The Danish School of Education (DPU) at the Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University, invites applications for four full-time assistant professorships positions in pedagogy and educational studies.  

One of the four assistant professorship positions will be offered the position as a tenure-track. The tenure-track assistant professorship is a five-year, fixed-term appointment, with the possibility of permanent employment (tenure) as an associate professor. (Conditions related to the tenure-position) 

The assistant professorships are full-time, three-year training positions and will commence on 1 August 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter. 

DPU welcomes applicants with a research background in empirical school research (primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school) and/or empirical research in higher education within one or more of the following areas: education and democracy, education for sustainable development, school exclusion and vulnerability, special education and learning, professional formation and development, educational psychology from a lifelong learning perspective, teacher education for preschool and/or primary and lower secondary levels, and general didactics.  

The selected candidates will be employed in one of DPU’s four departments (see the description of DPU below). 

The positions are based at DPU at either Aarhus Campus or Emdrup Campus (see the description of DPU below). It is important that the selected candidates take part in the daily activities of the relevant department, including teaching and supervision of students. As DPU is located in both Aarhus and Copenhagen, the selected candidates should expect some travel between the campuses. 

Research  
The selected candidates for the assistant professorships are expected to develop new research projects with immediate relevance to one or more of the subject areas mentioned above.  

The selected candidates are also expected to contribute to research initiatives within their specific area(s) of research and to the broader research environment at DPU, including the development of new research projects with internal and external partners and the attraction of external research funding.  

Applicants must be able to document original scholarly production of a high international standard, as well as significant contributions to theoretical and empirical research within the relevant area(s).  

Applicants are furthermore asked to outline their visions and plans for the future development of their area(s) of research.  

Teaching  
The selected candidates are expected to have experience of or an interest in teaching at university level, and should be prepared to teach and supervise at Master’s and PhD levels as well as on DPU’s cross-departmental professional Master’s degree programmes.  

The selected candidates are also expected to contribute to the pedagogical and technological development of existing and new degree programmes within their specific area(s) of research. Experience in teaching and developing online, blended or hybrid formats, and in the use of technologies in teaching, will be considered an advantage, but is not a requirement. Applicants should document any prior teaching experience and outline their pedagogical initiatives, teaching approach and key focus areas relevant to the assistant professorship. 

Talent development  
The selected candidates are expected to develop their supervision skills at Master’s level and to contribute to the academic development of students. 

Knowledge exchange 
The selected candidates are expected to engage in knowledge exchange as described in the strategy of the Faculty of Arts, for instance through research collaboration with external partners, public dissemination, consultancy work or collaboration with civil society actors. Applicants should document any prior experience of knowledge exchange and outline their plans for the impact of their research on educational practice and/or policy. 

Qualifications  
Applicants must hold a PhD degree or equivalent qualifications in a relevant field and be able to document: 

• a research profile within one or more of the above-mentioned areas 
• experience of empirical educational research 
• an internationally oriented publication profile 
• experience of or an interest in international and interdisciplinary collaboration 
• experience of or potential for obtaining external research funding 
• experience of or an interest in developing and teaching innovative, online and technology-enhanced methods of instruction
• experience of or an interest in supervising student projects. 

It is of vital importance that the selected candidates take part in the daily activities of the relevant department at DPU, such as research and teaching activities and communities, as well as in administrative tasks and organisational boards (central board of studies, degree programme boards and relevant local management roles). We emphasise the importance of good working relationships, both among colleagues and with our students. 

Applicants must be able to teach and publish in English. If the selected candidates do not speak Danish, they will be required to acquire Danish-language proficiency within approximately two years. 

The application must be submitted in English. 

Further information
For further information about the position, please contact the head of DPU, Claus Holm, by email: Institutleder-DPU@edu.au.dk or tel.: + 45 2688 5600. 

International applicants   
International applicants are encouraged to read about family and work-life balance as well as the attractive working conditions and other benefits of working at Aarhus University and in Denmark, including healthcare, paid holidays and, if relevant, maternity/paternity leave, childcare and schooling. Aarhus University offers a wide range of services for international researchers and accompanying family members, including a relocation service and career counselling for expat partners. Further information about the taxation aspects of international researchers’ employment by Aarhus University and about entering and working in Denmark is available on Aarhus University’s website. 

An appointee who does not speak Danish will be required to acquire Danish-language proficiency sufficient to handle tasks, including administrative and managerial responsibilities, and to participate fully in the activities of DPU within approximately two years of commencing the appointment. This includes, but is not limited to, teaching and examining students, reading work-related texts and participating in meetings and collegial gatherings in Danish.  

Tenure review and the tenure-track assistant professorship 
To become tenured, the tenure-track assistant professor must be assessed as qualified as an associate professor during the last six months of the final year of employment at the latest or, if the tenure-track assistant professor requests it, at an earlier time within the first four years of employment. The assessment is based on the tenure-track assistant professor’s fulfilment of the qualification requirements that apply to associate professorships and the criteria stated in the original advertisement. If the assessment is positive, the tenure-track assistant professor will be offered a tenured position as an associate professor at Aarhus University. The tenure-track assistant professor must have contributed actively to the academic and research environment of the department. 
 
At the time of tenure review for the position of associate professor, the tenure-track assistant professor is expected to have developed a strong research profile at a high international level and published the equivalent of at least two peer-reviewed scholarly articles per year. The tenure-track assistant professor is further expected to have contributed actively to collaborative research and research initiatives with other local, national and/or international researchers in the field. This includes having participated in attracting research funding from external funding bodies and having spent a period of research at one or more recognised research institutions. 
 
At the time of tenure review for the position of tenured associate professor, the tenure-track assistant professor must document the ability to undertake teaching tasks independently at all levels within their own core subject area and document the breadth of their teaching competences at all levels including supervision: they must have taught three to four courses a year, depending on the nature of the specific courses; they must have engaged in supervision activities such as thesis supervision at Bachelor’s and/or Master’s level; and they must have conducted exams. The tenure-track assistant professor is also expected to have participated in curriculum development. Lastly, the tenure-track assistant professor must have completed the university’s teacher training programme for assistant professors prior to tenure review. 

About the Danish School of Education 
The Danish School of Education (DPU) is one of the three schools at the Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University. 

Across its two locations at Campus Emdrup in Copenhagen and Nobel Park in Aarhus, DPU is home to approximately 200 academic and administrative staff, as well as roughly 80 PhD students. 

Our degree programmes  
The Danish School of Education currently offers a Bachelor’s degree programme in educational science and ten Master’s degree programmes in a range of educational and pedagogical disciplines, as well as six professional Master’s degree programmes that can also be studied as single-subject courses.  

Approximately 2,000 students are enrolled in the school’s Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programmes, of these is approximately 250 students enrolled in professional Master’s degree programmes. 

Many of these degree programmes are offered at DPU’s locations in both Copenhagen and Aarhus, with students fairly evenly divided between the two campuses. 

Our research 
The Danish School of Education is Denmark's largest university environment for basic and applied research in pedagogy and education. 

The school is home to strong research environments within educational sciences, subject didactics, general education, educational psychology, educational anthropology, educational sociology and educational philosophy, in addition, we conduct interdisciplinary research aimed at specific educational fields of inquiry.  

DPU promotes public awareness of research in education and pedagogy through extensive dissemination activities with the aim of providing society with a rich and robust knowledge base. 

• Faculty of Arts refers to the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities (the Appointment Order).
• Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Finance 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 .
• Further information on the application and supplementary materials may be found in Application Guidelines.
• The application must outline the applicant's motivation for applying for the position, attaching a curriculum vitae, a teaching portfolio, a complete list of published works, a research plan, copies of degree certificates and examples of academic production (mandatory, but no more than two examples). Please upload this material electronically along with your application.

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