Professor of geology engineering at NTNU (the Norwegian University of Science and Technology) since 1985, with a break of 2 years as visiting professor at Colorado School of Mines in the US. Bjorn Nilsen gained several years of experience in consulting and the mining industry before joining the University.

He has extensive experience on various aspects of rock engineering, including site investigation, planning/design, stability analyses and construction control. Has been acting as Expert advisor for several large projects in Norway and other countries and is currently covering a wide area with main projects on subsea tunnelling, hydropower tunnelling, geological engineering aspects of mechanical excavation and rock slope stability analysis.

He is the former President of the Norwegian Tunnelling Society (NFF), and was the Chairman of the Scientific Committee for the ITA World Tunnel Congress in Bergen, 2017.