PhD Research Fellow in Medical Ethics and/or Law is available at Centre for Medical Ethics (CME) at the Institute of Health and Society
One position as PhD Research Fellow in Medical Ethics and/or Law is available at Centre for Medical Ethics (CME) at the Institute of Health and Society at the University of Oslo. The position is for a period of 3 years.
The successful PhD candidate will be part of an interdisciplinary research group at CME participating in a Research Collaboration between Oslo University Hospital and the University of Oslo on the research project Responsible Explainable Machine Learning for Sleep-related Respiratory Disorders (RESPIRE).
The objective for the overarching project is to address the opportunities and risks that arise when using Machine Learning (ML) in practical health care and research. With novel low-cost health monitoring solutions and explainable ML (xML) the project aims to: (1) improve the diagnostic process of sleep-related respiratory disorders, (2) enable long-term monitoring of patients, and (3) gain new knowledge concerning these disorders and personalized treatment.
Part of the project will elaborate and establish ethical, legal, and technological guidelines and because it can be difficult to understand algorithms, an explainability framework will be elaborated to enable the systematic development and evaluation of responsible xML for sleep-related disorders.
In particular, the project will address substantial challenges, such as (1) protection and control of use of collected data, (2) false alarms, health anxiety, overdiagnosis, subsequent overtreatment, and medicalization, (3) reliability, relevance, and validity of data analysis results, and (4) challenges with explaining results obtained with modern ML.
To address these issues, we invite applicants with background in the health sciences, ethics, epistemology, and law. CME welcomes applications demonstrating the candidate’s suitability to address issues highlighted in the above-mentioned project description (Medical Ethics, Epistemology, and/or Law).
More about the position
Positions as research fellows are fixed-term educational posts where the aim is that the research fellow completes a doctoral degree (PhD) during the period of employment.
A prerequisite for the employment is admission to the Faculty’s doctoral degree program, and applicants’ formal and other qualifications for admission will therefore also be assessed.
Research fellowship positions are defined as recruitment posts and represent an important instrument in the sector’s work of generating qualified applicants for other academic posts at universities and university colleges in the long-term perspective.
The doctoral candidate is expected to participate actively in the organized research training and in the Faculty’s research community.
Qualification requirements
- Applicants must hold a Master’s degree or equivalent in health, and/or a master’s degree in a relevant health or social science programme, as e.g., health care ethics and law.
- Excellent knowledge of everyday and academic English is a requirement.
In the assessment of applications, emphasis will be placed on
- The application’s compliance with the main objective of the RESPIRE project.
- The applicant’s personal suitability and motivation for being involved in the research project,and to form part of a cross-disciplinary academic community.
We offer
- Salary in line with pay grades 54-61 (NOK 491 200 – 553 500) per annum depending on qualifications in a position as PhD Research fellow, position code 1017
- A positive and challenging working environment
- A position in an inclusive working life enterprise
- Pension arrangements in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
- Attractive welfare arrangements
How to apply
The application must include
- Letter of application and project description of 2-3 pages
- Certified copies of diplomas, grade transcripts and any other testimonials
- List of reference persons: 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and phone number)
- In the event of diplomas from other countries: printouts of prospectuses or similar that describe the content and framework of the courses of study on which the application is based
- CV that also includes an overview of any previously published academic/scientific works.
Applicants from countries outside the Nordic countries where English is not the official language must attach a TOEFL test with a minimum score of 550 unless they have a diploma from a university in an English-speaking country.
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).
When evaluating the application, emphasis will be given to the “project description” and the applicant’s academic and personal prerequisites to carry out the project. Applicants may be called in for an interview.
Incomplete applications will in normal circumstances not be assessed.
Formal regulations
Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Research Fellowships at the University of Oslo.
No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo.
According to the Norwegian Freedom of Information Act (Offentleglova) information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.
The University of Oslo has an agreement for all employees, aiming to secure rights to research results etc.
The University of Oslo also aims to recruit more individuals with an immigrant background to academic positions. Candidates with an immigrant background are encouraged to apply.
Contact information
Professor Bjørn Hofmann, telephone: +47 22844645, e-mail: b.m.hofmann@medisin.uio.no
Heidi Beate Bentzen, mobile: +47 95070185, e-mail: h.b.bentzen@medisin.uio.no
Helle Fritzsønn, HR Adviser (for questions regarding the electronically application); e-mail: helle.fritzsonn@medisin.uio.no
About the University of Oslo
The University of Oslo is Norway’s oldest and highest ranked educational and research institution, with 28 000 students and 7000 employees. With its broad range of academic disciplines and internationally recognised research communities, UiO is an important contributor to society.
The Institute of Health and Society is one of three institutes at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Oslo. The Institute covers various disciplines and consists of six departments: General Practice, Health Sciences, Health Management and Health Economics, Medical Ethics, Community Medicine and Global Health and Nursing Science.
The Institute of Health and Society bases its work on a complex understanding of disease, health and health systems. Culture, environment, economics, society and biology play direct and indirect roles. Our teaching responsibilities include seven Master’s programs, one Bachelor program and part of the Faculty’s medical school and PhD-program. We employ about 220 FTE and have almost 700 Bachelor and Master students. Annual income is about 200 mill NOK, half of which is external funding. Our researchers play an active part of public policy and disseminate new knowledge through many channels.