Guide for applicants for SEAS fellowships

To be considered eligible for academic review, applicants must adhere to the following programme requirements:

• The research proposal must be relevant to marine sustainability.

• Applicants must hold a PhD degree in a relevant field prior to the application deadline or alternatively document that the thesis has been defended successfully, or that the dissertation is currently being evaluated by the PhD evaluation body of their academic institution. It is a condition of employment that the PhD must have been awarded.

• Applicants cannot previously have been employed as a postdoctoral fellow at UiB.

• Applications must be submitted through the Jobbnorge portal and include all mandatory elements (see below). Applications via email will not be accepted.

• Applicants must have a high degree of proficiency in English (self-assessed in the CV and demonstrated in the application).

• SEAS mobility rules (if the successful candidate is an outgoing fellow, the outgoing phase involves a continuous stay in the host country of 18 – 24 months, followed by a return phase at UiB for a minimum of 12 months).

• The application and relevant documents must be in English.

All eligible applicants will be evaluated on transparent evaluation criteria by international experts. No restrictions by nationality, age, gender, ethnicity, disability/special needs, or social status will apply.

Be aware that some fields of research, especially within sensitive technology areas, might be enforced by Norwegian and international regulations regarding Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who, by assessment of the application and attachments, are seen to conflict with the criteria in these regulations will be prohibited from recruitment to UiB.

1. Read the Jobbnorge.no advert carefully and familiarise yourself with the application process and requirements
    
2. MSCA mobility rules are strict – please check carefully and contact us early on if there are any questions
    
3. Get in touch with the proposed supervisor or contact person for your position of interest and create a dialogue regarding your project proposal – one of the required elements of the application is a signed declaration of a match between you and the UiB host (– and external host for outgoing fellows) – so this contact is essential.
    
4. Download and complete all the SEAS application templates – include your name in all attachment file names. Read the evaluation criteria carefully and use them as a guide for points and aspects to cover in your application.
    
5. Complete the application (with templates attached) in the Jobbnorge portal and submit before the deadline date. Applications received after this date will not be considered.*
    
6. The evaluation procedure is expected to take approximately 4 months from call deadline.

*) It is essential that all required attachments are uploaded via our electronic recruiting system Jobbnorge. Before uploading any documents in the portal (to minimise repetition of information):

• In the ‘Jobbnorge-application field’: Only write your name.
• In the ‘Jobbnorge-CV form’: Only fill in your 1) personal details, 2) information about your PhD-degree (in the field ‘Academic qualifications’) and 3) recent relevant work experience.

You do not need to fill in any other sections in the Jobbnorge form, as all the information we need will be provided by you in the attachments.

If you are planning to apply, you might benefit from reading the blog post with tips on how to write a successful application put together by our current SEAS fellows. 

The Evaluation procedure is expected to take approximately 4 months from call deadline.

Eligibility check

The SEAS office will check all applications regarding eligibility (see above). The SEAS office will inform applicants via email of the outcome of these checks within approx. 10 working days. Applicants not fulfilling the criteria will be informed as to why and given an opportunity for rebuttal. If deemed valid, the SEAS office will re-evaluate and inform the applicant within approx. 5 working days.

Academic review by an expert committee

The SEAS office will assign a minimum of 3 independent international expert reviewers to each eligible application. We expect this step to take approx. 4 weeks.

The evaluation will consist of:

• Individual evaluations: The 3 experts will perform individual assessment reports following the evaluation guidelines, criteria, and score chart, as described here. The experts will work remotely and be blind to one another’s reviews until the individual assessment reports are finished. The reviewers will assess the applications based on the criteria, with each criterion being scored from 0 – 5.0. The experts will also screen the proposals for ethical issues and describe any unresolved issues in their assessment reports.
   
• Consensus: The experts will read and discuss their individual evaluations to reach consensus and will produce an agreed Evaluation Summary Report for each application, including a final score. The final scores will be the basis for ranking and selection of the fellows.
   
• Quality control: The SEAS office will read all Evaluation Summary Reports to ensure fair and equal treatment of all applications.
   
• Ranking: Proposals are ranked after all Evaluation Summary Reports have been checked by the SEAS office and confirmed by the SEAS Selection Committee(s). After the rankings are finalised, all applicants will be informed of their results (i.e. selected/reserve list/not selected) by email. All applicants will receive their final Evaluation Summary Report.

Confirmation of ranking by SEAS selection committee(s)

The University of Bergen’s SEAS Programme Selection Committee(s) has the right/responsibility to take into account wider aspects such as gender balance, equal opportunities etc. when finalising the ranking. After the ranking is finalised, you will be informed of your results by the SEAS office. 

Final steps of the selection process

After the ranking has been approved by the SEAS selection committee(s), there are some final internal UiB steps before an offer of emploiment can be given, inkluding treatment in the appointment committee at the respective faculty.

Offer and acceptance

Selected candidates will receive a fellowship offer (acceptance letter) and must accept or reject the offer within the date stated in the letter (5-7 working days). Should a candidate decline the offer or neglect to respond within the indicated timeframe, the position will be offered to the next qualified candidate on the ranking list. The confirmed applicant will then receive a letter of employment which can be used for immigration, work permit or visa purposes, as necessary. When all positions of the call have been filled, rejection letters will be sent to the remaining applicants on the reserve list. Unsuccessful candidates in the first call are eligible to apply again in the second call, with no association to the previous one.

If selected, you must be able to take up the position within four months after receiving the offer unless another concrete start date is approved by the SEAS-administration. Before applying we recommend you familiarise yourself with current visa and work permit regulations for Norway (incoming candidates) or other host country (for outgoing candidates).

Be aware that some fields of research, especially within sensitive technology areas, might be enforced by Norwegian and international regulations regarding 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 these regulations will be prohibited from recruitment to UiB.

The primary objective of the postdoctoral position is to qualify the appointee for work in top academic positions. Teaching and/or other qualifying duties might be included if the appointee lacks such experience. 

All fellows will have a primary UiB-supervisor (or supervisor team) and a co-supervisor from another UiB-discipline or unit. In addition a mentor from another sector is recommended. The co-supervisor and mentor can be assigned after employment. For outgoing candidates there will in addition be an external (secondary) supervisor from the host institution.

For all SEAS fellows, a Personal Career Development Plan (PCDP) is to be developed jointly by the fellow, supervisor(s), and co-supervisor by the end of Month 2 of the fellowship, including a plan for the individual research budget, and information on additional funding where applicable.

Employment conditions

• Fixed-term 3-year contract as a postdoctoral research fellow at UiB. The UiB-contract may, under certain conditions, be extended by up to one year if a fellow acquires sufficient funding from sources other than SEAS.
   
• Competetive salary (see the jobbnorge announcement - may vary according to different faculty policies).
   
• Welfare benefits* and social benefits including pension-saving, occupational injury insurance, full salary during sick leave for 52 weeks, and paid parental leave**.
   
• Extension of the position term (work contract) due to sick leave and parental leave.
   
• Norwegian language courses free of charge.
   
• High standards for working hours, holidays, place of work, health, and safety.
   
• Access to specific training activities exclusively provided within the framework of the SEAS programme.
   
• An individual research budget of minimum € 300 per month for 3 years is guaranteed, some additional funding can likely be applied for, for activities such as secondment etc.
   
• Outgoing fellows will receive full coverage of travel costs for attending the mandatory gatherings (in compliance with UiB-routines for travel procurement and reimbursement) and support for living costs abroad for the outgoing phase (18-24 months).

*) Subject to membership in the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme. For non-EU outgoing fellows, individual benefit agreement must be considered.

**) Right to paid parental leave requires 6 months paid work before first day of leave. See full requirements.

Goals

• SEAS aims to recruit and bring together a group of 37 highly talented experienced researchers who will provide knowledge crucial for a more sustainable marine future. Humanity’s well-being is deeply intertwined with the health of the ocean. It sustains us, stabilizes the climate and leads to greater prosperity. With expertise in a broad range of fields, this group will strengthen and facilitate UiB’s strong commitment to marine science and ocean sustainability, aligned with the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, The United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and The European Green Deal.
   
• SEAS aims to devise a flagship programme at UiB of world-class training and support that will guide and support the SEAS fellows to reach professional maturity as successful leaders in both academic and non-academic sectors, equipped with transferable skills in inter- and trans-disciplinary research and intersectoral collaboration. 
   
• SEAS aims to strengthen the institutional culture at UiB - in close cooperation with our SEAS-partners and other collaborators - into one of innovation, collaboration and transdisciplinary research, at the forefront of the global drive for sustainability.

Commitments

The SEAS fellows will be provided with: 

• high-quality inter- and trans-disciplinary research and training opportunities in the area of marine sustainability, supported by a supervision and inter-sectoral mentoring scheme
   
• opportunity to transfer knowledge and skills between disciplines, organisations and sectors
   
• a regional ecosystem of marine actors
   
• structured skill-based training
   
• high-quality working conditions
   
• personal career support
   
• academic freedom
   
• equal opportunities