Faculty of Technology, Art and Design, Department of Civil Engineering and Energy Technology

Oslo Metropolitan University is Norway's third largest university with almost 22,000 students and over 2,500 employees. We have campuses in central Oslo and at Romerike. OsloMet educates students and conducts research that contributes to the sustainability of the Norwegian welfare state and the metropolitan region.

The Faculty of Technology, Art and Design (TKD) offers higher education and research and development (R&D) activities within technical subjects, arts and design. The Faculty has approximately 4.000 students and 400 staff members and is situated at Pilestredet Campus in downtown Oslo and at Kjeller Campus in Viken.

The Department of Built Environment offers bachelors and master’s degree programs in engineering, in addition to research and development activities. The department has approximately 60 staff members and 850 students.

Department of Civil Engineering and Energy Technology, Faculty of Technology, Art and Design

The department conducts high-impact research on a broad range of topics within national, European, and international projects. Activities cover various R&D areas of major interest in Civil and Structural Engineering and rely heavily on an integrated use of experimental testing, analytical methods and numerical simulation and modelling with a modern holistic approach to research.

Call for Expression of Interest for a joint application under the EU Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action Postdoctoral Fellowship funding programme

We, hereby invite top-class researchers of any nationality, after having obtained a PhD degree and up to eight years of research experience, interested in developing a collaborative application for an EU-funded Marie Skłodowska Curie Action Postdoctoral Fellowship (MSCA-PF-2022) to conduct research at OsloMet - Oslo Metropolitan University for a period of two years.

Area of research

Reinforced concrete (RC) structures/infrastructures are often exposed to different types of damages and deterioration due to exposure conditions during their service life. Assessment of such structural damages plays a key role in public safety with regards to both long-term damage accumulation and post extreme-event scenarios. Given its importance, there has been increasing interest in automating damage assessment of RC infrastructures using computer vision and data driven techniques in the last ten years. On the other hand, concrete is a continuously developing material, and even the definition of durable and sustainable concrete has changed over time. The desirable characteristics of concrete structures imply several requirements for advanced concrete material.

Modification, characterization, modelling and recycling of concrete to improve sustainability, mechanical properties, durability as well as imposing digitalization and smartness to such composites and consequently concrete structures are the potential research approaches in this position. Researchers who join us will cooperate in a diverse group of experts who work on different aspects of material, structural assessment, and digitalization. The project aims to fill the knowledge gap in numerical and experimental works on advance concrete and concrete structures in various fields, including but not limited to:

  • Advanced modelling and simulation of concrete and concrete structures
  • Advanced modelling and simulation of cementitious composites
  • Non-linear static and dynamic analysis of concrete structures with FEM
  • Durable concrete and concrete structures
  • Corrosion in concrete structures
  • Smart concrete
  • Self-sensing concrete
  • 3D printed concrete
  • Sustainable concrete and alternative cementitious binders
  • Ultra high-performance concrete
  • Fibre reinforced concrete
  • Structural health monitoring and control
  • Application of soft computing in concrete structures
  • Probabilistic modelling of concrete structures

Tasks and responsibilities

Applicants are invited to propose more detailed and focused topics within the scope of this research area, as a part of their application. Successful candidates will be supervised by Associate Professor Mahdi Kioumarsi, whose research has been ranging from large scale (structural level) to small scale (material level) within the field of concrete structures; all his research has in common the combination of soft computing methods, FE modelling and experimental work, see his profile at ResearchGate and https://uni.oslomet.no/mkioumarsi/.


The successful candidate will primarily work on the MSCA funded fellowship project, but he/she will be integrated in the Department, to take part in regular meetings and research groups’ discussions. The candidate will be introduced to Associate Prof. Kioumarsi’s national and international network, and he/she may also be included in other ongoing projects or in proposal writing processes.


Expected qualification of candidates

Candidates must have a PhD in civil, structural, material or earthquake engineering as the minimum requirement. We are primarily looking for experienced researchers who wish to use this period as an opportunity to further develop their research, and to develop longer-term research collaborations with OsloMet and other institutions conducting research in the field. The candidates must be eligible for a MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowship: have a PhD successfully defended by the deadline (14 September 2022), a maximum of eight (8) years research experience after PhD, and not having worked/studied in Norway more than 12 months in the last three years.

We are looking for applicants who have:

  • Knowledge of policy context and quality and availability of quantitative or qualitative data in the field.
  • A good track record in research and publications in scientific journals.
  • An open and cooperation-oriented nature, with strong abilities for independent academic work.
  • Excellent command / highly proficient spoken and written English.

Assessment and selection of candidates

Evaluation of applicants will be based on the qualification and project idea. Interested candidates must include with their application the following documents:

  • CV (including research track record and list of publications)
  • One-page description of the project idea for which a MSCA-PF grant will be applied (no predefined structure and excluding references)

Short-listed candidates will be invited for a virtual interview to select candidates that will be invited to develop the full MSCA-PF application with deadline on 14 September 2022 under the supervision of Associate Professor Mahdi Kioumarsi and with the support of the professional research administration staff at OsloMet.

Under this call announcement a maximum of five candidates will be interviewed and two candidates will be invited to write applications with the endorsement of OsloMet. Candidates will be informed of the results of the internal pre-selection to apply by the end of March 2022.

Original documents must be presented if you are invited for an interview. OsloMet performs document inspections in order to give you as a candidate a proper evaluation and ensure a fair competition. Proposals will be pre-selected based on internal evaluation and the availability of suitable supervision.

Selected candidates must participate in the virtual masterclass on MSCA-PF, a two-day workshop organised by OsloMet on 20-21 April 2022 to provide applicants with detailed information to complete their application to meet the EU Commission requirements. All documents that you hand in to OsloMet, including your proposal idea, will be handled in full confidentiality, and strictly following GDPR regulations.

The postdoctoral position

Successful applicants who obtain a MSCA-PF grant will be offered a position at OsloMet to be hired as postdoc researchers according to the conditions explained below.

Starting Date

The EU informs the evaluation results on the MSCA-PF-2022 applications in February 2023. Successful applicants who receive the MSCA-PF grant are expected to be available to start in their postdoctoral position at OsloMet by 1st April 2023 and no later than summer of 2023.

We offer you

Initially, we offer assistance in developing competitive Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship proposals. Then, to successful applicants to the Marie Curie program, we offer:

  • Flexible working conditions
  • An inclusive and friendly work environment
  • Unique academic network the possibility for the right candidate(s) to pursue his/her academic goals under the auspices of Associate Professor Mahdi Kioumarsi
  • On-boarding assistance and other services
  • Beneficial welfare schemes and a wide range of sports and cultural offers
  • Norwegian language courses to international employees

The position adheres to the Norwegian Government’s policy that the national labour force should to the greatest extent possible to reflect the population diversity, all qualified candidates from any nationality are welcomed to apply. OsloMet is an IA (Inclusive Workplace) organisation and operates in compliance with the Norwegian IA agreement. We make our active endeavour to further develop OsloMet as an inclusive workplace and to adapt the workplace if required. If there are periods in your career when you have not been working, under education or training, you are also eligible to apply. Questions may be directed to the contact persons (per below).

OsloMet has implemented the Charter & Code for researchers and been granted the HR Excellence in Research (HRS4) by the EU Commission and is part of the EU network for mobility of Researchers EURAXESS. Practical information about relocation to OsloMet and EURAXESS Norway.

Remuneration and employment

The competitive fellowship opportunities are 100% funded and include living and mobility allowances.

  • Type of employment: Temporary position
  • Contract type: Full time
  • Annual Salary: Approx. EUR 60,000
  • Starting day of employment: Expected starting date 1 April 2023
  • Number of positions: 1 – 2
  • Working hours: 37.5 hours/week

Contact

For more information about the position, feel free to contact:

  • Mahdi Kioumarsi, Associate Professor, mahdi.kioumarsi@oslomet.no
  • Jostein Kandal Sundet, R&I, josteins@oslomet.no

Call application deadline: 31st January, 2022

Type of employment Temporary position (shorter than 10 days)
Contract type Full time
First day of employment Per agreement
Salary Annual Salary: Approx. EUR 60,000
Number of positions 1
Full-time equivalent 100%
City Oslo
County Oslo
Country Norway
Reference number 21/12805
Published 17.Dec.2021
Last application date 31.Jan.2022 11:59 PM CET

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