Postdoctoral Fellows in Federated Cyber Physical Ranges

The postdoctoral fellowship position is a temporary position where the main goal is to qualify for work in senior academic positions.

The postdoctoral fellows will work on research and development within the context of the EDF-funded Project “Federated Advanced Cyber physical Test range (FACT)”. There are a number of cyber test ranges available (including in Europe) but the federated approach and advanced cyber physical test range capability are two elements of the FACT project which makes it disruptive and unique. The focus on Operational Technology (OT) is increasing when it comes to military systems, and the cyber physical aspect is thus of greatest importance for the FACT project. Military platforms are not easily transferable to a relevant location for test. However, the federated approach in the FACT project will allow the physical part to be implemented at more than one location, and still make use of the full capability of the partners capabilities during the testing. To ensure that the equipment is used and has a required level of protection, the FACT project will design, prototype and demonstrate a federated cyber physical test capability which can be maintained and become a sustained capability to the European nations after the project. Our approach is fully user-centric, with the end-user’s needs as the starting point for the whole capability and every consideration. Examples of test scenario setups where the federated aspect of FACT is an advantage are numerous: larger partners wanting to cooperate in larger system deliveries, smaller companies cooperating with several partners within their complimentary field of expertise, sharing vulnerabilities and mitigating actions on equipment across partners and nations for shortening time to market.

The positions create an opportunity for more collaboration with other research disciplines such as security management, safety engineering, and policymaking in addition to the focus areas mentioned above.

The positions’ working place is NTNU campus in Gjøvik. You will report to the Head of the Department.

Your immediate leader is the Head of the Department of Information Security and Communication Technology.

Duties of the position

The postdoctoral research fellows will:

• Contribute to research and development on:
  • The definition of requirements and specifications for the development of the Federated Cyber Physical Range system.
  •  The design and development of the FACT building blocks.
  •  The integration of all FACT components into a single interoperable system.
  •  Testing and piloting activities of the CYBERUNITY platform
  •  The finalisation and development of the unified cyber range infrastructure and the building of a community of users and experts in relation to this platform.
• Contribute to the development of the communication and dissemination strategy of the FACT project.
• Develop and pursue own research agenda in cyber physical systems risk management.
• Contribute to the development of research and education in Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience by leading and supporting new research and innovation.
• Work on initiating, organizing, writing proposals for, coordinating, and carrying out national and international R&I projects of high quality, to be funded by national and international sources e.g. the NFR (The Research Council of Norway), and the European Commission.
• Coordinate and manage the Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience (CISaR) group teams working on R&I projects in critical infrastructure protection, cyber physical system risk management, and other areas of interest of the group.
• Participate as an active member in CISaR activities and in activities of the Department of Information Security and Communication Technology (IIK), including supervision and co-supervision of MSc and PhD students.

Required selection criteria

• You must have completed a Norwegian doctoral degree or corresponding foreign doctoral degree recognized as equivalent to a Norwegian PhD in information security, computer science, or equivalent, with focus on the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure and/or cyber-physical systems. If you can document that the PhD thesis has been submitted, your application can be assessed even if you have not yet defended your dissertation. Documentation of the obtained doctoral degree must be presented before you can take up the position.
• Track record with publications on relevant research areas in credible journals and conferences.
• Being able to attend and present at national and international forums.
• Good written and oral English language skills.

The appointment is to be made in accordance with Regulations on terms of employment for positions such as postdoctoral fellow, Ph.D Candidate, research assistant and specialist candidate.

Preferred selection criteria

• Extensive knowledge and solid understanding of cyber ranges.
• Experience in defining and verifying requirements and specifications for IT and OT systems.
• Experience in designing and developing IT and OT systems.
• Experience in the verification of distributed systems
• Experience in integrating and testing IT and OT systems.
• Experience with developing and operating laboratory facilities for security testing.
• Experience with supervision of MSc students’ thesis work.
• Experience with participating in EU and/or nationally funded R&I projects related to cyber security for critical infrastructure and cyber-physical systems.
• Experience with having developed research project proposals for external funding bodies such as the European Commission, Research Council of Norway, etc.

Personal characteristics

• Being able to travel frequently.
• Flexibility and willingness to work on a broad range of topics covered by the activities of the CISaR group.
• Initiative-taking and self-starter who works well with minimal supervision and shows excellent judgement about when to look to managers and teammates for guidance, and when and how to communicate with diverse stakeholders.
• Team player with a proven track record of building cross-functional relationships and ability to work in an international research team.
• Effective communication and negotiation skills, both written and verbal persuasiveness and strong influential skills.
• Eager to learn with a high desire to perform and disseminate high-quality research.

Emphasis will be placed on personal and interpersonal qualities.

We offer 

• exciting and stimulating tasks in a strong international academic environment
• an open and inclusive work environment with dedicated colleagues
• favourable terms in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund 
• employee benefits 

Salary and conditions

As a Postdoctoral Fellow (code 1352) you are normally paid from gross NOK 575 400 per annum, depending on qualifications and seniority. From the salary, 2% is deducted as a contribution to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund.

The period of employment is 3 years. 

The engagement is to be made in accordance with the regulations in force concerning State Employees and Civil Servants, and the acts relating to Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who by assessment of the application and attachment are seen to conflict with the criteria in the latter law will be prohibited from recruitment to NTNU.

After the appointment you must assume that there may be changes in the area of work.

The position is subject to external funding.

It is a prerequisite you can be present at and accessible to the institution on a daily basis.

About the application 

The application and supporting documentation to be used as the basis for the assessment must be in English.

Publications and other scientific work must be attached to the application. Please note that applications are only evaluated based on the information available on the application deadline. You should ensure that your application shows clearly how your skills and experience meet the criteria which are set out above.

If, for any reason, you have taken a career break or have had an atypical career and wish to disclose this in your application, the selection committee will take this into account, recognizing that the quantity of your research may be reduced as a result.

The application must include (Departments to choose from the following):

• CV and certificates
• transcripts and diplomas for bachelor’s-, master’s- and PhD degrees. If you have not yet completed your Ph.D, you must provide confirmation on your estimated date for the doctoral dissertation, or that your PhD thesis has been submitted.
• A copy of the doctoral thesis. If you are close to submitting, or have recently submitted your thesis, you can attach a draft of the thesis. Documentation of a completed doctoral degree must be presented before taking up the position.
• Academic works – published or unpublished – that you would like to be considered in the assessment (up to 5 items).
• Research plan focused explicitly on the suitability of the candidate for the position, and the proposed approach for addressing the described work.
• Name and contact information of three 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. Description of the documentation required can be found here. If you already have a statement from NOKUT, please attach this as well.

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

In the evaluation of which candidate is best qualified, emphasis will be placed on education, experience and personal and interpersonal qualities. Motivation, ambitions, and potential will also count in the assessment of the candidates.

NTNU is committed to following evaluation criteria for research quality according to The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment – DORA. 

General information 

Working at NTNU 

NTNU believes that inclusion and diversity is a strength. We want our faculty and staff to reflect Norway’s culturally diverse population and we continuously seek to hire the best minds. This enables NTNU to increase productivity and innovation, improve decision making processes, raise employee satisfaction, compete academically with global top-ranking institutions and carry out our social responsibilities within education and research. NTNU emphasizes accessibility and encourages qualified candidates to apply regardless of gender identity, ability status, periods of unemployment or ethnic and cultural background.

NTNU is working actively to increase the number of women employed in scientific positions and has a number of resources to promote equality.

The city of Gjøvik has a population of 30 000 and is a town known for its rich music and cultural life. The beautiful nature surrounding the city is ideal for an active outdoor life! The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world.

As an employee at NTNU, you must at all times adhere to the changes that the development in the subject entails and the organizational changes that are adopted.

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you want to reserve yourself 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 reservation is not accepted.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Prof. Sokratis Katsikas, email sokratis.katsikas@ntnu.no or Associate Prof. Vasileios Gkioulos, email vasileios.gkioulos@ntnu.no . If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Julie Lindland, e-mail: julie.lindland@ntnu.no.

If you think this looks interesting and in line with your qualifications, please submit your application electronically via jobbnorge.no with your CV, diplomas and certificates attached. Applications submitted elsewhere will not be considered. Upon request, you must be able to obtain certified copies of your documentation.

Application deadline: 27.10.2023.