University lecturer in Global forest management
The Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry invites applications for the position of University lecturer in Global forest management, starting 1.11.2025 or as agreed. The permanent position will be located at the Department of Forest Sciences.
The university lecturer strengthens the global research and teaching related to the management and sustainable use of forest resources at the Department of Forest Sciences. Applicants must have strong evidence of research, teaching, and thesis supervision in the field. Successful performance in the position requires the applicant to have research and teaching experience in one or more of the following disciplines:
- global forestry
- agroforestry
- integration of economic, ecological and social perspectives of global forestry
The Lecturer must have experience and capabilities in obtaining research funding and supervising Bachelor's, Master's students and doctoral researchers.
Practical leadership experience in activities related to forest resource management and use, including human dimensions such as people's livelihoods, will be considered an advantage for the applicant. Additionally, experience in international education, acquiring related funding, and curriculum development and implementation, especially in developing countries, is considered an advantage.
The appointee must have versatile research methodology expertise and should also master modern data analysis methods. The appointee must have an interest in working in a multicultural and multilingual environment and in interdisciplinary teams, as well as collaborating with stakeholders from the private, public and third sectors. In the Department of Forest Sciences, the teaching and research of the university lecturer is particularly linked to the activities of the Viikki Tropical Resources Institute (VITRI) https://www.helsinki.fi/en/researchgroups/viikki-tropical-resources-institute.
The main responsibility of the university lecturer is teaching at the bachelor's and master's level, which is offered in forest sciences degree programs and in the university-level Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) program. The Department of Forest Sciences offers the LAS program "Resource management of global forests" study line, which includes two modules, a total of eight courses. The university lecturer is the person responsible for this study line and the Global Forests module (four courses) included in it.
The selected individual for the position must have the necessary pedagogical skills for teaching and motivation for renewing and developing teaching in both bachelor's and master's programs. Teaching is also developed through international projects.The responsibilities of the university lecturer also include participating in student marketing for the bachelor's and master’s programmes, as well as engaging in societal interaction.
Eligibility requirements:
The appointee to the position shall hold an applicable doctoral degree and be able to provide high-quality teaching based on research and to supervise theses and dissertations. When assessing the qualifications of the applicants, attention shall be paid to scientific publications and other research merits of scientific value and their proven ability to receive external research funding. In addition, teaching experience and pedagogical training, the ability to produce learning materials, other teaching merits and, if necessary, a teaching demonstration.
According to the Government Decree on Universities, university lecturers must be proficient in Finnish. They must also have at least satisfactory spoken and written skills in Swedish. Foreign citizens, non-native Finnish citizens or citizens who have not been educated in Finnish or Swedish may be exempted from this requirement without a separate application. If the appointee is not proficient in Finnish, they are expected to acquire intermediate level skills (CEFR level B2; https://europa.eu/europass/en/common-european-framework-reference-language-skills) within five years after the appointment. The University will support the appointee in acquiring the necessary Finnish language skills and time for language studies can be included in annual working plan. To successfully attend to the duties of the position, the appointee must have good English skills.
WHAT WE OFFER
We offer an interesting opportunity to work in a diverse research environment. At the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry you will carry out research-based teaching at the highest education level in the field in Finland and have the opportunity to take part in internationally valued, first-class research activities. The position is also an opportunity to develop your own professional skills in a multidisciplinary work community of the faculty. Your work will be supported by the research and teaching staff of the department and the faculty as well as the administrative and technical staff at Viikki campus. The University of Helsinki has a university lecturer's career model in use https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/academic-careers/career-model-university-lecturers-and-clinical-instructors.
The salary will be based on levels 5-7 of the requirements level chart 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. Monthly gross salary for a university lecturer varies between 3 500 and 5 500 euros depending on the appointee’s qualifications and experience. Occupational health care services and standard Finnish pension benefits are provided for University employees. There is a six-month trial period in the position.
HOW TO APPLY
Applicants are requested to submit their applications in ONE SINGLE PDF file the following (in Finnish or in English):
- Motivation letter for the position in question (max 1 page)
- A curriculum vitae (CV)
- A numbered list of scientific and other publications (please use the Ministry of Education and Culture classification of publication types: https://koodistot.suomi.fi/codescheme;registryCode=research;schemeCode=Julkaisutyyppiluokitus
- Research and scientific activities (max 3 pages)
- Involvement in administrative duties
- Other activities which you wish to bring to the attention of the faculty.
- Please submit the description of your teaching qualifications via a separate e-form at: https://elomake.helsinki.fi/lomakkeet/124406/lomake.html
General guidelines on application documents:
Applications with the above attachments must be submitted in a single PDF file, which is named:
global_lastname_firstname. Other attachments are not required.
External applicants, please submit your application using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System via the Apply Now button.
Applicants who have a helsinki.fi username and a valid employment contract, a grant researcher's contract or a visiting researcher's contract at the University of Helsinki are requested to leave their application by using the Employee login.
The deadline for applications is 18.8.2025 (at 23.59 EEST).
The University of Helsinki welcomes applicants of any gender and age, linguistic or cultural background, or minority group.
FURTHER INFORMATION
• Further information about the position is available from Head of Department Professor Markus Holopainen (markus.holopainen (at)helsinki.fi, tel. +358 50 380 4984)
• Further information on the recruitment process may be obtained from HR Specialist Mirkka Juntunen (mirkka.juntunen(at)helsinki.fi, tel. +358 2941 57583)
ABOUT US
The Department of Forest sciences is a unit of the University of Helsinki's Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, where approximately 140 people work. The department conducts internationally respected forestry research and provides top education based on it. The main research areas of research and teaching are forest ecology, forest resource management, and forest bioeconomy business and policy. The aim of the multidisciplinary activity is the teaching of sustainability and sustainable use of forests, scientific research and social influence. The Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry grants Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Forestry as well as doctoral degrees in the university's doctoral programs. Approximately 350 undergraduate and 60 postgraduate students study in the department's education programs. The Department of Forest sciences is active in its social activities, and has good and long-term cooperation with research institutes in the field, other universities, administration and companies nationally and internationally. https://www.helsinki.fi/fi/maatalous-metsatieteellien-tiedekunta/tutkimus/metsatieteet
The Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry is located on the Viikki campus. The mission of the faculty is to promote the sustainable use of renewable natural resources through scientific research and research-based teaching. We focus on agricultural and forest sciences, food and nutrition, microbiology, as well as on economics and management. We cover the full natural resource chain from farm to fork, the entire field of forest sciences from soil chemistry to marketing, as well as the environmental effects of related activities. Graduates from the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry are versatile experts in biosciences and business, able to meet the needs of both the business sector and society at large. www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-of-agriculture-and-forestry
www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-of-agriculture-and-forestry
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