On October 10, Justyna Szynkiewicz defended her dissertation “Engineering Identities: Computing Students’ Identity Development in Norwegian Higher Education” for the degree of PhD in Sociology at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Nord University. The defense took place at the Levanger campus.

Justyna has been affiliated with Excited during her PhD, with Line Kolås (Nord University) as main supervisor and Kristine Ask (NTNU) as co-supervisor.

In her research, Justyna conducted in-depth interviews with students to explore how their identities develop through project-based learning. She also analyzed how the topic of identity is discussed in documents at both institutional and national levels.

Her findings show that institutions value technical competence and employability, but also sustainability awareness and social responsibility. Through project work, students experience that both social skills and technical expertise are essential. Universities should therefore facilitate learning environments where both are emphasized, enabling students to develop the desired competencies.

As Justyna’s PhD was part of Nord University’s doctoral program in sociology, the defense followed the standard procedures for this program. The first opponent, Allison Jardim Gonsalves (McGill University, Canada), presented Justyna’s dissertation to the audience, followed by academic discussion. The second opponent, Anette Kolmos from Aalborg University, continued the dialogue, and Professor Ingrid Fylling (Nord University) also served on the evaluation committee.

The audience enjoyed a well-conducted defense with engaging discussions on topics such as identity, diversity, and research methodology.

Photos from the defense