Electronic elections are held during the period Monday 17 November at 12.00 until Friday 21 November at 12.00.
Click here to cast your electronic vote (opens Monday 17 November at 12:00)
One representative and two deputies shall be elected from this group.
Ina Lyftingsmo Kristiansen
PhD Fellow at Department of Political Sciences
Self presentation:
My name is Ina Lyftingsmo Kristiansen, and I am a PhD candidate at the Department of Political Science. My research is on politics in dictatorships, and in my doctoral dissertation I investigate the dynamics between dictators and political elites.
We are facing a difficult period where funding for the higher education sector is being cut, and as temporary employees we are in a particularly challenging position. Fewer positions are being advertised, research funds are being reduced, and the pressure that we as temporary staff experience in our day-to- day life is steadily increasing in line with this unfortunate new reality. It is therefore critical that we engage in the strategic work being conducted at the faculty and participate in the decision-making process. In this position, I aim to be a clear voice addressing these challenges and fighting for us to be heard. I will focus especially on issues related to the influence, working conditions, and career development opportunities, of temporary employees.
Previously, I was a union representative at the SV faculty, and I am also a member of the PhD committee (PhD-utvalg) at the Department of Political Science. Additionally, as a master student I was the Student Council president for the PECOS program. As a union representative I have participated in wage negotiations and other discussions with the faculty leadership, which has made me well-equipped to advocate for our concerns and views in the faculty board meetings.
With my extensive experience as a temporary employee at the SV-faculty and previous work as a union representative, I am dedicated to actively contributing to the work of the faculty board and to promoting the voices of temporary employees.
Nominated by Marte Lund Saga
Eirik Haugland Kvalvik
PhD Fellow at Department of Psychology
Self presentation:
My name is Eirik Haugland Kvalvik, and I am a PhD candidate at the Department of Psychology. As a representative for temporary academic staff, I aim to contribute to a faculty that emphasises academic quality, methodological rigour, and genuine intellectual pluralism.
In a time when universities are shaped by strong cultural and ideological currents, I believe the faculty has a particular responsibility to ensure that decisions and priorities are grounded in scientific criteria and transparent academic processes rather than political trends. I therefore wish to serve as a calm and principled voice, working for institutional stability, clear goals and expectations, and a research and learning environment where diverse viewpoints are genuinely welcomed.
For temporary employees, I will advocate for greater predictability, better access to information in decision-making processes, and a working environment where academic disagreement is safe and respected.
Nominated by Erik Haugland Kvalvik
Bård Lahn
Associate Professor at TIK Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture
Self presentation:
I am currently employed in a temporary position as an Associate Professor at the Center for Technology, Innovation, and Culture. Previously, I have been both a PhD candidate and a postdoctoral researcher at the Faculty of Social Sciences. Thus, I have experience from various roles as a temporary employee, and I want to contribute to safeguarding the working conditions and career development opportunities for temporary employees. I also have experience from board work as a former board member of several foundations and membership organizations.
As a representative for the temporary staff on the Faculty of Social Sciences' board, I wish to:
- Contribute to good working conditions, predictability, and greater opportunities for career development for temporary academic staff
- Work for an engaged university that contributes to building democratic communities, social awareness, and environmental consciousness through research and teaching
- Ensure a solid economic foundation for the faculty, among other things, by the Faculty of Social Sciences strengthening and further developing its study portfolio so that it can recruit steadily to both permanent and temporary academic positions in the future
Nominated by Torjus Solheim Eckhoff
Linn Zapffe
PhD Fellow at TIK Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture
Self presentation:
Science is currently facing several major challenges: we are called upon to help solve crises such as global warming and maintaining societal functions with an aging population. At the same time, academia faces internal challenges, such as threats to academic freedom and failure to replicate studies.
In the middle of all of this, we as temporary academic staff face our own set of challenges. Temporary positions create instability that affects both our professional and private lives. Many of us plan and apply for new projects to secure an income in the future, instead of being able to fully focus on the research right in front of us. The high competition for positions adds additional pressure, and job insecurity makes it difficult to establish a stable personal life. This instability, and its consequences, have led some to describe the pursuit of an academic career as a form of “extreme sport” (Thun, 2019).
Many of these challenges are structural and extend beyond the responsibility of the faculty. Nevertheless, the faculty can take steps to reduce this uncertainty and its consequences. I am running as the representative of temporary academic staff on the faculty board to bring our experiences and needs into the faculty’s decision-making processes. In this way, we can help shape measures that support us as much as possible while avoiding unintended consequences.
I have previously served in several university committees, ranging from departmental and faculty committees to university-wide committees. In these roles, I have worked on projects concerning academic freedom, the university’s strategic plans, and improving access to resources for master’s and PhD students. I wish to continue this work at the University of Oslo, to strengthen research opportunities and the everyday life of temporary academic staff. I therefore hope to get the opportunity to represent temporary academic staff on the faculty board, ensuring that our voices are heard and included in the decision-making processes that shape our workplace at the faculty.
Nominated by Linn Zapffe