Postdoctoral position in HOMESICK: co-creating study of hospital-at-home services for patients with migration backgroundsAt the Faculty of
About the position
Postdoctoral position in HOMESICK: co-creating study of hospital-at-home services for patients with migration backgrounds
At the Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Rehabilitation Science and Health Technology, there is a vacant three-year postdoctoral position in the project HOMESICK: Co-creating hospital at home services for populations with migration backgrounds. The project is funded by the Research Council of Norway, and the desired start date is January 1st 2027.
HOMESICK investigates the hospital at home settings. Bringing together philosophy, social sciences, health, and technology, the project develops a broad concept of home as a framework for analyzing hospital at home policies, technologies, and practices. Home is understood not just as a physical place, but a multidimensional experience that both shape and is reshaped by the provision of hospital care in the patient’s home. Particular attention is given to how socio-material circumstances, ideas of home, technology, and migration experiences shape how home is experienced by patients, families and health personnel in hospital at home contexts. A core ambition of the project is to develop “home” as a critical and generative analytical concept. Drawing on philosophical and sociological traditions, the project approaches home not as a stable or self-evident entity, but as a contingent, interpretive, and relational phenomenon. Inspired in part by Barbara Cassin’s understanding of home as an exceeding place, and Madeleine Akrich’s notion of “script,” the project explores how identities, norms, and relations are enacted, negotiated, and transformed in hospital-at-home settings.
Within this framework, “home” is treated as a site where multiple boundaries are continuously reconfigured: between home and hospital, guest and host, patient and professional. The project investigates how these boundaries are materially and symbolically produced through care practices, technological infrastructures, and socio-cultural conditions, with particular attention to migration and experiences of belonging. The project’s overarching aim is not only to inform the development of hospital-at-home services, but to critically interrogate the conceptual foundations on which such services rest.
Your main duties and areas of responsibility
The successful candidate will contribute to both the empirical and the conceptual core tasks of the project.
The postdoctoral fellow will:
- Conduct qualitative research, including participant observation and focus group interviews
- Develop independent analytical work that integrates empirical material with conceptual and theoretical reflection
- Play a central role in the project’s theory development, particularly related to the concept of “home” and its analytical and normative implications
- Contribute to interdisciplinary, collaborative analyses across work packages
- Publish in leading international journals
- Contribute to the work package on digital home follow-up
- Contribute in the cross-cutting work on analysis and theory development
- The position will also support career development, ex. teaching related tasks
Qualification requirements
- An accepted PhD in the humanities, social sciences, health sciences, or other relevant disciplines
- Experience in theoretical and/or conceptual work, evidenced by publications or project experience relevant to interdisciplinary health research
- Experience in qualitative and/or interpretative research methods, documented through independent contributions to peer-reviewed publications
- Good English language skills, both oral and written
It will be an advantage if you have
- Experience or knowledge of multicultural or minority settings in Norway
- Experience with interdisciplinary research
- Experience with theory development based on empirical research
- Experience with integrating empirical research with conceptual and interpretive analysis
- Knowledge of ethics principles and processes, particularly in relation to qualitative research and work with potentially vulnerable groups
General criteria for appointment to teaching and research positions are set out in the Regulations to the Universities and University Colleges Act.
Project Description
The submitted project description will be an important factor in the assessment of applicants.
Applicants must submit a complete project description together with their application. The project must fall within the scope of the call and clearly demonstrate how it contributes to and aligns with the objectives of the main project. Further information about the HOMESICK project, including the full project description, is available upon request.
The project description must not exceed 10 pages, be written in English or a Scandinavian language, and include the following:
- Research question(s), theoretical framework(s), and methodological approach
- A description of the knowledge gap or need addressed by the project, and the dissertation’s contribution to the field
- Reference list
- A timeline and work plan for completion of the postdoctoral period
- If applicable, a plan for a research stay at a relevant international university
We offer
- Opportunities for professional development in a large and inspiring academic and research environment
- Participation in one or more of the department’s research groups
- A pleasant research environment with good collaborators
- Loan and pension conditions in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
- Good welfare arrangements
The salary for the position is in accordance with the Basic Collective Agreement for state employees and OsloMet’s pay policy for postdoc 1352, corresponding to 615 700-759 100 NOK per year. From the salary, 2% will be deducted in pension contributions for the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund (SPK).
Personal qualities
- Strong analytical skills, including the ability to engage critically with both empirical material and theoretical frameworks
- Demonstrated ability to work independently, systematically, and purposefully with high-quality research
- Ability to collaborate in interdisciplinary teams, and sensitivity in working with patients, families, and healthcare personnel in complex or vulnerable situations
- Clear evidence of intellectual engagement and academic curiosity, particularly in relation to the project’s thematic and conceptual focus
Personal suitability will be emphasized.
Application Process and Expert Committee
If you wish to apply for the position, you must do so through our recruitment system.An expert committee will conduct the assessment of relevant applications. Before the application documents are sent to the expert committee, all applications will be reviewed by the faculty. Applications from unqualified candidates will not be forwarded to the expert committee for assessment. If the number of applications requires it, an internal screening committee at OsloMet will carry out an initial selection of candidates. The selected applicants will then be assessed by the expert committee.
Please upload the following documents by the application deadline:
- Application letter
- CV, letters of recommendations, and all pages of certificates/diplomas. Foreign education should be pre-approved, and a letter of approval must be attached. Information is available via the following link: Recognition of foreign education - to work in Norway | HK-dir
- Documentation of an approved doctoral (PhD) thesis
- Project description
- A complete list of publications
- Up to 10 scholarly works and with an overview, including Ph.D.-dissertation if relevant
- Preferably two references with contact information
We only consider applications submitted through our electronic recruitment system, and all documents must be uploaded for your application to be considered. The documents must be in a Scandinavian language or English. Translations must be authorized, and you will be asked to present originals if you are invited for an interview. OsloMet verifies documents to give candidates a proper evaluation and ensure fair competition. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
For relevant positions, OsloMet conducts background checks of applicants in cooperation with an external provider, in order to verify information contained in available documents. Background checks are always carried out with the candidate’s consent, and employment in these positions is conditional upon an approved background check. Relevant applicants will receive further information about this.
Other information
For further information or questions, please contact:
- Professor Marit Haldar, phone: +47 977 40 392
- Head of Studies Lisebet S. Skarpaas, phone: +47 971 63 337
- For administrative questions, you can contact HR adviser, kateol@oslomet.no
Deadline for application: 01.08.2026
Ref: 26/11495
Inclusion and diversity strengthen our ability to fulfil OsloMet’s societal mission. Therefore, we welcome employees with diverse competencies, life experiences, and perspectives. We continuously work to be an inclusive workplace, and through dialogue we make accommodations for employees who need it.
OsloMet is EU-certified as an HR Center of Excellence under the Charter & Code for Researchers, supporting career development, mobility, and researchers’ employment rights.
OsloMet has endorsed the principles and committed the institution to follow the recommendations of the DORA declaration (sfdora.org) (The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment).
The appointment will be carried out in accordance with the principles of the Norwegian Civil Service Act and legislation regulating the export of knowledge, technology, and services. Applicants who are in conflict with this regulatory framework will not be considered qualified for the position.
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About Oslo Metropolitan University
Oslo Metropolitan University is Norway's third largest university with 23,000 students and over 2,600 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.
For over 200 years, OsloMet – Oslo Metropolitan University has contributed to building knowledge and competence for the Norwegian welfare society. Today, OsloMet is a modern and urban university known for its large and robust academic environments in teacher education, health and social sciences, social research, design, and technology.
