Innovation in welfare services

The course may be taken as a single course by doctoral students who meet the admission requirements for the degree program in Humanities and Social Science.

This course explores innovation in social work and child welfare at a PhD level. The course covers both classic and more recent theories on innovation processes at a service, organizational and societal level. An introduction is given to welfare technology in a broad context, including various methodological approaches. The students' own professional competence and practice is emphasized as a key factor for innovative interdisciplinary collaboration, and as an important contribution to promoting research and innovation that can contribute to solving future social challenges (locally, regionally, nationally and globally).

The primary target group for the course are candidates who have been admitted to the PhD programme in Humanities and Social Science, but will also be open to others who wish to study the topic of the course in depth, including international students.

PhD students or holders of a Norwegian Master´s Degree of five years or 3+ 2 years (or equivalent) may be admitted. PhD students must upload a document from their university stating that they are registered PhD students.

Holders of a Master´s Degree must upload a Master´s Diploma with Diploma Supplement / English translation of the diploma. Applicants from listed countries must document proficiency in English. To find out if this applies to you see the following list: https://www.nokut.no/globalassets/nokut/artikkelbibliotek/utenlandsk_utdanning/gsulista/2021/language_requirements_gsu_121121.pdf

For more information on accepted English proficiency tests and scores, as well as exemptions from the English proficiency tests, please see the following document: https://uit.no/Content/254419/PhD_EnglishProficiency_100913.pdf

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The course is part of the activities of the Norwegian Research School of Social Work and Child Welfare (NORWEL). PhD-students who are enrolled in NORWEL have preference for this course. PhD-students who are not enrolled in NORWEL can apply for this course, if space permits.

The course has 20 seats, with a minimum number of participants of 5. If the number of applicants exceeds the available number of seats, applicants will be ranked from category 1 to 4.

Category 1: Doctoral students enrolled in NORWEL.

Category 2: Doctoral students from other universities

Category 3: Participants in the Associate Professor Programme that fulfil the educational requirements

Category 4: Applicants with a Master’s degree (120 ECTS) or equivalent. (A Norwegian Master´s Degree of 5 years or 3 (Bachelor Degree) + 2 years (Master’s Degree).

Category 5: Postdoctoral researchers.

The application code in Søknadsweb 9301

By the end of the course the student has obtained the following:

Knowledge

The PhD candidate has

• knowledge on how to develop and make social work and the child welfare service´s innovation potential visible in the form of new concepts, theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches.
• knowledge about theory and methods in the field related to innovation and welfare technology and can contribute to developing new work practices.

Skills

The PhD candidate is able to

• formulate issues, plan and carry out research, and handle professional development work in the field at a high international level.
• participate in professional discussions and provide constructive feedback in the field.

General competence

The PhD candidate may

• assess and identify new research questions in the field.
• manage complex interdisciplinary work tasks, practices and projects
• take part in debates in national and international fora.
• assess the need for, and initiate, innovation by contributing independently to complex and innovative projects

Language of instruction and examination

More info about the coursework requirements

More info about the assignment

Re-sit examination