Jørn Mortensen currently works as strategic supervisor at Kristiania University of Applied Sciences.

From 2019 to 2024, he served as dean at the School of Arts, Design, and Media at Kristiania. The School of Arts, Design, and Media offers programmes in design, music, performative arts, film, and media. His responsibilities included overall artistic and academic leadership of all programmes, as well as research and public outreach.

From 2015 to 2019, Mortensen served as rector at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts. During this period, he secured institutional accreditation as a specialised university, including the establishment of a PhD programme in artistic research.

Before serving as rector, Mortensen served as dean of the Art and Craft department at the same institution. His responsibilities included artistic and academic leadership, developing and updating curricula for BFA and MFA programmes, implementing the qualification framework, and developing and establishing a new MFA programme in art and public space (2014).

Mortensen has served as an expert committee member for Danish and Swedish higher education authorities. He chaired the art selection committee responsible for establishing two memorial sites after the 22 July attacks in Oslo. The committee selected the much-debated and celebrated design “Memory Wound” by Swedish artist Jonas Dahlberg.

Since 2018, Mortensen has been vice president of ELIA, where he chaired the Artistic Research Working Group from 2019 to 2025. He was also involved in developing the Vienna declaration as an ELIA representative, and in the proposed changes on artistic research in the Frascati Manual. Mortensen also chaired the working group on artistic research on behalf of Universities Norway (2019-2024).

Jørn Mortensen also practices as a musician.