Title dissertation:
Engineering Identities: Computing Students’ Identity Development in Norwegian Higher Education
Toipc trial lecture:
What are the theoretical perspectives on identity that you bring to this study, and how are these operationalized in the methodology and analysis?
Time for trial lecture: 10:15 – 11:15
Time for public defence: 12:15 – 15:30
Place: Levanger, Daniel Mortenson-salen and Nord.no
Chair of defence: Dean Elisabet Ljunggren
Assessment committee:
- Associate Professor Allison Jardim Gonsalves, McGill University, Canada
- Professor Anette Kolmos, Aalborg University, Denmark
- Professor Ingrid Fylling, Nord University
Supervisors:
- Main supervisor: Associate Professor Line Kolås, Nord University
- Co-supervisor: Associate Professor Kristine Ask, NTNU
The thesis is available for viewing by contacting Anneli Watterud, anneli.m.watterud@nord.no.
About the thesis:
As technology and digitalization increasingly saturate our lives and society, the demand for individuals with computing degrees continues to rise. As a result, higher education computing degrees have become highly popular study choices. This growing need for a computing workforce underscores the importance of understanding the identities of computing graduates who are creating today’s technology. Social institutions, particularly universities, play a crucial role in shaping individuals and their identities, thereby ensuring that future professionals are both competent and socially responsible. The education of computing professionals involves not only the acquisition of disciplinary knowledge but also the process of becoming and identity development. This thesis investigates the education and production of IT graduates in the context of higher education in Norway, with the primary aim to explore how students’ computing identity is shaped at Norwegian universities.
This interdisciplinary study contributes to the fields of sociology and computing education by investigating the process of identity development in the context of projectbased learning courses. The thesis integrates sociological theories as well as theories and empirical studies from the field of computing education. This empirical research examines the topic through a qualitative thematic analysis inspired by constructivist grounded theory. Empirical data were gathered through interviews with students participating in three project courses at two Norwegian public universities, as well as through document analysis of policy documents shaping computing education. The analysis shows that Norwegian institutions aim to develop student identities that are both industry-relevant and socially responsible. While institutional documents emphasize technical competence and employability as primary goals, they also stress the importance of sustainability awareness and social responsibility. Through projectbased learning, an increasingly popular approach in higher education, students discover that computing practice requires strong social and collaborative skills beyond technical expertise, therefore expanding the narrow, technically oriented approach to identity. However, this study reveals a tension between educating graduates who meet industry demands and developing professionals who prioritize broader societal impact. Despite institutional efforts to incorporate sustainability and ethics into computing education, students’ engagement with these social dimensions remains limited.
