PhD fellowship in Applied Information Technology (Reducing Waste)

Kristiania University College is offering a fully funded PhD fellowship in Applied Information Technology for a fixed-term period of three (3) years beginning May 2024. During this time, the successful applicant will be employed at the School for Economics, Innovation, and Technology and included in a team of researchers with ambitious plans to further develop research and pedagogical activities at the university college.

About Kristiania University College

Kristiania University College is Norway’s largest independent comprehensive university college with 18,000 students. Our mission is to strongly contribute to Norway’s social and economic development through problem-driven and applied knowledge development and dissemination, in close cooperation with the public and private sectors. Students can choose from a large portfolio of study programmes at the bachelor’s and master’s levels that are offered in Oslo, Bergen and online. Among these are study programmes in management, organization, marketing, communication, computer science, information technology, health sciences, innovation, and creative arts. The two PhD programmes at Kristiania University College offer advanced graduate work in most of these fields. For more information about the PhD programmes, see here: https://www.kristiania.no/en/research/phd/

About the position

The PhD position is a three-year fulltime position that involves 30 ECTS credits of required course work. This is equivalent to one semester of study. The remaining time is allocated to the development and completion of an independent research project, which takes the form of a written dissertation. The three-year employment period granted to the successful candidate may be reduced if the successful candidate has previously been employed in a PhD position.

The successful candidate is expected to live and work in the Oslo region during the employment period and to take an active part in scholarly and social activities at Kristiania.

About the project

The PhD project is affiliated with a project on Sustainable Innovations for Fashion and Reuse (SIFAR). The overarching aim of the project is to use data analytics or AI to develop new strategies, practices, or technologies to reduce, manage, or transform fashion waste, thereby promoting more sustainable practices in the fashion industry.

The successful candidate must design an independent project that fits within the theme, research questions, and scope of the main project. The successful candidate should formulate the project such that it is integral to the development of knowledge within the area addressed by this main project. Questions of potential interest include (but are not limited to): How do behavioural biases influence consumer decision-making in clothing rental settings, and what is the impact of these biases on the profitability of a rental business model? What factors influence procurement decisions in clothing rental businesses? How can understanding these factors lead to developing best practices and strategies for a sustainable and profitable rental model in the fashion industry? How do inventory management, transportation, distribution, and returns processing practices influence the efficiency and sustainability of the rental clothing supply chain? What are the key patterns and trends in customer behaviour within the fashion rental market, and how can data analytics be employed to optimize inventory management, marketing, and promotional strategies for different customer segments?

Qualifications and personal qualities

Key responsibilities:

• Conduct comprehensive research on the status of fashion waste, including waste generation, disposal methods, and the environmental impacts.
• Develop and test innovative strategies for reducing, recycling, or reusing fashion waste.
• Collaborate with a fashion rental company to develop effective, feasible, and sustainable fashion waste management solutions.
• Present research findings at conferences, seminars, and other academic and industry events.
• Write and publish high-quality academic papers.
• Participate in grant applications and securing funding for future research.

Required qualifications:

• Master’s degree (ECTS or equivalent) in Information Systems, Environmental Science, Sustainability, Business, or a closely related field with a grade B or better on the master’s thesis and for the master’s degree in total. The master’s thesis must be a minimum of 30 ECTS or equivalent.
• Relevant 180 ECTS bachelor’s degree
• Proficiency in both written and spoken English.
• Competence in data analytics, including the ability to acquire, manage, analyze, and report findings on relevant big datasets. The ability to use appropriate tools is assumed across the process.
• A demonstrated interest in sustainable fashion, waste management, or environmental impact studies.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a multidisciplinary environment.

Personal qualities:

• Curiosity and a strong motivation to carry out independent research.
• Good communication and cooperation skills
• Excellent analytical skills
• The ability, desire, and capacity to work independently, systematically, and purposefully.
• Orientation toward the completion of projects and the attainment of goals
• Emphasis will be placed on personal suitability for the position.

Your application must include:

• A short cover letter (maximum 2 pages), including a brief account of your research interests and motivation for the position.
• Official Transcripts and Diplomas in a Scandinavian or English. If the original is in another language than these, then both the original and an English translation should be submitted.
• CV
• Master’s thesis
• Any relevant publications
• The names and contact information of two reference persons. (One should preferably be the main supervisor/advisor of your master’s thesis.)
• A proposal for a research project of a maximum of five (5) pages (https://www.kristiania.no/contentassets/aea39e6158c24858ac7627a1e3537242/project-proposal-template_fellowship-application.pdf)

Application process:

Faculty will review applications until the position is filled. If selected for an interview, a candidate will have a one-hour zoom meeting with project faculty. During this interview, students will be asked to make a presentation that addresses the following:

1) A brief summary of yourself, your education, and your research experience. Please limit this to 1 – 2 slides.

2) An example of a research project that most clearly illustrates your data analytics expertise. This presentation should include:

• A data analytics project that you have conducted earlier. Explain the methodology, associated phases, data acquisition, preprocessing, analytics algorithms, and project risks and mitigations. The software tools and libraries selected and used for the project should also be listed.
• This should constitute the bulk of your presentation, approximately 20-30 minutes.

3) One idea from the project’s broad scope that is of particular interest to you (e.g., if you are most interested in inventory management within the fashion industry, clearly articulate your question, why it is of interest to you, what background you have to help prepare you to do further research in this area, etc.). This portion should take 10 – 15 minutes of your presentation.

4) Any questions that you have for the faculty team.

Kristiania University College will only process applications submitted through our electronic recruitment system. All documents must be uploaded to this system for your application to be considered. The documents must be in English or a Scandinavian language. Translations must be authorized, and you must be prepared to present originals during a potential interview. Kristiania conducts document verification to ensure a genuine evaluation and fair competition for you as a candidate. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Evaluation of the applicants

All complete applications from qualified applicants will be assessed by an expert committee.

The candidate must be accepted to the PhD programme at the latest three months after signing the employment contract. To be accepted to this programme, one must fulfil the following requirements:

• a relevant 180 ECTS bachelor’s degree, and
• a relevant 120 ECTS master’s degree (or integrated bachelor and master) with minimum 30 ECTS master thesis, and with grade like the Norwegian/European grade B or higher both in average for the master’s degree in total and for the master’s thesis alone.

We offer:

• An exciting job in a dynamic professional environment in an organization with ambitions
• A pleasant and stimulating working environment with good colleagues.
• Opportunities for professional development
• Good insurance and pension schemes
• Corporate sports teams and training facilities
• Modern workspace in downtown Oslo

The starting salary is 532,200 NOK per year.

Kristiania University College welcomes and encourages diversity. Women and persons with minority background are particularly encouraged to apply.

We use Semac background checks in our recruitment process.

Application deadline

March 1, 2024

Contact information.

If you have any questions regarding the position, please contact project leader and main supervisor Moutaz Haddara at e-mail moutaz.haddara@kristiania.no or phone +47 471 71 769.

For more information about the School of Economics, Innovation, and Technology, see here: https://www.kristiania.no/en/schools/school-of-economics-innovation-and-technology/

For more information about Kristiania, see here: https://www.kristiania.no

Only applications received through our application portal within the deadline will be considered.

Contact person

Moutaz Haddara
+4747171769
moutaz.haddara@kristiania.no