Meet Nord’s Fresh PhDs: Every year, Nord University educates over thirty new PhDs. In this series, you’ll get to meet some of them. Photo: Lise Fagerbakk
In this interview series, you’ll get to know some of them – what they researched, what motivated them, and what’s next on their journey.
What is a doctor in academia?
A doctoral degree (PhD) is the highest academic qualification you can achieve. It is awarded after several years of research and study, during which the candidate carries out an independent research project and publicly defends their dissertation.
A person with a PhD is often called a doctor and has specialized deeply in their field. The degree qualifies for research positions, university-level teaching, and leadership roles in knowledge-intensive environments.
Doctoral programmes at Nord University
Nord University currently offers four doctoral programmes:
PhD in Biosciences
PhD in Business
PhD in Sociology
PhD in Professional Studies
In 2027 or early 2028, Nord University will establish a fifth doctoral programme within health sciences.
Explore more interviews with our former PhD candidates.
Sonja Cassidy – newly graduated PhD from Nord's Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences (FSH)
The Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences (FSH) has around 2,100 students and 240 staff members. The faculty is present at five Nord University campuses: Bodø, Levanger, Mo i Rana, Namsos, and Vesterålen. Research activity at the faculty is organized into five academic groups.
Name: Sonja Cassidy
Age: 57
Place of residence: Bergen, Norway
Brief background: I work as a Senior Advisor in strategic ICT (information and communicaton technoogy) at the regional health authority Helse Vest. I have worked there for over twenty years, at the intersection between healthcare services and technology. I am especially committed to developing health services that truly start from what matters to the patients.
What have you researched, and why did you choose this topic?
I have researched why it is still so difficult to achieve patient‑centred health services, even though everyone agrees that this is important. The starting point for the research was the implementation of the national patient pathway for psychiatry and substance use in Helse Vest. The aim of the pathway was precisely to address the challenges that patients themselves had pointed out over a long period of time. Patients were meant to be heard and given greater opportunities to influence decisions about their own treatment. But when a national survey was later conducted, the results showed that patients did not experience any significant improvement.
For most people, good healthcare is about more than medication and treatment. It is about being seen as a human being. Being listened to. Experiencing that someone cares about what matters to you. I therefore began asking the question: Why is this still so difficult, even in a country like Norway, with a well‑functioning healthcare system? I researched how patients were actually involved – or not involved – when health services were developed. I also examined what information patients shared about their own life situations, whether what mattered to them was documented in the medical record, and how one assesses whether the services they receive actually correspond to their needs, values, and priorities. Through my work, I found that health services are often designed more to fit the system than to fit the patient.
What was the most surprising thing you discovered during your PhD work?
I reviewed more than 5,000 medical record documents from general practitioners, emergency clinics, hospitals, and home care services for 14 patients who had both mental and physical health challenges. The documents spanned from 1956 to 2024 and provided insight into their life histories. Two things surprised me in particular. First: When you see the entire history collected, you get a completely different understanding of the patient’s situation. If clinicians had access to such an overview, it might have been easier for them to provide more holistic and coherent support to this especially vulnerable group of patients, who often had complex care pathways over long periods of time and with many people involved.
Second: I was impressed by how hard the healthcare personnel around these patients worked to share important information with each other, despite lacking the support systems to do so. I had thought there might be some resistance to using the patient’s own perspectives in planning and treatment. But what I found was that the willingness is absolutely there for many. The problem is that they do not receive training in how to include patients, that the data systems do not communicate with each other, and therefore information is rarely shared between them. Nor are there good framework conditions for doing so in a busy clinical everyday setting.
How do you hope your reserch will be used or make an impact going forward?
I hope it can help ensure that the patient’s voice does not remain just nice words in a strategy, but becomes something that truly shapes how health services are developed, documented, and evaluated.
We have developed practical tools that can be used when planning health services, or for documenting the patient’s perspectives and goals. We have also proposed new indicators that can be used when assessing the quality of health services. Now I hope that leaders, policymakers, healthcare professionals, and system providers will put this into practice to ensure that our health services are based on what patients themselves consider important.
What are your plans now that your PhD education is completed?
I hope to be able to continue this important work, preferably as a postdoctoral researcher. The plan had originally been to test the tools together with patients to see whether they actually experience the services as better, and to further develop them together with the patients. Unfortunately, the pandemic put a stop to that. But perhaps I will get another opportunity.
Stine Susanne Haakonsen Dahl – newly graduated PhD from Nord's Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences (FSH)
The Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences (FSH) har around 2,100 students and 240 staff members. The faculty is present at five Nord University campuses: Bodø, Levanger, Mo i Rana, Namsos and Vesterålen. The research actitity at the faculty is organized into five academic groups.
Name: Stine Susanne Haakonsen Dahl
Age: 47
Residence: Bodø, Norway
Brief background: I have worked as a physiotherapist for over twenty years and currently work as a specialist in neurological physiotherapy (MNFF) at Sentrum Fysioterapi Bodø AS, where I have run my own clinic since 2013. I completed my physiotherapy education at the University of Manchester (2001), and I hold a master’s degree in neurological physiotherapy from the University of Queensland (2007) and the University of Tromsø (2011). In 2022, I was accepted as a PhD candidate in the doctoral programme in Professional Studies at Nord University.
What have you researched, and why did you choose this topic?
My doctoral project focuses on physical activity and on how people with mild MS (multiple sclerosis) can improve their function through motivation and targeted physiotherapy. In the study, I examine both how people with MS experience a new type of physiotherapy treatment, and what kinds of experiences they have with physical activity in general. In addition, I have tested a new assessment tool that can detect impairments in what is known as trunk function – that is, the strength and control of the body’s core. Good trunk function is fundamental for being physically active, and impairments may often occur already in the early stages of the disease. Through my clinical work with people with MS, I have found that many only seek physiotherapy when symptoms have become significant. This motivated me to develop knowledge that can strengthen physiotherapists’ follow‑up in the early phases of the disease.
What was the most surprising thing you discovered during your PhD work?
What surprised me the most was not which themes were important for people with mild MS, but how significant they actually were. The participants described how feelings and emotions related to being in movement were absolutely fundamental to their motivation for physical activity. The way they understood and experienced physical activity changed. Even with minimal physical impairments, being physically active felt more difficult, and positive experiences therefore became more important. For some, engaging in high‑level physical activity was also linked to existential experiences, such as an intensified sense of being alive. In addition, it was striking how important outdoor activity was. Natural physical challenges, contact with nature and the surroundings, and the social aspects of being outdoors provided a sense of mastery, relief from negative thoughts, and a stronger feeling of belonging.
How do you hope your research will be used or make an impact going forward?
I hope that my research can help ensure that physiotherapy, even for people with mild MS, is given higher priority within the healthcare services. The strengthened knowledge base can help facilitate a clearer division of roles and responsibilities between the different parts of the healthcare system, so that early follow‑up and support for physical activity become an integrated part of MS care.
I also hope that the expanded understanding of how physical activity is connected to the body, movement, feelings, and emotions will be used by physiotherapists and other health professions as a broader and more nuanced foundation for promoting physical activity – both in clinical practice and in further research.
The study also revealed a need for physiotherapists working with this patient group to have advanced skills in identifying mild functional impairments and in optimizing high‑level physical activity. I therefore hope that this will be highlighted more clearly and given higher priority in physiotherapy education.
What are your plans now that your PhD is completed?
I am now primarily back to working as a clinical physiotherapist, bringing the experiences and results from my doctoral work into the further development of the clinic. In collaboration with the Norwegian Physiotherapist Association, I am developing and teaching continuing education courses for physiotherapists, where I will share this knowledge. At the same time, I continue as a member of the research group for public health and rehabilitation, and I hope to build on my doctoral studies through further research.
Halvard Benjaminsen – newly graduated PhD from Nord's Business School (HHN)
Nord university Business School has around 2,800 students and 230 staff members. The faculty is present at four of Nords campuses: Bodø, Mo i Rana, Steinkjer and Stjørdal. The research activities at the faculty are organized into five academic groups.
Name: Halvard Benjaminsen
Age: 55
Residence: Sandnessjøen, Norway
Brief background: Educated as an engineer, with further studies in management and economics. Until I began my research project, I worked with project execution and operations, and increasingly with early‑phase project and concept development in the petroleum sector – particularly in maturing ideas into decision bases and viable business opportunities in the petroleum industry.
What have you researched, and why did you choose this topic?
I have researched what actually happens in the early phase of the largest projects in the petroleum sector – where specialists are expected to develop ideas, shape them into potential concepts, and ultimately create a solid basis for decision‑making. The dissertation shows how different types of uncertainty influence both the assessments they make, how they frame strategic choices, and how new business opportunities come into being at all in this early and most formative phase of project development.
The topic was chosen in collaboration with my employer, the oil company Aker BP. After many years in the industry, I have seen how much is at stake early on, and how challenging it is to navigate when information is incomplete, signals are ambiguous, and considerations pull in different directions. I wanted to contribute research that provides a sharper picture of this phase – and that can strengthen the ability to mature ideas into more robust decisions and more targeted opportunities.
How do you hope your research will be used or make an impact going forward?
I hope the research can make early‑phase work a bit more precise – not by removing uncertainty, but by helping people understand it better. By offering a clearer language and a more accurate framework, the insights can support developers and decision‑makers in creating “action clarity” in a thoughtful way: through better professional assessments, more effective sensemaking across disciplines, and more targeted prioritization of opportunities.
The dissertation and the articles have been well received in the professional field, and the interest in having the insights presented has been a great pleasure – and an important motivation for further research.
What will you do now that your PhD is completed?
I will continue with the same tasks as before the PhD: developing and enabling business opportunities on the Norwegian continental shelf. At the same time, I bring the research insights directly into my everyday work, so that they can contribute to practical concept development and decision support in the early phase. I also maintain contact with academia through the network I built during the project period, and I am now collaborating with other researchers to develop knowledge across disciplines. In addition, I supervise several master’s groups in business economics, which allows me to stay closely connected to recent research. Going forward, my goal is to continue contributing to knowledge development at the intersection between business and project development.
Ola Martin Jensen Larsen – newly graduated PhD from Nord's Business School (HHN)
Nord University Business School has around 2,800 students and 230 staff members. The faculty is present av four Nord campuses: Bodø, Mo i Rana, Stjørdal and Steinkjer. The research activities at the faculty are organized into five academic groups.
Name: Ola Martin Jensen Larsen
Age: 35
Residence: Oslo, Norway
Brief background: Master’s degree in management and organization, bachelor’s degree in economics and administration. Work experience includes positions such as HR officer.
What have you researched, and why did you choose this topic?
I have examined the effects of being inclusive in working life, for those who do the including.
What was the most surprising thing you discovered during your PhD work?
How great the potential of inclusion efforts truly is! Individuals, groups, and companies that actively engage in work‑life inclusion achieve clear benefits through the development of important qualities such as motivation, communication skills, and leadership abilities.
How do you hope your research will be used or make an impact going forward?
I hope larger parts of the labour market choose to invest in inclusion. Not because they feel they have to, but as a way to develop competitive advantages while also helping both individuals and society as a whole.
What will you do now that your PhD is completed?
I have not secured a permanent job yet, but I am working on several exciting projects, including new research articles and a course in diversity management for leaders in the university and college sector. I hope to continue researching work‑life inclusion, but also to contribute to ensuring that new knowledge on inclusion is picked up in Norwegian working life and put into practice.
Kirsti Nørstebø – newly graduated PhD from Nord's Faculty of Education and Arts (FLU)
The faculty of education and arts (FLU) has around 3,500 students and 315 staff members across several campuses. The faculty organizes its academic activities into six research groups, responsible for research and education within their fields.
Name: Kirsti Nørstebø
Age: 39
Place of residence: Trondheim, Norway
Brief background: Musician, conductor, music educator, and special‑needs educator with a master’s degree from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and Nord University.
What have you researched, and why did you choose this topic?
In the 2022–2023 school year, we conducted a study in which around 500 fifth‑grade pupils received either violin instruction, instruction on the jSax (a simplified plastic saxophone), or more “regular,” varied music lessons in their ordinary classes during school hours. The violin and jSax lessons were taught by teachers from the municipal school of music and performing arts, while the “regular” classes were taught by primary school teachers with music in their subject portfolio.
I researched the pupils’ learning outcomes in this context, including the development of their musical competence over the school year. This was measured by adapting German competency tests in music so they could be used in a Norwegian setting. This adaptation work also formed a significant part of my project.
I did not choose the topic of my PhD myself; I applied for a PhD position in a project funded by the Research Council of Norway, where much had already been defined. Nevertheless, there was considerable room to influence how the work was carried out, and I truly felt ownership of the project throughout.
What was the most surprising thing you discovered during your PhD work?
Regarding the results of my research, I was quite surprised that the three groups had relatively similar learning outcomes in the project. Music instruction with a fairly narrow and specialised focus—meaning playing an instrument—and music instruction with a broader perspective resulted in roughly the same development in competence.
What has perhaps surprised me the most is how warm and inclusive the music education research community is, and how much one develops personally through completing a PhD. I feel that I see both the field and the world somewhat differently than I did before.
How do you hope your reseearch will be used or make an impact going forward?
I hope my research can help show that there are several good entry points to music education in primary school, and that different forms of instruction can work well depending on what each teacher or municipality believes is the best fit. I also hope the research can help strengthen the argument for hiring more music educators in municipalities, preferably in combined positions spanning both primary school and the municipal school of music and performing arts.
At the same time, I want to build further on my doctoral work in the future and conduct more research on children and music. I am particularly interested in further examining how children develop musical competence, and what promotes good and inclusive learning in music—both in school, in municipal arts education, and in higher music education.
What are your plans now that your PhD education is completed?
I am currently working in the music education programme at Nord University in Levanger, both as programme coordinator, lecturer, and researcher in two externally funded projects. I enjoy this very much, even though my current position is temporary. I hope to continue doing something similar in the future, because it is work I find both meaningful and rewarding. I also hope to make time to play some music now and then — because it is simply incredibly fun!
Bodil Aarmo Brenne – newly graduated PhD from Nord's Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences (FSH)
The faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences (FLU) has around 2,00 students and 240 staff members. The faculty is present at five Nord University campuses: Bodø, Levanger, Mo i Rana, Namsos, and Vesterålen. Research activity at the faculty is organized into five academic groups.
Name: Bodil Aarmo Brenne
Age: 56
Place of residence: Skogn, Norway
Brief background: I am a trained nurse and gestalt therapist, and I hold a master’s degree in health sciences from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). My clinical experience comes from both municipal health services and specialist health services, with most of my years spent at the medical ward at Levanger Hospital. Nord University (formerly Nord-Trøndelag University College before the 2016 merger) has been my workplace for 19 years. For 17 of those years, I worked in the nursing education programme in Levanger, and for the past two years I have been affiliated with the faculty’s mentor and supervision programmes.
What have you researched, and why did you choose this topic?
I have researched home nursing practice, the professional role, and how home nurses exercise their practice and use their professional judgement within an organisational structure characterised by standardisation. I have always had an interest in home-based care—both from my own relatively short clinical experience as a newly qualified nurse, and later as a teacher in nursing education. Over many years, I have followed students during their clinical placements in home-based care. Over time, I became particularly interested in what happens in practice behind the formal service agreements and the decisions that allocate healthcare services. I have examined whether there is a difference between the ideal and what is written down, and the actual realities. I have also explored how home nurses experience, find meaning in, and navigate this tension in the exercise of their profession.
What was the most surprising thing you discovered during your PhD work?
Although the standardised organisation challenges home nurses’ ability to exercise professional judgement and provide holistic care, they still wanted an organised framework around their work—something that could set boundaries for a complex occupation with “endless” needs. Services in home-based care are allocated to patients based on decisions made beforehand, and home nurses and other staff then deliver these services in accordance with those decisions. At the same time, home nurses perform a great deal of additional work to ensure quality and holistic care, compensating for shortcomings in the service. This work is both invisible and undocumented, yet crucial for continuity and quality. In addition, the home nurses demonstrated alertness and flexibility that I consider far beyond what could reasonably be expected.
How do you hope your research will be used or have an impact going forward?
I hope the research can help make the important work of home nurses more visible, and that they can gain greater influence and more room for professional judgement in their daily work—with less undocumented and partly invisible compensatory additional work. I also hope it will highlight the need for more competence and for systematic, continuous professional development in home-based care, as responsibilities have changed and services have grown both in scope and complexity. At the same time, it is important to continue discussions about what should belong to the home nurses’ area of responsibility, and what should not.
What will you do now that your PhD is completed?
I am fortunate to have a permanent position at Nord University, and I look forward to continuing my work in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Health (FSH) together with wonderful colleagues, engaging in teaching, supervision, and now also research.
