Assistant Professor or Associate Professor in Mathematics

The Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the Faculty of Science of the University of Helsinki invites applications for an

ASSISTANT OR ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN MATHEMATICS

Position description

The call is open for candidates with research expertise in any field of mathematics without predetermined priorities.  We are looking for candidates who have demonstrated potential for research at the highest international level, relative to their current career stage.  In addition to striving towards excellence in research, the appointee is expected to take advantage of national and international funding opportunities to build and support a research group at the Department.  Appointments from this call are made at a tenure track Assistant or Associate Professor level.  In particular, we do not consider applications for a full professor position in this call.

The appointee will also be expected to participate in teaching and supervision of suitable courses and theses in mathematics.  The department offers a broad spectrum of topics of courses in its associated teaching programmes, and we encourage all candidates to include in their Academic portfolio (see below) a description of in which topics they could contribute to the teaching and how their previous experience and qualifications support this. The expected amount of course teaching (including both Master and Bachelor level topics) is 10 ECTS credits per year as Assistant Professor, 15 credits per year as Associate Professor, where 5 credits typically correspond to a 7-week course of 4 hours of lectures each week.

The appointee will also need to carry out standard duties related to their position at the department, such as administration, tutoring, and in the interaction between science and society.

Qualifications

We seek talented candidates with a doctorate degree, post-doctoral experience, and recent demonstration of excellence in research in mathematics in accordance with their career stage as well as some teaching experience. Early-stage independent researchers with 3–10 years of experience since completion of PhD are especially encouraged to apply.

The successful applicant may be appointed to either an assistant or associate professorship (tenure track), depending on their qualifications and career stage. The successful candidate at the assistant professor level shows potential to be a future research leader and is expected to develop an independent, externally funded line of research in current or emerging areas of mathematics. At the associate level, evidence for these achievements is required. For more information on the tenure track model and the assessment criteria , please see https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/academic-careers/tenure-track.

The candidate must be fluent in English, both oral and written. For applicants with an international background, skills in Finnish and/or Swedish are not required but may also be considered a merit. Good co-operation and interaction skills are considered an advantage for the applicant.

What we offer

The University will offer the appointee an attractive career opportunity in top-level research and research-based teaching, possibilities for international collaboration, and, for assistant/ associate professors, prerequisites to grow into full professorship. The contracts for assistant and associate professors have a fixed term of 3–5 years, towards the end of which an evaluation is made concerning possible promotion to the next level. Assuming a successful evaluation at the end of the associate professorship, a promotion to full professorship will ensue.

A typical starting gross salary for a newly appointed assistant professor is 5200–5600  euros/month and for an associate professor 5700–6100  euros/month. The selected person will also get a startup package of about 160 000 EUR.

The University of Helsinki offers comprehensive services to its employees, including preventive occupational health services and general medical care, sports facilities, and opportunities for professional development. The University is an equal opportunity workplace and we welcome applicants of any gender and age, linguistic or cultural background, or minority group. Women and other underrepresented groups in the field of mathematics are specifically encouraged to apply. We support the compatibility of work and family-life e.g. by providing an opportunity for 6 weeks of paid annual leave.

The University assists employees from abroad with their transition to work and life in Finland and e.g. offers support for language studies to learn Finnish and Swedish. Finland is a family-friendly country with generous parental leaves, affordable state-subsidized day care that is available for all children, as well as world-renowned free primary education and universal healthcare. For more on the University of Helsinki as an employer and living in Helsinki, please see https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers and https://welcome.helsinki/#/.  

How to apply

Applications must have the following attachments as one single pdf file (in English):

1) A cover letter describing the candidate’s suitability for the position and motivation to apply for it (1–2 pages).
2) An academic portfolio, including a list of publications, following the guidelines at https://www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-of-science/faculty/join-us/academic-portfolio. In particular, please outline your near-term research plans and broader research goals as part of the section “Research statement” of the portfolio.  

Please submit your application using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System. The deadline for applications is October 31st, 2024 (call closes at 23:59 (UTC+2)).

Applicants, who are employees of the University of Helsinki, are requested to leave their application by using the “Employee Login.”

Further information

For further information, please contact:

• About the position and the working environment: Head of Department, Professor Jani Lukkarinen, jani.lukkarinen(at)helsinki.fi
• About the recruitment process and recruitment system:  HR Specialist Jussi Hartikainen, jussi.a.hartikainen(at)helsinki.fi

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The University of Helsinki is among the leading multidisciplinary research universities in the world. In addition to its 11 faculties, the University includes several independent institutes, some of which are jointly operated with other universities. Some 35,000 students are currently pursuing an undergraduate or a postgraduate degree at the University of Helsinki.

As part of the Faculty of Science, the Department of Mathematics and Statistics of the University of Helsinki is the biggest university department of mathematical sciences in Finland. Its multifaceted research has received the highest points in numerous assessments. The Department collaborates actively with other higher education institutions and with several government research institutes both in Finland and abroad.