Mandate
The PhD Programme Council is responsible for the faculty's organised research training leading to the degree of PhD at the Faculty of Educational Sciences.
The PhD Programme Council has been delegated the overall and coordinating responsibility for the faculty’s research training and therefore also for the faculty’s PhD programme. The Council is to address the academic framework, key priorities, and arrangements for quality assurance and quality development of the programme. The Programme Council processes applications for admission to the faculty’s PhD programme.
Beyond this, the Programme Council may delegate its tasks to the Programme Leader. Decisions related to day-to-day operations shall be delegated to the Programme Leader. The Council shall have an advisory function to the faculty’s leadership in matters concerning research education. The Programme Council reports to the Dean.
Composition
The Dean appoints the members in consultation with the heads of department. The members of the Programme Council are appointed for the same term of office as the Dean’s elected term. The PhD Programme Council shall have a secretary from the faculty administration. The PhD Programme Council (PFU) has seven* members and deputy members with the following composition:
| Members | Deputy members |
| Vice Dean for Research, Professor Astrid Marie Jorde Sandsør | Vice Dean for Studies, Professor Greta Björk Gudmundsdottir |
| Professor Christian Brandmo, ISP | Professor Athanasios Protopapas, ISP |
| Professor Kirsten Sivesind, IPED | Professor Monika Bærøe Nerland, IPED |
| Professor Ida Katrine Riksaasen Hatlevik, ILS | Professor Joke Dewilde, ILS |
| Professor Ronny Scherer, CEMO | Professor Björn Andersson, CEMO |
| PhD candidate Fatima Reda, ILS | PhD candidate Andrea Chanell Jønsberg, ISP |
| PhD candidate Kristen Slungård, ISP |
*In August 2025, the Dean decided to increase the number of PhD candidate representatives from one to two.
The role of the PhD coordinator
All units at the faculty have a research education coordinator. The coordinators manage and ensure quality and learning environment in the research education. They also represent their units in the PhD Programme Council (PFU).
PFU has prepared a description of the tasks of the research education coordinators. The responsibilities vary somewhat between units because each unit defines the specific scope of responsibility itself.
The PhD coordinator is responsible for:
- the unit’s contribution to the faculty’s course offerings each semester
- coordinating the unit’s work related to admission to the faculty’s PhD programme
- reading and following up on the academic work related to the annual progress reports from the unit’s candidates in the programme
- academic discussions and conversations with the PhD candidates
- conversations and mediation if problems arise between a PhD candidate and supervisor(s)
The PhD coordinator takes part in the mid-term evaluation and the final reading.
Contact
Questions regarding the faculty’s Programme Committee for Research Education can be sent to forskerutdanning@uv.uio.no
Meetings
PFU holds regular meetings; agendas and minutes are available in Norwgian on the staff pages (“For ansatte”).