PhD Fellow in the project Pain, Insomnia and Depression based on the Tromsø Survey

About the position

At the Department of Psychology (IPS), Faculty of Health Sciences, there is a vacancy for a PhD Fellow in the research project "Pain, insomnia and depression – a risky trio?" based on the Tromsø Survey. The PhD fellowship is for a period of four years and is a training position with completed researcher training up to a doctorate as the goal. The Ph.D. studies are standardized to three years. The fourth year, distributed as 25% per year, shall be used for teaching or other career-promoting tasks by agreement. Admission to the Ph.D. program at the faculty is a prerequisite for employment. The study period begins upon commencement of the position. The position is available for immediate start, and it is desirable that the person appointed can start the position within a reasonable time after the offer has been received. The place of work is UiT in Tromsø. The position is affiliated with the health psychology research group at the Department of Psychology. You must be able to start the position within a reasonable time after receiving an offer.

About the project / The position's research area

The purpose of the project is to obtain new knowledge about a possible triadic comorbidity syndrome for pain, insomnia and depression (PIDS in English: Pain-Insomnia-Depression Syndrome). The risk of health or functional loss as a result of pairwise comorbidity (e.g., chronic pain and insomnia) is well known, but knowledge of the consequences of this trio of disorders, when they occur simultaneously, is insufficient. The project will utilize data from the Tromsø Survey and two national registries to identify and describe which comorbidity patterns or profiles systematically occur in the population, investigate the prevalence of such profiles, analyze stability and change, and most importantly, compare health-related (e.g., medication use) and functional (e.g., work participation) consequences of PIDS-related versus symptom-free profiles. "Person-centered" probabilistic cluster-analytical methods (Latent Class Analyses) are used to identify these patterns, in which the PhD fellow will receive good support and training. The project has a prospective design where data from the Tromsø Survey is linked to information on medication use in Legemiddelregisteret and work life/social security benefits in Forløpsdatabasen-Trygd. The hypothesis is that individuals with PIDS profiles characterized by high triadic symptom burden have a particularly pronounced risk of health or functional loss (e.g., disability). All necessary approvals for the project are in place. The tasks of the PhD fellow will be to apply for admission to the Ph.D. educational program, complete Ph.D. courses, and work with the project's data, i.e., statistical analyses, write manuscripts for publication in international journals, write a summary of the articles (Ph.D. thesis), and undergo a defense. The PhD fellow shall also be able to contribute to teaching, examinations, and grading within 25% of the total employment period.

Contact

More information can be obtained from project leader and Professor Oddgeir Friborg: telephone: +47 77 64 67 72 e-mail: oddgeir.friborg@uit.no or Department Head Per Håkan Brøndbo: telephone: +47 41 40 67 68 e-mail: per.h.brondbo@uit.no Both will be the PhD fellow's supervisors.

Qualifications

For the position, the following are required: A Master's or professional degree in psychology or medicine. Other health-related backgrounds at the Master's level may also be considered. Documented good English skills corresponding to the requirement in Norwegian general university entrance qualification. Nordic applicants can document this with transcripts from upper secondary school.

Additional qualifications are emphasized in prioritized order:

• Main or co-author of scientific publications.
• Knowledge of and/or experience with statistical analyses.
• Prior knowledge or experience with the project's themes, i.e., pain, insomnia, or depression.
• Interest in research, development, and project work.

Before employment is decided, applicants who meet the qualifications may be called for an interview to get a better impression of the applicants':

• Motivation for the position in question.
• Potential for research and completion of the faculty's Ph.D. program.
• Personal suitability, including sense of responsibility and ability to work structured and goal-oriented, alone and in collaboration with others, enter into a supervisory relationship, oral presentation, engagement, and willingness to contribute to the relevant academic environment.

In the assessment, emphasis is placed on the applicant's potential to complete a researcher education based on the Master's thesis or equivalent, and any other scientific works. In addition, professional practice and other experience of importance for the completion of the doctoral studies will be taken into account. If you have already obtained a doctorate or equivalent competence, you are not eligible for employment in this position, as as many as possible should have the opportunity to obtain a researcher education.

Admission to the Ph.D. program

For employment as a PhD fellow, it is a prerequisite that you are admitted to the Ph.D. program at the Faculty of Health Sciences and that you participate in organized doctoral studies during the employment period. Admission normally requires that the applicant has:

1. A Bachelor's degree of 180 ECTS and a Master's degree of 120 ECTS, or an integrated Master's degree of 300 ECTS.
2. A Master's thesis with a scope equivalent to 30 ECTS or more if the applicant has a Master's degree of 120 ECTS.
3. A Master's thesis with a scope equivalent to 20 ECTS or more if the applicant has an integrated Master's degree of 300 ECTS.

The applicant must have a grade of C or better on the Master's thesis and as a grade point average for the Master's degree. A more detailed description of the admission requirements can be found here. If you meet the admission requirements and are employed in the position, you will simultaneously receive provisional admission to the Ph.D. program. The application for final admission must be submitted no later than two months after commencement of the position. For applicants with an international educational background, it will be assessed whether the education is equated with Norwegian higher education at the Master's level. The assessment follows national approval practice; see Direktoratet for høyere utdanning og kompetanse. Applicants with education from certain countries must have more higher education to meet the admission requirements, for example, a 4-year Bachelor's and a 2-year Master's. UiT normally approves foreign higher education from countries that have ratified the Lisbon Convention.

Inclusive working life and diversity

UiT The Arctic University of Norway has a personnel policy goal to be an employer that reflects the diversity of society and that utilizes the potential in the population's collective competence. We believe that inclusion and diversity are a strength and we want employees with different competencies, combinations of subjects, life experiences, and perspectives. If you have a disability, gaps in your CV, or an immigrant background, we encourage you as an applicant to check this in the job application portal. If there are qualified applicants, we call at least one from each group for an interview, and if you get the job, we will make arrangements for you if you need it. Aside from selecting the right candidates, we do not use the checkboxes for anything other than anonymized statistics. Read more in the Employer Portal: arbeidsgiver.difi.no/positivsaerbehandling

We offer

• You will become part of an exciting research project
• Good career opportunities
• A good working environment with dedicated colleagues
• Good welfare schemes
• Good pension, insurance, and loan schemes in Statens pensjonskasse
• PhD fellows normally receive 580,000 NOK in annual salary with a 3% increase per year

The application

Please note that the application is only assessed based on the attachments submitted by the application deadline via Jobbnorge. It is therefore important that you attach all necessary documents that show your qualifications for the position. Your application must include:

• A cover letter with a description of your research interests and motivation for the position
• CV
• Official transcripts for Bachelor's and Master's degrees in the original language
• Official grade transcripts for Bachelor's and Master's degrees in the original language
• Official translation of transcripts and grade sheets into English or a Scandinavian language, if applicable
• An explanation of the grading system for foreign education (Diploma Supplement if available)
• Documentation of English skills (if available)
• 2-3 references with contact information
• The Master's thesis, and any other scientific works

Documented completed Master's degree is a condition for commencing the position. You can still apply if you are close to submitting or have recently submitted your Master's thesis. You must attach a draft of the thesis and a statement from your supervisor or the institution regarding when the thesis is expected to be completed. You must submit grade transcripts for the degree, even if it is not completed. All documentation to be assessed must be in a Scandinavian language or English. If documentation of English skills is missing at the time of application, it must be documented before commencement.

Assessment

Applicants will be assessed by an expert committee. The committee's mandate is to perform an assessment of the applicants' qualifications based on the application documents and the announcement text. All applicants will receive a copy of the expert committee's assessment. Applicants who are assessed to be the most qualified will be called for an interview. The interview shall, among other things, clarify personal suitability and motivation for the position.

General information

Employment takes place in accordance with the rules and conditions that at any time apply to state employees, and guidelines at UiT. On our websites, you will find more information for applicants to positions at UiT. The position of PhD Fellow is paid according to the state's regulatory code 1017. From the salary, a 2% contribution is deducted to Statens pensjonskasse. You will become a member of Statens pensjonskasse, which gives you many benefits in addition to lifelong old-age pension and AFP: You may be entitled to financial support if you become ill or disabled, your family may be entitled to financial support when you die, you are insured against occupational injury or occupational disease, and you get good terms on home loans. Read more about your employee benefits at: spk.no. A shorter employment period may be given if the PhD fellow has already completed parts of their researcher training program, or when the employment is based on previous employment in a training position, so that the total time for researcher training becomes three years. Personal data provided is processed in accordance with the Act on the processing of personal data. Applicants can request not to be listed on the public applicant list, but the university may nonetheless decide that the applicant's name shall be made public. The applicant will then be notified prior to publication.