Centre for Research on Discretion and Paternalism Bergen

Caroline Borge Bjelland

Caroline Borge Bjelland

Research Assistant

caroline.b.bjelland@student.uib.no

Caroline B. Bjelland is a Research Assistant at the Center for Research on Discretion and Paternalism. She holds a Master’s Degree in Comparative Politics from the University of Bergen.

Caroline has previously worked as a seminar teacher at the Institute of Comparative Politics and as a research assistant for the Breaking BAD project at UiB. She is also a volunteer at LawTransform.

M.Phil in Comparative Politics (University of Bergen)
Bachelor in Politics and International Relations (University of new South Wales, Sydney, Australia)

Get to know Caroline

What does a typical day for you look like?

I half run to work because I am born 5 minutes late, I buy breakfast and coffee on the way as I never make time to eat at home, and then I go to work. After work I have an ambition to work out, which seldom happens. Instead, I make dinner, watch one of the many series I am binging, and probably meet up with friends for a walk or a glass (or two) of wine.

Can you describe your office space?

The floor is very much skewed, so I am practically working downhill. However, this old room has its charm with beautiful herringbone parquet and brown majestic doors, and of course the people that fill it makes it even more charming.

Is there a book you’d recommend within your field?

If my field is the topic of my master’s degree, I would have to recommend “From Pews to Politics: Religious Sermons and Political Participation in Africa” by Gwyneth H. McClendon and Rachel Beatty Riedl.

If you had to choose a different field, what would it be?

I think I would choose to be a teacher. However, I guess that ship has not sailed yet. I also talk a lot about being an Instagram influencer, because who does not want to want to make heaps of money and receive free stuff by just documenting their life? If all else fails, I will pursue that “dream”.

Is there a TV-show you are binging?
The question should rather be: Is there a TV-show I am not binging or have not binged?
At the moment though, I am binging RuPaul’s Drag Race, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Parks And Recreation, and Rick and Morty.

What are you listening to these days?

LÈON, Griff, Fleetwood Mac, Olivia Rodrigo, Noah Cyrus, conleche, Sigrid and Girl in Red.

Your friend sets you up on a blind date with someone famous – who do you hope it is?
Chris Evans or Idris Elba!! Or maybe Jennifer Lawrence!

What’s on your nightstand?
Lipbalm, nasal spray and earplugs – you know, the essentials.