NTNU wants you to have good career development. On this page, you will find information about opportunities available to develop your competence and career as a postdoc at NTNU beyond the research project.

An important goal for your postdoctoral position is to develop a research profile and gain the competence needed to qualify for an academic career. Having the qualifictions needed to apply for a position as associate professor is an important goal.

Norsk versjon: Karriereutvikling for postdoktorer

Looking for something else? Career development for PhD candidates

NTNU's employment conditions for postdocs are outlined in NTNU's guidelines for recruitment positions, chapters 2.1, 3, and 6.2.

Career Plan

As a postdoc at NTNU, you must have a career plan. The career plan is a tool to concretize which skills and competences beyond the research project you should develop and how this should be done.

• The career plan should include career goals and a list of actions to be taken to achieve these goals
• The need for language training (A2) and/or pedagogical basic competence should be assessed, and a plan for execution should be included in the career plan (NTNU's guidelines for recruitment positions, chapter 2.1.2)
• If career-enhancing work is included in your position, the career plan should describe what it is, the competence it will provide, and how it will be carried out
• The postdoc and employer fill out the career plan together
• The career plan should be formulated in the first employee interview/medarbeidersamtale (start-up meeting)
• The career plan should be followed up and updated annually (during the employee interview/medarbeidersamtale)
• The career plan should be evaluated at the end of the employment period
• The career plan should be archived in the personnel file

Here is a template for a career plan for you as a postdoctoral fellow (docx).

When working on developing your career plan, it is important for you to think about your own goals and ambitions. In preparation for both the first version and when updating/revising the plan with your employer, you should also review NTNU's Policy for Employment and Career Development for Postdocs. You may also want to look at the qualification requirements for academic positions (NTNU's guidelines for academic positions, chapter 3) and NTNU's competence matrix with examples of competencies relevant to an academic career. These will provide you with knowledge about the expectations for relevant competence for a career in academia.

Although the career plan is an agreement between you as a postdoc and your employer, it can be very helpful to discuss the career plan with your supervisor and others, such as colleagues and the research group leader, to get ideas and input.

Career-enhancing work

Career-enhancing work refers to work beyond the research project that provides relevant knowledge and experience for further career in academia or other sectors (uh-regulations, section § 3-16). It is not intended for administrative work.

Examples of relevant career-promoting work:

• Contribute to teaching, laboratory and exercise teaching, supervision, and examination work within the employee's areas of competence
• Providing training in the use and operation of research infrastructure
• Norwegian language training, educational competence, HSE courses, and the like necessary for the performance of teaching and research work
• Participating in dissemination, exhibition, and collection work
• Contributing to the preparation of research project applications or the organization of academic conferences
• Clinical activites
• Contributing to ongoing research projects, professional development work, consultancy and assessment work in the academic environment
• Research-based innovation or dissemination project
• Internships or collaboration with public or private actors
• Elected positions/trust positions and committee work

According to new regulations, all postdoctoral fellows must acquire pedagogical basic competence (courses and teaching experience) and learn Norwegian (A2 level). The plan for executing this is agreed upon with your personnel manager.

Whether the position includes career-enhancing work is stated in the job advertisement and your employment contract. The positions fixed-term period be extended if there is an opportunity to offer career-promoting work beyond the regulatory requirements for language competence and pedagogical basic competence. Extensions due to leave or elected positions can be added to the term. At least two years of the term should be reserved for the research project.

Career Planning Tools

Here are some pages where you can get inspiration and help to start planning your career development:

• REFLEX APP: REFLEX Researcher Career Development Scheme Application (REFLEX app) is a web application developed to help you identify your development areas and plan your career development.
• myIDP – Science Careers Individual Development Plan: myIDP is one of several individual and digital career planning tools, specifically developed for researchers in natural sciences, health sciences, and engineering

Further Career

• Jobs at NTNU: Overview of vacancies and information about NTNU as an employer.
• EURAXESS Jobs & Funding: International job search portal for researchers.

Guidelines

• NTNU's guidelines for academic positions
• NTNU's guidelines for recruitment positions
• NTNU's competence matrix (NTNU's version of NOR-CAM)
• Forskrift til universitets- og høyskoleloven (universitets- og høyskoleforskriften) (ansettelse etter ny forskrift fra 2024) (in Norwegian)
• Forskrift om ansettelsesvilkår for stillinger som postdoktor, stipendiat, vitenskapelig assistent og spesialistkandidat (ansettelse etter gammel forskrift fra 2006) (in Norwegian)

Other Resources

• DION - NTNU's interest organization for PhDs, post-docs, and other temporary scientific employee
• New in Norway
• NTNU International Researcher Support (NIRS) – Among other services, NIRS offers counselling services for administrative staff and researchers working at or visiting NTNU
• Norwegian for Foreigners

Contact

• If you have questions about your career plan or career enhancing work, you can contact your personell manager or the administrative PhD- contact at your department or faculty.
• If you have questions about the information or the content on this website, you can contact Kristin Skjeldestad or Silje Løften in the HR and HSE division at NTNU.