PhD Research Fellow in Engineering computing / mathematics
Deadline: 10.08.2020
Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
With about 16,000 students, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences is one of the largest higher education institutions in Norway. A broad range of academic programmes are offered at Bachelor, Master and PhD levels, spread out on five campuses Førde, Sogndal, Bergen, Stord og Haugesund.
Our ambition is to build stronger and more solid academic and research environments that will interact nationally and internationally. The aim is to become a recognized actor on the international higher education arena. Increased international cooperation and engagement in externally funded projects will work towards this goal.
The Department of Computer Science, Electrical Engineering and Mathematical Sciences at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, has a vacancy for a research fellow (PhD position) in engineering computing/mathematics for a period of 4 years
About the position:
The PhD research fellow will be part of the PhD programme in Computer Science: Software Engineering, Sensor Networks and Engineering Computing (http://ict.hvl.no). The research programme in Computer Science currently includes 20 professors and associate professors, more than 30 PhD and post-doctoral fellows, and a large number of master’s students.Workplace campus Bergen.
About the PhD project/ work tasks:
Geometry of meshes plays a crucial role in the analysis and practice of the finite element method (FEM) which is one of the most powerful and widely used numerical techniques for solving partial differential equations in engineering, mathematical physics, and other disciplines. Thus, suitably generated families of meshes guarantee the optimal interpolation orders, convergence and even superconvergence of FEM approximations, and also construction and usage of reliable a posteriori error estimates. Many geometric conditions on shape of various finite elements have been proposed in this context. The project that the successful applicant will work on is to make hierarchies of those geometric conditions and develop efficient techniques for generating meshes with various desired properties.
Research environment
The computer science research environment at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL) has a strong focus on use-inspired and applied research, and on ICT as an enabling technology. The research environment has cooperation with many national and international research groups, and with national and regional industry partners. The programme includes the research themes of software engineering, engineering computing, communication systems and sensor networks, grid computing and physics data analysis, machine learning, and interactive and collaborative systems.
The present PhD research fellowship is associated with the engineering computing research group (https://www.hvl.no/en/research/group/engineering-computing/) which undertakes research in the interface between computational mathematics, computer science and engineering. The group works on construction and analysis of computational and mathematical tools that can be, and are, applied to solve and study problems from several engineering disciplines. The prospective PhD candidate will work in close cooperation with our current PhD students in the field of engineering computing, numerical and applied mathematics.
Qualifications:
The PhD research fellow must hold a master's degree in applied mathematics, scientific computing or in a closely related field. Candidates who have submitted a master’s thesis (but who have not yet been awarded a master’s degree) may also qualify for the position provided that the master`s degree is awarded within 4 weeks after the application deadline. A solid background in numerical mathematics will be considered an advantage when candidates are ranked. Candidates already holding a PhD within this field are not eligible for this position.
In addition to the required educational and scientific background, the following criteria will be evaluated:
competence and grades on completed course work, quality of the master's thesis (excellent grade, equivalent of grade B or better on the ECTS grading system), publications (if any), research and teaching experience, practical software engineering skills and experience. A possible outline of a research plan for a potential PhD project will also be taken into account.
The candidate must be diligent and display the ability to work independently, supplemented with regular guidance, and is expected to carry out high-quality research and to publish the results in international workshops, conferences, and journals.
The PhD research fellow must enroll in the PhD programme in Computer Science: Software Engineering, Sensor Networks and Engineering Computing at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, and must meet the formal admission requirements for admission into the PhD programme. 25% of the 4-year period will be designated to duties such as teaching, development and administrative tasks. The employment period may be reduced if the successful applicant has held previous employment as a research fellow.
The PhD candidate will be assigned two academic supervisors at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences. An application for enrollment should first be submitted after an appointment is made and the supervisors will help with this procedure. The candidate must be enrolled as a PhD student within 3 months from the start of the employment.
Application procedure:
Applications will be evaluated by an expert panel of three members.
Applicants are asked to submit their application and CV online. Please use the link “Apply for this job” (“Søk stillingen”).
The following documentation should be uploaded as an attachment to the online application:
Master thesis
Copies of selected academic publications (no more than 15)
A CV with a complete list of academic publications
Diplomas and certificates
Applicants should indicate which publications or parts of publications should be given special consideration in the evaluation. If the documents submitted are not in a Scandinavian language or in English, the applicants must submit certified translations of these. The transcripts must specify the topics, the course works, and the grades at the bachelor`s and master`s degree levels.
Applicants should note that the evaluation will be based on the documentation submitted electronically via Jobbnorge within the submission deadline. The applicants are responsible for ensuring that all the documentation is submitted before the closing date. It is of utmost importance that all publications to be considered in the evaluation are uploaded as an attachment with the application, since these are sent electronically to the expert panel. Applications cannot be sent by e-mail or to individuals at HVL.
Salary:
Good occupational pension, insurance and loan schemes from The Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
Exciting academic environment with the possibility of competence enhancement and development
Opportunities for training within the working hours
Initial salaries will be offered at grade 54 (code 1017) in the Civil Service pay grade table scale.
There is a compulsory 2 % deduction to the pension fund (see http://www.spk.no for more information). The successful applicant must comply with the guidelines that apply to the position at any time.
General information:
The appointment will be made in accordance with the regulations for State employees Law in Norway ("Lov om statens ansatte)". Organizational changes and changes in the duties and responsibilities associated with the position must be expected.
State employment shall reflect the multiplicity of the population at large to the highest possible degree. Western Norway University of Applied Sciences Bergen has therefore adopted a personnel policy objective to ensure that we achieve a balanced age and gender composition and the recruitment of persons of various ethnic backgrounds.
Information about the applicant may be made public even though the applicant has requested not to be named in the list of applicants. The applicant will be notified if his/her request is not respected.
Short-listed applicants will be called in for an interview and a presentation of previous work, e.g. based on their master’s thesis.
