Tenure-track Assistant/Associate/Full Professor in Aquatic Biology and Ecology, Department of B[...]

The Department of Biology at Aarhus University aims to enhance and diversify our research and teaching program in aquatic biology and ecology. We therefore invite applications for up to two new faculty members at the level of Tenure-track Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Full Professor. The positions are to be filled by January 1, 2025, or as soon as possible thereafter, subject to negotiation.
The positions
The positions are aimed at expanding and strengthening the department’s expertise within aquatic biology and ecology. We are particularly interested in candidates who specialize in any aspect of freshwater and/or marine biology and ecology. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to, aquatic ecosystem dynamics, biogeochemical cycling, biodiversity, trophic interactions, and coastal ecology.

We welcome applicants with experience in approaches ranging from field studies and laboratory experiments to modeling techniques covering arctic or temperate climates. Special preference will be given to candidates who will develop new areas of study that complement our existing programs.
The selected candidates are expected to take a leading role in the establishment of externally funded research programs within the research area and to disseminate research and scientific results to the public.

Teaching is a significant aspect of the positions, encompassing both bachelor and master-level biology programs. This includes contributing to the teaching in basic courses at bachelor level providing a broad overview of fundamental biological principles. At the master level, the ideal candidate is expected to contribute to advanced courses including field courses. Supervision of undergraduate, graduate and PhD students is also expected.

Qualifications and experience in teaching and supervision will be carefully evaluated during the assessment process in alignment with the academic level applied (Tenure-track Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Full Professor).

In addition, the positions may include other departmental duties, such as participating in committees and public outreach initiatives. Involvement in university services and departmental community engagement programs is an expected and integral part of all positions at the department.

The qualifications of each candidate will be evaluated using the ABC criteria for permanent positions at Faculty of Natural Sciences, AU.

Place of employment
The place of employment is Aarhus University, Department of Biology, Ole Worms Allé 1, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark. You will be part of the Section for Aquatic Biology, located on the university campus in Aarhus.

The section's current research encompasses the ecophysiology and functional biology of aquatic plants and their roles in stream, wetland, and coastal ecosystems; carbon and nutrient cycling in streams and wetlands; dynamics of marine animal populations and their responses to environmental changes; marine invertebrates; fish ecology and fisheries; population dynamics of both marine and freshwater fish; and aspects of fish physiology, nutritional ecology, growth, and reproduction.

The section’s research covers arctic and temperate ecosystems, with an overarching focus on understanding the impact of global changes on aquatic ecosystems' functions. We aim to use this knowledge to improve the fundamental understanding of aquatic biodiversity and natural resources.

The section is equipped with state-of-the-art laboratories for analysis of water, soil, plants and animals, featuring advanced equipment and infrastructure for comprehensive experimental studies. The department also operates a research vessel, and a marine field station, and plant growth facilities. The section is located in proximity to diverse freshwater and marine habitats used for field based investigations. The Department hosts the Arctic Research Center with extensive research infrastructure in the Arctic. Together these facilities offer an excellent platform for experimental and observational aquatic ecology and provide an ideal environment for innovative research and for fostering collaborations across various aquatic ecosystems.
Candidate expectations
Successful candidates are expected to:

• Conduct research of the highest international standard and publish in high-impact scientific journals.
• Contribute to establishing and developing an excellent research environment within the field of aquatic biology or ecology.
• Contribute to relevant teaching and supervision in the biology degree programs.
• Establish synergies between own research and other related research activities.
• Obtain competitive research funding from external funding bodies.
• Contribute to the Department’s strategy, administrative tasks and social environment.
• Be able to communicate and teach in Danish within four years after employment.
  

Qualifications
Applicants should have a strong track record documenting important contributions to relevant areas within aquatic biology or ecology. Complementarity to the current research at the section is desirable.

The qualifications of each candidate will be evaluated using the ABC criteria for permanent positions at Faculty of Natural Sciences, AU.

Qualifications needed at the Tenure-track Assistant Professor level:
The ideal candidate will have a good trajectory of publications in high-level, international, peer-reviewed ISI journals and personal research grants or a designated (by name) part of major grants. Research plans and publication records should indicate a clear potential for attracting external funding. The candidate must have an academic standing showing internationally competitive research, and/or have high potential to make a future scientific impact at the international level. Documented university level experience in delivering high-quality undergraduate/graduate teaching is not mandatory but will be an advantage. If not already holding formal pedagogical qualifications, candidates are required to obtain pedagogical training at Aarhus University once appointed.

Qualifications needed at the Associate Professor level :
The ideal candidate is established as a prominent researcher within the specific field of research and possess documented solid research and teaching qualifications at a high international level. Assessment of qualifications are based on research output, including high-level peer-reviewed publications, international research collaboration and long-term research stay(s) at another internationally acknowledged university or research institution, proven ability to attract external funding, demonstrated ability to deliver high-quality undergraduate/graduate teaching and supervision of students, good communication skills and ability to collaborate and build relationships. The candidate must be ready to take co-responsibility for the development of the department’s research and education at the highest international level and for ensuring that we maintain a good work environment.

Qualifications needed at the Full Professor level :
The ideal candidate is established as an outstanding researcher within the specific field of research with a strong focus on research leadership and management. This implies leadership of a research group, and beyond. Furthermore, the candidate must possess documented solid teaching qualifications and a leading role in developing teaching, and educational programs. Assessment of your qualifications are based on research output, including high-level peer-reviewed publications, research leadership experience, international research collaboration, proven ability to attract external funding, demonstrated ability to deliver high-quality undergraduate/graduate teaching and supervision of students, good communication skills and ability to collaborate and build relationships.

You must indicate in your application whether you apply for the Tenure-track Assistant Professor position, the Associate Professor position, or the Full Professor position.
You may apply for more than one level of position.
About the Department of Biology
The Department of Biology ( hosts research programs and teaching curricula that cover all major biological sub-disciplines. The Department currently employs approximately 40 tenured academic staff, 60 postdocs, 40 PhD-students and 60 technical staff. The Department hosts BSc and MSc study programs in Biology with about 400 students enrolled as well as a PhD program. The Department offers a vibrant and informal research environment with a long-standing tradition for collaboration with international university partners in the absolute elite. The working language is English, and we welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds.

Read about the Danish work-life balance and the services available when relocating to Aarhus University here.

The Aarhus University campus is located in a beautiful park close to the city centre (population 300.000). Life quality and time allocation to family life in Denmark is high, and international investigations usually report that no other nationality score higher in terms of life satisfaction.
The benefits of working in Denmark
Denmark as a country offers the opportunity to pursue a career without compromising your family life and in general work-life balance in Denmark are among the best in Europe. In addition, Denmark is a safe place to live with a very low crime rate. The country is considered in the top of the happiest countries in the world in international surveys.

The Danish society builds on a welfare system which means your taxes goes into welfare services such as free healthcare and education. International academic staff members can, under certain conditions, benefit from a special tax reduction.

Collective agreements guarantee you a safe workplace, fair wages, pay during sickness, paid paternity/-maternity leave and flexible working hours.

If you want to know more about the Danish way of living please visit: Life in Denmark. Finally, Aarhus is ranked as no.1 by the global Happy City Index 2024 .
Further information
For additional information please contact Head of Section Professor Tenna Riis ( ) or Head of Department Professor Hans Brix ( )
Deadline
Applications must be submitted online and received by: 1 October, 2024.

At Aarhus University, we strive to improve gender balance. In particular, we encourage female researchers to apply for the position. Both women and men are welcome to apply for the position. No one will be given priority, and all applicants will be assessed in accordance with the requirement profile for the position.
Natural Sciences Tenure Track
Aarhus University offers talented scientists from around the world attractive career perspectives via the Natural Sciences Tenure Track Programme. Highly qualified candidates are appointed as Assistant Professors for a period of six years with the prospect of performance- based advancement to a tenured Associate Professorship.

The aim of the Natural Sciences Tenure Track Programme is to:

• attract outstanding talented individuals that are competitive at an international level
• to promote the early development of independent research success early in the career of scientists
• to create transparency in the academic career path

As part of the tenure track position, the candidate is offered:

• access to research infrastructure
• capability development, including postgraduate teacher training
• a mentoring programme
• support to develop scientific networks and to secure interdisciplinary research at the highest level

As part of the Aarhus University Tenure Track Programme, the University carries out a mid-way evaluation to review the progress of the tenure track candidate after three years, according to the same criteria used in the final tenure review. The final tenure review is conducted after five and a half years. If the review is positive, the candidate will be offered a tenured position as Associate Professor at Aarhus University.

Please refer to the tenure track guidelines for the tenure review criteria and for the tenure review process.

Application procedure
Shortlisting is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the assessment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. The selection is made on the basis of an assessment of who of the candidates are most relevant considering the requirements of the advertisement. All applicants will be notified within 6 weeks whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee and will receive his/her assessment. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.
Letter of reference
If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline. Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.
Formalities and salary range
Natural Sciences refers to the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.

The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities.

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

At the Faculty of Natural Science at Aarhus University, we strive to support our scientific staff in their career development. We focus on competency development and career clarification and want to make your opportunities transparent. On our website, you can find information on all types of scientific positions, as well as the entry criteria we use when assessing candidates. You can also read more about how we can assist you in your career planning and development.

Research activities will be evaluated in relation to actual research time. Thus, we encourage applicants to specify periods of leave without research activities, in order to be able to subtract these periods from the span of the scientific career during the evaluation of scientific productivity.

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Read more here. Please find more information about entering and working in Denmark here.

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.

Aarhus University
Aarhus University is an academically diverse and research-intensive university with a strong commitment to high-quality research and education and the development of society nationally and globally. The university offers an inspiring research and teaching environment to its 38,000 students (FTEs) and 8,300 employees, and has an annual revenues of EUR 935 million. Learn more at

Department: Akvatisk biologi/Aquatic Biology

Deadline: 01 October 2024

Location: Aarhus C Ole Worms Allé 1