Tenure Track Assistant professorship or Associate Professor in Disease Management of Cereal Crops

Are you a plant pathologist with an interest in future sustainable disease management strategies for cereal cropping systems?

Will you contribute to and support the green transition of Danish and European crop protection? If so, the Department of Agroecology at Aarhus University, Denmark, offers an attractive position in the Crop Health section, where you will perform team-based research projects to reduce the reliance on chemical pesticides. This is an excellent opportunity to further develop your research portfolio on plant pathology, fungicide resistance and implement integrated disease management in future arable cropping systems. In addition to research, part of the position is to attract external funding, and you will contribute to the teaching of BSc and MSc degree students as well as to the supervision of Ph.D. students. As part of the department’s responsibilities towards Danish authorities, you may also be involved in policy support activities.
We expect that you will be an important part of the international research community on disease management and that your research will be reported in high-impact scientific journals. We also expect that you will contribute positively to the social working environment in the department.

Depending on the qualifications of the applicants, the position is offered as either a Tenure Track Assistant Professor or an Associate Professor. In your application, you must indicate if you apply for the Tenure Track Assistant Professorship, the Associate Professorship, or both. The position is full-time starting on 1 November 2026 or as soon as possible afterward.

Your profile

Your qualifications for the Tenure Track Assistant Professor role:
You have independent research-related qualifications in plant pathology at a high international level, and you have the potential to become a successful research leader. Your qualifications are assessed based on research output, including peer-reviewed publications, international research collaboration, performing ground-breaking research, attracting external funding, communication skills, the ability to collaborate and build relationships, and undergraduate/graduate teaching. It is positive if you have stayed at or been employed at least one internationally recognized research institution. Tenure track positions are usually aimed at candidates who have not previously held an assistant professor position.

Your qualifications for the Associate Professor role:
You have established yourself as a prominent researcher within plant pathology and you possess documented solid research and teaching qualifications at a high international level. Assessment of your qualifications is 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. You should be ready to take 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.

Besides the requirements for either a tenure track assistant professor or associated professor, you must:

• Hold a Ph.D. in plant disease management or plant pathology
• Document experience in scientific writing with several papers in high-quality journals or other high-quality publication channels.
• Proven international research collaborations (e.g., joint papers and joint applications)
• Be dedicated and possess the ability to collaborate and build relationships.

Research plan

It is required and very important that you provide a 2-3 page plan for research over the next 3-5 years within focused parts of the research area and have a clear potential to perform high-quality research as well as attract external funding. If you are selected, the research plan will be the basis of an application for a starting grant.

Additional qualifications

Further, we will prefer candidates with some of the following qualifications:

• Experience in planning and conducting field-work and greenhouse trials
• Experience in planning and conducting laboratory work with pathogenic fungi
• Experience in testing and handling fungicides as well as biological control organisms as a mean of controlling plant pathogens
• Insight into fungicide resistance and the use of the different diagnostic tools
• Experience with collaboration with private companies and/or policy support

Who we are

At the Department of Agroecology, our main goal is to contribute to sustainable solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems within the areas of soil, plants, animals, humans, and the environment. We want to make a difference by contributing to both fundamental knowledge generation and the attainment of sustainable production systems via innovative research, contracted policy advice, and education. We offer professional laboratories, greenhouses, semi-field, and field-scale research facilities, advanced computing capacities as well as an extensive national and international researcher network.  The department consists of nine research sections with around 350 highly skilled employees, of which approximately 50% are scientific staff. More information can be found here.
We believe in encouraging inclusion, acceptance, and understanding by employing staff who bring unique perspectives to our department.

What we offer

• A collaborative, international research environment that combines high academic standards with an informal and supportive atmosphere. We value accountability, curiosity, flexibility, and teamwork in everything we do.
• An inclusive and respectful workplace culture, where mutual trust, kindness, and professional dialogue are part of daily life. We encourage open communication and develop a cohesive sense of community across teams and disciplines.
• A flexible working environment that supports work-life balance and individual needs.
• An active institutional commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion – in recruitment, career development, and everyday interactions.
• An innovative and meaningful workplace where your work contributes to solving real-world challenges. No two days are alike, and we welcome creative thinking and new ideas.
• Support for international researchers and their families, including  Relocation Service and an Expat Partner Programme

Living and working in Denmark

• Subsidised childcare and free education from primary school through university.
• Universal healthcare for you and your family as residents.
• Five weeks of paid holiday per year.
• Generous parental leave – up to 52 weeks shared between parents, with full or partial salary.

Place of Work

The place of work is Aarhus University, Flakkebjerg, Forsøgsvej 1, 4200 Slagelse. The affiliation will be with the Department of Agroecology.
More information can be obtained from René Gislum Lektor, sektionsleder +4587158279
rg@agro.au.dk
 

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.

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.

If you wish to add a referee after you have submitted your application, you must send this person’s details (name, job title, place of work, and email address) as well as the name of the position you have applied for to: HR.Nattech@au.dk

Formalities and salary range

Technical 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.

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 37,000 students (FTEs) and 8.700 employees and has an annual revenue of EUR 1.106 billion. Learn more at www.international.au.dk/