Joint PhD degree approved

The degree is titled «Professional Practice Between Disciplines, Users and Management» and is the first joint PhD degree between two university colleges in Norway.  The Ministry of Education and Research together with the boards of the university colleges will decide when the PhD degree starts up. This is the second PhD degree in the county of Møre og Romsdal, as Molde University College already offers a PhD in logistics.

ENTHUSIASM IN MOLDE AND VOLDA 
– By approving this degree NOKUT signals that the two university colleges have strong academic communities, and that those who finish their PhD degree within this field will be sought after on the labour market, says rectors Hallgeir Gammelsæter in Molde and Per Halse in Volda.
The NOKUT decisions shows that the academic communities within the disciplines of health and social work at the two institutions are of international standard. The degree is important for the region, especially with the great challenges that the health and social care sector is facing, says rectors Gammelsæter and Halse.  
NOKUT has assessed the application from the two university colleges thoroughly, and spent a full day at each institution in the process of making their decision. 

 
Rectors Hallgeir Gammelsæter in Molde and Per Halse in Volda.

CHILD WELFARE, SOCIAL WORK, NURSING AND PROTECTIVE CARE
The faculty members involved in the PhD degree at Volda University College have contributed with their expertise in the professional study for child welfare workers and social workers, while the faculty members at Molde University College have contributed with their expertise in nursing and protective care studies. The two university colleges have cooperated for several years in order to offer master degrees within these disciplines. This cooperation will now be extended to a PhD degree, and the two academic communities have also submitted research applications.  Once the PhD is up and running there will be at least 15 PhD students in the programme. Volda and Molde believe that the programme will be interesting for professionals at university level as well as government agencies.
The PhD students will complete their projects in three to four years and will attend courses and supervision from professors and other highly competent researchers at the university colleges in Volda and Molde.