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 four institutes, and has approx. 700 students and 135 employees.

The Institute of Architecture is responsible for teaching, researching and disseminating within architecture, with particular emphasis on the engineering of buildings, which is a core area in the Master of architecture program. The field includes architecture in a wide sense, and involves an artistic, interpretive and exploratory dimension that includes but also exceeds the purely technical building. The Institute has a special responsibility to lead the initiated program development through “Research by Design”, in line with the Government’s architectural policy.

PhD position – Low Rise High Density Prefabricated Timber Housing

The Institute of Architecture

The Institute of Architecture at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design is seeking applicants for doctoral research on the architectural and industrial potentials of wood as a building material in urban areas.

Research framework and themes

This PhD project will build upon and branch out from research in the interdiciplinary and international project ”Wood Be Better” (WBB) which is led by AHO and runs from 2013 to 2016. The WBB studies are oriented towards the interaction between architectural strategies and the possibilities and limitations presented by different timber construction systems. Ongoing PhD research focus on multi-storey urban infill projects. The upcoming PhD fellowship shall complement this by studies on low rise high density prefabricated timber housing.

Suggested framework and main themes:

• Urban patterns and building typologies should be sought for that are well suited for Norwegian and Northern European climate and urban and industrial environments
• Structural and technical solutions should utilize local timber resources.
• The main field of study is expected to be buildings in the range of two to four storeys
• Focus should be on housing, but integration of and adaptability to other functions is a natural part of the research
• Studies should contribute to production of environment-friendly buildings that have a high and durable architectural, functional and technical quality.

Industry cooperation

Research and development cooperation with relevant industrial partners will be sought for. Such partnerships may influence the studies of design and production systems.

Requirements

Applicants must hold a Master’s Degree in architecture. Experience with detailed architectural design of a high quality will be given high priority, as well as familiarity with current environmental issues related to the building sector. Good skills in verbal and written English are required. Architectural creativity, analytical skills, a strong motivation and good collaborative abilities are essential. The candidate should be able to work independently under varying conditions.

The application must include:

• An application letter describing relevant background, motivation, research experience and network.
• A tentative project outline of maximum 5 pages, formulating and discussing research tasks and methodology.
• CV
• Certified copies of educational certificates, transcript of records, diplomas and letters of recommendation.
• List of publications and/or academic work
• Selected examples of design work
• 2 references to persons that may be contacted for discussion of the applicant´s gualifications for the research position (incl. name, relation to candidate, e-mail address and telephone number).

Foreign applicants must attach an explanation of their university’s grading system. All documentation for the application should be in English or a Scandinavian language.

Applicants who do not have English or a Scandinavian language as their mother tongue must provide full and formal documentation of English proficiency (TOEFL-test or similar).

Evaluation criteria

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

Position & Salary

The length of the fellowship will be three or four years fulltime, dependent on whether the candidate is found qualified to undertake teaching duties as part of the PhD position. The position requires full time residency for the full 3- or 4- year period. Research stay at a relevant international academic institution is a possibility.

The PhD fellowships will start in September 2015. The PhD candidate is required to attend the AHO Research School in his or her first year. This is a mandatory introduction programme for all PhD candidates admitted to the PhD programme at AHO. The Research School runs for two semesters and has a total scope of 45 ECTS. Research School attendance is compulsory

PhD Research Fellow (SKO 1017), pay grade: 50 (NOK 429.700,-). From the salary there will be a mandatory deduction of the 2% as contribution to the State Pension Fund. Normal employment conditions for state employees apply for the position. AHO has its own company health service.

More information about PhD fellowships at AHO can be found at www.aho.no/en/RD/The-PhD-program/