Sustainable Competence Development
(Varig kompetanseløft)

Project period: 2024-2027
Funding: Arts and Culture Norway and the participating museums
Contact persons in Østfoldmuseene:
Mattias Ekman, senior curator manors, mattias.ekman@ostfoldmuseene.no
Marianne Løken, director of research and development, marianne.loken@ostfoldmuseene.no

“Sustainable Competence Development” is a collaborative project between Aust-Agder Museum and Archive, The Falstad Centre, The Norwegian industrial workers Museum, the The Norsk Folkemuseum foundation, and Østfold County Museums (Østfoldmuseene). The project also collaborates with the University of Stavanger, the University of Oslo, and NTNU, as well as the research section of the Norwegian Museums Association. 

The initiative “Sustainable Competence Development” aims to strengthen support functions for research in museums, integrate research into other museum practices, and enhance collaboration with the higher education sector (HE). The project specifically addresses areas where fundamental structures and expertise are lacking: research supervision, career development for museum researchers, and platforms for museological research. Additionally, it focuses on partnerships with higher education and the connection between museum pedagogy and research. Through publications, guides, and the piloting of lasting support functions, the project intends to provide tangible benefits to the Norwegian, Nordic, and international museum sector, as well as to partners in the higher education, institute, and ABM sectors, along with government authorities. 

The outward-looking and long-term nature of all measures will provide substantial transferable value primarily for the entire Norwegian museum sector and secondarily for the Nordic and international museum sectors, along with actors interested in museum research and collaboration, such as those from the HE, institute, and ABM sectors (archive, library and museum), as well as governmental authorities. 

Østfold County Museums (Østfoldmuseene) leads work packages 1 and 2. Work Package 1, SECTOR DIALOGUE, is a pilot program fostering dialogue between the project, museums, and museological research environments. The project collaborates with the Centre for Museum Studies at the University of Oslo and the research group on Museology and Museum Research at NTNU to conduct a series of open discussions regarding the conditions of museums as research institutions. These conversations will illuminate infrastructure and competency needs based on project activities, while the dialogue with the sector and research communities aims to disseminate knowledge and gather insights back into the project work. 

Work Package 2, SUPERVISION, is a competence-building program for research supervisors in museums and a pilot initiative offering a PhD course-like opportunity for museum researchers who lack formal qualifications equivalent to PhD. In many museums, researchers with PhD or equivalent qualifications supervise staff without these qualifications, but this is typically not done in a systematic or structured manner. Work Package 2 aims to enhance self-reflection and the competency level of supervisors in the project museums, systematize supervision procedures, and develop best practice recommendations for museums, supervisors, and supervisees. The work will support museums in assisting staff who aspire to obtain authorization as konservator (curator) and førstekonservator (senior curator) from the Norwegian Museums Association or qualify for positions as lecturers, PhD candidates, or Dr. Philos. It will also raise awareness regarding career development for doctoral museum researchers and the relevance of supervision for promotion to professorship. The project will engage with the research field through a scholarly article and a guidance document, culminating in a recommendation to the sector regarding sustainable and ongoing competence development for supervisors.