About the Position:
The Institute of Architecture offers a PhD position to study the forces that have shaped architectural interiors in the past, that shape them today and will shape them in the future. The architectural, environmental and cultural practices that shape interiors are complex, conditioned by temporally varying categories such as “comfort”, by changing technologies associated with building, by legislation and by building physics. Today, the macro-level climate crisis poses new questions about this…
interior microclimate, questions that are at once technical (connected to light, heat, ventilation and construction), legislative (connected to the regulative expectations imposed on interiors), and cultural (concerned with social expectations of dress, furnishing, habitation and personal wellbeing). What we want the candidate to explore, essentially, is this contemporary culture of comfort at the intersection of future demands and care for historical interiors. Understanding these assemblies requires analyses that are both historically informed and technically advanced.
Proposals for this PhD may use lenses from architectural history, history of technology, building technology, preservation or cultural studies to frame this investigation into the territory of the interior. If in architecture, interiors describe the space between occupants and building fabrics, one purpose here is to study the assembly of supports that create those spaces. Such expanded approaches to the interior could include forensic analysis of 17th-century painted chambers or research on the contemporary development of building envelopes; they could include historical studies of legislation relating to interiors or practice-related work that investigates new environmental models for interior occupation.
We look for applicants with strong and original project ideas, either within humanities-based architectural research or in architectural technology and projective practice. The project will develop within the framework of AHO's research group for Circular Architecture and Material Flows. It will relate to ongoing doctoral projects within the Oslo Centre for Critical Architectural Studies at the Institute of Architecture (OCCAS): http://occas.aho.no.
Qualifications:
The candidate must have
- A master’s degree in architecture, architectural history, art history, preservation, architectural technology, or related fields. The master’s degree must be formally completed by May 2026
- Proficiency in English
Applicants from countries outside the Nordic region must be able to document English proficiency as follows:
- TOEFL – Test of English as a Foreign Language, with at least 550 points on the paper-based test, 213 points on the computer-based test (TOEFL CBT), or 80 points on the Internet-based test (TOEFL iBT), or
- IELTS – International English Language Testing Service, British Council, with a minimum overall score of 6.0, or
- Certificate in Advanced English or Certificate of Proficiency in English from the University of Cambridge
Applicants with the following documentation are exempt from the English requirement:
- Citizens of Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States
- One year of university studies in one of the above-mentioned countries, where the language of instruction has been English
- Completed university education where English constitutes the main subject of study
- Bachelor’s degree where the language of instruction has been English throughout the entire education
- A-level in English with a minimum grade of C or better
It is an advantage if the candidate has:
- Experience in academic writing is an advantage for history-related proposals
- Experience in working with archives for history-related proposals
- Experience in working with projective practice in technology-related proposals.
The material for the PhD application will be assessed according to the following criteria:
- The quality of the project description (outline)
- The applicant's suitability for the research tasks
- The academic competence of the applicant
Personal qualities
About the candidate / Personal characteristics
- Ambitious, curious and highly motivated.
- Ability to work systematically and complete work tasks within given deadlines.
- Strong motivation to contribute to good a working and social environment.
We offer
- The PhD scholarship is fully funded and there is no tuition fee.
- The position (SKO1017 PhD Research Fellow) has an annual salary of NOK 550,800. From the salary, a 2% contribution is deducted for the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund. Standard employment conditions for state employees in Norway apply for the position.
- The PhD is a full-time 4-year position, which includes 25% teaching.
- An annual sum of 25 000 NOK (total NOK 75 000) for literature and other necessary academic activities.
- Attractive welfare benefits and generous pension agreement, in addition to Oslo’s family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities.
Information meeting
The PhD Programme at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO) will arrange an online information webinar about the AHO PhD Programme 22 January at 15:00 CET. Click this link to register for the Zoom webinar.
Additional information
The application must include
- An application letter describing the applicant’s qualifications and motivation for the position. (Two A4 pages maximum).
- A tentative project outline of maximum 5 pages, formulating and discussing cases, types of problems, methodology and theory.
- CV
- A list of publications (if you have any published).
- Examples of work written by the applicant, or relevant examples of projective practice if available. (Three works maximum).
- Certified copies of educational certificates, transcript of records, diplomas and letters of recommendation.
- 2 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail address and telephone number).
The application with all attachments must be submitted electronically via Jobbnorge.no. Applications that do not comply with the formal requirements will not be considered. Attachments beyond the required documents will not be taken into consideration.
Formal regulations:
The educational component in the AHO PhD Programme is mandatory and requires fulltime attendance. Residency in Oslo for the employment period is mandatory. Research stay at a relevant international academic institution is encouraged. The PhD fellowship will start September 1, 2026.
No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the AHO.
The appointment may be shortened/given a more limited scope within the framework of the applicable guidelines on account of any previous employment in academic positions.
AHO values diversity and encourages qualified candidates to apply regardless of age, gender, or background. Arrangements will be made for applicants with disabilities.
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 AHO.
A public applicant list may be published even if the applicant has requested an exemption, cf. Section 25 of the Freedom of Information Act. Applicants will be notified in advance.
Questions about the position
Questions about this PhD position can be directed to the main supervisor:
- Professor Tim Anstey, email: tim.ainsworth.anstey@aho.no
General information about the PhD Programme: https://aho.no/en/content/phd-program
About AHO
The Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO) is a specialized university and a leading international architecture and design school that provides education within architecture, landscape architecture, urbanism and design. AHOs fields of knowledge focus on design in all scales; objects, buildings, urban areas and landscaping. AHO is organized into three institutes, and has approx. 750 students and 210 employees.
The Institute of Architecture teaches and researches architectural design through a series of focal areas including sustainability, computation, housing and local building.
The Institute sees architecture in an artistic, explorative and critical sense that includes but also exceeds the technologies of design and building. Through numerous master studios and a research-based approach to teaching, the Institute provides core architectural competence