Assistant professor, associate professor or professor of Church History
The Faculty of Theology invites applications for the position of a
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OR PROFESSOR OF CHURCH HISTORY
Job description
The field of the position is early modern reformation up to 1900.
The successful applicant will be appointed to a permanent professorship or a fixed-term assistant or associate professorship (tenure track system), depending on their qualifications and career stage. The appointment is planned to begin on 1 September 2025.
The position’s field of teaching encompasses the sources and methods of church history studies, the different time periods and trends of Christianity and churches from early modern reformation to the year 1900, as well as the social and cultural impact of Christianity. The appointee must practise and supervise scholarly research relating to the periods stated above. They must contribute to international collaboration and public engagement in the field.
Appointment criteria
An appointee to the position of assistant professor or associate professor must hold a doctoral degree and have the ability to conduct independent scholarly work as well as the teaching, guidance and supervision skills necessary for the position. In addition, the appointee must have the ability and motivation to pursue an academic career, as demonstrated by publications and other means.
An appointee to a professorship must hold a doctoral degree and possess top-level scholarly qualifications and experience in the supervision of scholarly research, as well as the ability to provide top-level research-based teaching and supervise theses. In addition, the appointee must present documentation of international cooperation in the research field they represent. The appointee must be able to supervise and assess theses and studies written in Finnish as well as those based on Finnish-language sources. They must also have academic leadership skills.
When considering an applicant’s qualifications, attention is given to scholarly publications and other research results of academic value, teaching experience and pedagogical training, the ability to produce teaching material, other teaching merits and, if necessary, a demonstration of teaching skills as well as the applicant’s participation in doctoral education. Account is also taken of the applicant’s activity in the academic community, success in obtaining external research funding, international research experience and international elected positions as well as leadership and interaction skills. A strong knowledge of theology is needed in teaching in church history. Also considered in the appointment are the applicants’ views on the development of research and teaching, as well as, in the case of shortlisted applicants, assessments by external assessors and interviews.
Pursuant to the Government Decree on Universities (770/2009), appointees to teaching and research positions at the University must be proficient in the language in which they provide instruction, i.e., Finnish or Swedish; in this case, Finnish. To successfully attend to the duties of the position, the appointee must also have satisfactory skills in Swedish and good skills in English.
Salary
The salary will be based on levels 7 (assistant/associate professor) or 8–10 (professor) of the job requirement scheme for teaching and research personnel in the salary system of Finnish universities. In addition, the appointee will be paid a salary component based on personal work performance. The annual salary of an assistant or associate professor is approximately €55,000–68,500, while that of a professor is approximately €66,500–99,000, depending on the previous experience and qualifications of the appointee. The position includes a six-month trial period.
The University of Helsinki provides its staff with occupational health and fitness services, professional development opportunities, as well as a first-class research and teaching environment and the conditions necessary for international cooperation. Read more about staff benefits on our website.
How to apply
The application, together with the required attachments, must be submitted through the University of Helsinki recruitment system by clicking on the link below. Internal applicants (i.e., current employees of the University of Helsinki) must submit their applications through the SAP Fiori portal.
Applicants are requested to enclose the following documents in English with their applications as a single PDF file:
1. A curriculum vitae
2. A numbered list of publications
3. A report (max. 5 pages) on the applicant’s teaching expertise
4. A report (max. 5 pages) describing the applicant’s research activities (activities in the academic community, success in obtaining research funding and international research activity)
5. A written vision (max. 2 pages) for the applicant’s research activities and the development of the field
Please see the instructions.
Applicants are kindly asked to prepare to select up to 10 publications from their list of publications and submit them for assessment through the recruitment system after the application period, and in addition to fill in a separate form of teaching skills.
Doctoral degree must be completed by the end of the application period.
The application deadline is 25th of March 2025.
The University of Helsinki welcomes applicants of any gender, linguistic or cultural background, or minority group.
Further information
Further information on the position can obtained from Dean Antti Räsänen (antti.rasanen(at)helsinki.fi). Further information on the recruitment process can be obtained from HR Specialist Reeta Korhonen (hr-teoltdk(at)helsinki.fi).
Further information on careers and the tenure track model at the University of Helsinki is available on our website.