About the job

For a position as a PhD Candidate, the goal is a completed doctoral education up to an obtained doctoral degree.

We have a vacancy for a PhD candidate, as part of the collaboration project “Cost Effective Subsea Dynamic Cables for Offshore Wind” involving the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, the Department of Marine Technology, the Department of Manufacturing and Civil Engineering. The aim of this project is to design innovative, cost-effective, and robust composite-based subsea dynamic cables tailored for offshore wind applications.

This position will be located at Department of Manufacturing and Civil Engineering at Gjøvik. The objective of the PhD study is to develop integrity management systems for subsea dynamic cables to ensure long-term operational reliability. This includes the investigation of the non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques to monitor cable health and developing models to predict damage progression over time. Key research topics include:

• feasibility study of non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques for condition monitoring for dynamic cables
• evaluation of material degradation caused by seawater absorption, high temperatures, and other environmental factors
• develop models to predict damage progression of composite material over time, accounting for factors such as fatigue and wear
• establish a holistic condition monitoring and inspection strategy to minimize downtime and repair costs.

The candidate is expected to cooperate closely with industry partners and the two other PhD candidates being part of the project.

Your immediate leader is the Head of Department and supervising professor.

Duties of the position

• perform fundamental research on the above-mentioned topics
• in collaboration with the supervisors provide a detailed plan for PhD study that includes the mandatory courses, research activities, dissemination and milestones
• report progress on a regular basis and in agreement with the supervisors
• completion of coursework during the initial part of the employment period
• cooperate with relevant project and industry partners

Required selection criteria

• you must have a professionally relevant background in Marine Technology, Ocean Engineering, Mechanical engineering, Material science, Structural health monitoring, or equivalent.
• your education must correspond to a five-year Norwegian degree program, where 120 credits are obtained at master's level
• you must have a strong academic background from your previous studies and an average grade from the master's degree program, or equivalent education, which is equal to B or better compared with NTNU's grading scale. If you do not have letter grades from previous studies, you must have an equally good academic basis. If you have a weaker grade background, you may be assessed if you can document that you are particularly suitable for a PhD education.
• you must meet the requirements for admission to the faculty's doctoral program 
• excellent 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, Phd candidate, research assistant and specialist candidate and Regulations concerning the degrees of Philosophiae Doctor (PhD) and Philosodophiae Doctor (PhD) in artistic research national guidelines for appointment as PhD, post doctor and research assistant 

Preferred selection criteria

• you should have a strong theoretical and experimental background in non-destructive testing (NDT) technique, structural health monitoringand integrity management systems.
• you should have the knowledge of the advance numerical simulation for composite material. [LB1] You should have programming skills in MATLAB, C, Python, or similar
• background in Subsea Dynamic Cables
• background in Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence

Personal characteristics

• Strong analytical and mathematical skills 
• Enthusiastic, able to adapt and learn
• Highly motivated and scientifically curious
• Positive attitude and interested in teamwork
• Ability to take initiative and to work independently

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 PhD candidate (code 1017) you are normally paid from gross NOK 532 200 per annum before tax, 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.

Appointment to a PhD position requires that you are admitted to the PhD programme in Engineering within three months of employment, and that you participate in an organized PhD programme during the employment period.

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.

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

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 your application will be considered based solely on information submitted by the application deadline. You must therefore ensure that your application clearly demonstrates how your skills and experience fulfil the criteria specified above.

The application must include: 

• CV and certificates
• transcripts and diplomas for bachelor's and master's degrees.
• A copy of the master's thesis. If you recently have submitted your master's thesis, you can attach a draft of the thesis. Documentation of a completed master's degree must be presented before taking up the position.
• A brief project proposal (max 2 pages) summarizing your interpretation of the problem and your suggestion on how to approach and solve it
• name and contact information of three referees
• if you have publications or other relevant research work

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, both bachelor's and master's education, in addition to other higher education. Description of the documentation required can be found here. If you already have a statement from Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills, please attach this as well.

We will take joint work into account. If it is difficult to identify your efforts in the joint work, you must enclose a short 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 our strength. We want to recruit people with different competencies, educational backgrounds, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to solving our social responsibilities within education and research. We will facilitate for our employees’ needs.

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 Associate Professor Guomin Ji, email guomin.ji@ntnu.no If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Linn-Cecilie Felle Brattheim, e-mail: linn.c.felle@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: 17.01.2025

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 Mechanical and Industrial Engineering

We educate graduates who can create new products, operate and maintain products, and manage projects. The Department has a variety of bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes. We conduct wide-ranging research in fields such as technology, energy, product quality and development, and productivity. The Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering is one of eight departments in the Faculty of Engineering.

Deadline 17th January 2025
Employer NTNU - Norwegian University of Science and Technology
Municipality Gjøvik
Scope Fulltime
Duration Temporary
Place of service B-bygget, Teknologiveien 22, 2815 Gjøvik