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, please follow the link “Apply for this job”. Foreign applicants are advised to attach an explanation of their University's grading system. Please note that all documents should be in English or a Scandinavian language.

Qualified applicants will be called in for an interview.