Assistant professor / Associate professor / Professor of Human Genetics and Genomics

The Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences invites applications for the position of

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR / ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR / PROFESSOR OF HUMAN GENETICS AND GENOMICS

The successful applicant may be appointed to a fixed-term assistant / associate professorship (tenure track) (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/university/careers-at-the-university-of-helsinki/tenure-track-at-the-university-of-helsinki), or to a full professorship depending on the applicant’s qualifications and career stage.

We are looking for candidates who would strengthen and complement the scientific profile of the Molecular and Integrative Biosciences Research Programme. The successful candidate should have a strong track record for their career stage in the field of genetics and be committed to excellence in research and teaching. The research of the candidate should focus on, or have relevance for, human genetics and genomics. Skills to combine advanced experimental and analytical approaches are considered an asset. The selected candidate is expected to build up and lead an independent research group conducting innovative research in genetics and acquire external research funding. Duties will include supervision of undergraduate and postgraduate students and teaching on Bachelor’s and Master’s courses related to the field of the position. Active participation in long-term curriculum development is expected, in particular in the genetics related teaching in the Master’s programme in Genetics and Molecular Biosciences (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/degree-programmes/genetics-and-molecular-biosciences-masters-programme) and the Bachelor programmes in Molecular Biosciences (hthttps://www.helsinki.fi/en/degree-programmes/molekyylibiotieteiden-kandiohjelma) and Biology (https://www.helsinki.fi/fi/koulutusohjelmat/biologian-kandiohjelma). We seek a candidate committed to foster a sustainable, diverse and inclusive environment for all students and colleagues (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/sustainability-and-responsibility/sustainable-and-equal-campus).

The position is based at the Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, located at the Viikki Campus (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/visit-us/campuses/viikki-campus). A secondary affiliation with the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM, https://www.helsinki.fi/en/hilife-helsinki-institute-life-science/units/fimm) is possible, depending on the research interests of the candidate, which would provide access to unique human genetic databases and a vibrant human genetics research community (see below).

An appointee to an associate or full professorship must have a doctoral degree and have internationally recognized scholarly qualifications and experience in the supervision of scientific research, vision and experience in providing high quality research-based teaching and supervising theses and dissertations, as well as documentation of international cooperation in the research field that the appointee represents.

An appointee to an assistant professorship must have a doctoral degree. In addition, an assistant professor should have the ability to conduct independent scholarly work, supervise and mentor doctoral and postdoctoral researchers, and have the teaching skills necessary for the position.

When considering the applicant’s qualifications for the position, attention will be given to scientific publications and their significance in the applicant’s field of research, teaching experience and skills and pedagogical competence, ability to produce teaching materials, supervision of undergraduate and graduate theses, as well as participation in doctoral education. Furthermore, account shall also be taken of the applicant’s activity in the scientific community, success in obtaining external research funding, international research experience and positions in international organizations. The assessment will be conducted in accordance with the applicant’s career stage. The University of Helsinki has signed the DORA Declaration (htthttps://sfdora.orgps://sfdora.org) and applies its principles when assessing the scientific merit of applicants.

There is no requirement to be proficient in Finnish or Swedish for foreign citizens, non-native Finnish citizens or citizens who have not been educated in Finnish or Swedish. To successfully attend to the duties of the position, the appointee must have good skills in English, and a positive attitude towards learning Finnish and/or Swedish.

The starting annual gross salary for assistant/associate professors typically amounts to 60,000 - 72,000 euros and for professors to 72,000 – 92,000 euros, depending on the appointee’s career stage and scholarly qualifications. In addition to the facilities and research infrastructure that are currently available, the Faculty will provide a startup package to the appointee.

The University of Helsinki offers comprehensive services to its employees, including occupational health care and health insurance, sports facilities, and opportunities for professional development. The International Staff Services office (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/university/working-at-the-university) assists employees from abroad with their transition to work and life in Finland. Finland is a very family-friendly country with generous parental leaves, affordable daycare available for all children and high-quality free primary, secondary and tertiary education as well as public healthcare. See, e.g., https://whttps://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/information-arriving-international-staff.
 

The University of Helsinki is an international scientific community of 40,000 students and researchers. It is one of the leading multidisciplinary research universities and ranks among the top 100 international universities in the world. We are committed to the principles and practices of open science. We are an equal opportunity employer and offer an attractive and diverse workplace in an inspiring environment with a variety of development opportunities and benefits.

The Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences (www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-biological-and-environmental-sciences) is Finland’s premier hub for life science research and education. The professorship is based in the Molecular and Integrative Biosciences Research Programme, which is one of the three Research Programmes in the Faculty. Strong research areas of the Programme, which are also reflected in teaching, are cell and developmental biology, genetics and genomics, neurobiology, and structural biology and virology. FIMM – one  of the four institutes in Nordic EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine (https://projects.au.dk/nordic-embl-partnership) and one of the HiLIFE units of the University of Helsinki (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/hilife-helsinki-institute-life-science) – offers cutting-edge research infrastructures and fosters collaboration across disciplines and with leading academic and industry partners in the global genetics community. For researchers in human genetics, FIMM offers a uniquely enabling environment, including access to FinnGen data combining genomic and health registry data from 500,000 Finns. Close ties to clinicians nationwide provide translational opportunities towards clinical implementation and disease prevention.
 

The research and teaching activities at the University of Helsinki are supported by state-of-the-art infrastructures including core facilities for e.g. DNA sequencing and genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, light- and electron microscopy as well as work with model organisms (https://www.helsinki.fi/en/hilife-helsinki-institute-life-science/services/life-science-research-infrastructures).

Application procedure. Applicants are requested to enclose with their applications the following documents in English:

1) CV
2) A report on the applicant’s previous research activities and acquired external funding (total funding, broken down over the last 10 years amounts, status as PI or co-PI, funding agency, project name)

3) A plan for how the applicant intends to develop their research and focus their activities in the future. (max. 3 pages)
4) A report (max. 3 pages) of experience and merits which are of relevance for the evaluation of teaching skills.
5) A numbered list of international peer-reviewed publications in English and other works with which the applicant wishes to demonstrate their competence and merits, with maximum 10 most important publications highlighted with a brief outline of the significance of the study and applicant's role in it.
Alternatively, an academic portfolio maybe provided containing the above documents and information.
 

For more detailed instructions, see https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/open-positions/instructions-applicants-teaching-and-research-positions

Applications must be submitted through the University’s electronic 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. The deadline for applications is October 10th, 2025 (Finnish time).
 

Further information can be obtained from the Director of the Molecular and Integrative Biosciences Research Programme, Professor Juha Partanen, juha.m.partanen (at) helsinki.fi, tel. +358 (0) 2941 59382 or from Vice Director Professor Susanna Fagerholm, susanna.fagerholm (at) helsinki.fi, tel. +358 (0) 294159926.

Technical support for using the recruitment system: rekrytointi (at) helsinki.fi