About the position

The Department of Geoscience and Petroleum (IGP) at NTNU has a vacancy as a Senior Engineer in the electron microscopy (EM) laboratory. The EM lab has a wide range of electron- and light microscopes customized for mineralogical characterization. Two state-of-the-art equipment in the lab, the JEOL 8530F Plus electron microprobe and the Zeiss Sigma 300 FE Mineralogic automated mineralogy system are part of the Norwegian Laboratory for Mineral and Materials Characterization (MiMaC), a national research infrastructure funded by the Research Council of Norway, and thus, additional responsibilities for this lab is to provide access for internal and external users of the lab.

The department´s research groups include basic geology, mineral production, engineering geology, geophysics, reservoir engineering and petrophysics and well construction and production systems, and are cross disciplinary in the mineral resources value chain from basic research, mineral exploration; mining engineering and mineral processing

For the available position, the department is looking for a skilled mineralogist/geoscientist with strong experience from operating electron microscopes for mineralogy and petrology applications.

The successful candidate will be responsible for daily operations of the electron microscopes, a JEOL8530 PLUS Field Emission microprobe, a Zeiss Sigma 300 Field Emission with Mineralogic Mining software. This includes the operation, calibration and routine maintenance of the instruments, supervision and training of students and other users, and basic support to users in the interpretation of the analytical results. The successful candidate will be working in close cooperation with scientific staff, technical staff and PhD and MSc students.

You will report to Head of the Administration.

Duties of the position

• daily operation of the electron microscopes at the department and related responsibilities
• contribute in operation and organization of the EM lab and related analytical and preparation equipment
• participate in the marketing of the lab for attracting users and serving EM analyses for internal and external research projects on the MiMaC equipment
• “Super user” on the systems with daily follow-up on the functionality of the system and first line contact to instrument supplier for technical queries
• first point of contact for booking- and user queries and main responsible for training and certification of future users (students; staff/researchers; externals)
• responsible for producing high quality state-of-the-art analyses of minerals, rocks, ores and concentrates and other relevant materials on the electron microscopes
• responsible for developing analytical methods and calibration set-up and fine tuning the electron microscopes for state-of-the-art mineralogical analyses in close cooperation with scientific staff and clients
• producing analytical reports and/or output files to clients
• initiate collaboration projects and funding applications using the infrastructures in the MiMaC laboratory facilities

Required selection criteria

• MSc or PhD in geology/mineralogy with a solid experience in mineralogy and petrology and experience from mineralogical characterization using EM equipment
• experience from operating electron microscopes and generating analyses
• strong competence in one or more of the following:
  • quantitative mineral chemistry
  • process/industrial mineralogy
  • mineral characterization
• experience with EPMA and SEM-based automated mineralogy
• experience from similar position at equivalent labs
• experience from preparation of project proposals and running research projects
• good written and oral English language skills. NTNU has Norwegian as its working language. In the absence of Norwegian language skills, requirements will be set for Norwegian language training by further agreement.

Preferred selection criteria

• documented experience in running SEM-based automated mineralogy and / or EPMA
• the documented experience should be related to analysis of rocks and minerals, including ores and industrial minerals
• relevant background in process mineralogy and/or crystal chemistry and/or quantitative mineralogy and/or quantitative mineral chemistry
• good publication track record related to automated mineralogy or EPMA
• good written and oral Norwegian language skills

Personal characteristics 

• the ability to work both independently and as part of interdisciplinary teams
• a proactive attitude towards development and improvement
• the ability to take initiative and be systematic
• result oriented
• service minded and flexible
• the ability to work under high pressure

​In the evaluation of which candidate is best qualified, emphasis will be placed on education, experience and personal suitability, as well as motivation, in terms of the qualification requirements specified in the advertisement.

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

The gross salary for the position of Senior Engineer code 1181 is normally remunerated at gross from NOK 600 000 – 800 000 before tax per year, depending on qualifications and seniority. From the salary, 2 % is deducted as a contribution to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund. 

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's 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.

About the application

Please note that the application will only be evaluated on the basis of the information available at the expiry of the application deadline. Therefore, make sure that your application clearly shows how your skills and experience meet the criteria described above.

The application must contain:

• CV, certificates and diplomas
• name and adress of three references

General information

A good work environment is characterized by diversity. We encourage qualified candidates to apply, regardless of their gender, functional capacity or cultural background.

The city of Trondheim is a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the innovation capital of Norway with a population of 200,000. The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.

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. 

Under the Freedom of Information Act (offentleglova), your name, age, position and municipality may be made public even if you have requested not to have your name entered on the list of applicants.   

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Associate Professor Kurt Aasly, telephone +47 73 55 89 46, email kurt.aasly@ntnu.no or Head of Administration Sylvi Vefsnmo, telephone +47 73 59 49 11, email sylvi.vefsnmo@ntnu.no. If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Senior Adviser HR Eli Meistad, telephone +47 73 59 37 04, email: eli.meistad@ntnu.no. 

Please submit your application and supporting documentation via jobbnorge.no. If you are invited for interview, you must bring certified copies of certificates and diplomas. Mark the application with reference number: IV-72/21. 

Application deadline: 30.04.2021

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) creates knowledge for a better world and solutions that can change everyday life.

Department of Geoscience and Petroleum

We conduct teaching and research related to management of Earth’s geological resources. Norway’s rich resources of wind, water, oil, gas and minerals have been and are essential to the country’s prosperity, and will continue to be in the future. The Department plays a key role in the development of technology and the education of graduates who enable value creation based on our natural resources. The Department of Geoscience and Petroleum is one of eight departments in the Faculty of Engineering.

Deadline 30th April 2021
Employer NTNU - Norwegian University of Science and Technology
Municipality Trondheim
Scope Fulltime
Duration Permanent
Place of service