Senior Lecturer in Sensory Biology - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

At the Department of Biology, we perform fundamental research in a number of different areas, ranging from processes at the molecular level and protein production to interactions within ecosystems, and from the genetic code to behaviour. We also perform research on a number of applied topics, such as conservation biology, pest control and the effects of climate change. The Biological Museum holds a large and unique collection from which specimens are lent across the world. The department has excellent facilities with almost everything a biologist could wish for, including molecular laboratories, electron- and confocal microscopes, climate-controlled rooms, a wind tunnel and a field station. A total of around 300 people, of which about 80 are PhD students, work at the department.

The new position is intended to strengthen the Lund Vision Group, one of the department’s larger research environments, with a long tradition of comparative vision research with particular focus on visual ecology and evolution, visual physiology and neurobiology, and the integration of vision with other senses. A broad spectrum of techniques and model animals are used and these change as research questions evolve. According to a recent research quality evaluation (RQ20), the Lund Vision Group is world leading within its field, with excellent levels of external funding, which currently includes three prestigious European Research Council (ERC) grants. There also exists a strong connection between research and teaching. As part of our postgraduate education, we offer the well-known international PhD student course Sensory Ecology, which attracts doctoral students from all over the world.

The Lund Vision Group currently has three professors financed by the faculty and four senior researchers financed by external funding agencies (both national and international). The Lund Vision Group excels in both research and teaching, and aims to maintain this high level of performance in both the shorter and longer term.

Job description
The principal duties of the position consist mainly of research and teaching at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level. Teaching is expected to account for up to around 30% of full-time work at the senior lecturer level. Teaching can account for up to around 20% for a full professor. In addition, the successful candidate is expected to supervise Masters and PhD students, to actively engage in departmental duties, and to interact with authorities and society at large. The description of duties associated with the position, as well as the ratio between research and teaching, may change over time.

The successful candidate is expected to develop an active research programme in sensory biology by actively applying for external research funding and by developing collaborations with research groups within other organisations and universities, both national and international, that work on similar research questions.

The purpose of the new position is to strengthen the Lund Vision Group into the future. It is therefore of particular importance that the applicant’s research is related to as well as complements and/or broadens the research themes currently pursued by the tenured academic staff of the Lund Vision Group. There are currently no administrative or leadership duties connected with the position, but in the future it is expected that the successful candidate will participate in this type of work.

A PhD student position and a starting grant will accompany the position.

Eligibility
Qualifications for appointment as a senior lecturer include demonstrated teaching expertise and a completed PhD (or equivalent research competence or other professional expertise of similar value for the position and the duties it will entail, as specified by the Higher Education Ordinance, chapter 4, section 4).

For this position, the qualified applicant must have a PhD within the field of biology, or from a another field deemed relevant for the academic focus of the position (biological vision research).

The applicant is required to have completed at least five weeks of training in higher education teaching and learning, or to have acquired equivalent knowledge by other means. In certain cases, this requirement can be waived.

A general qualification required for academic staff at Lund University is that they are suited for, and have the required general ability, to fulfil the duties of the position.

Basis of assessment
The applicant must have a documented scientific competence within the field of biological vision research, and possess a research profile that is related to, and complements, the research program currently pursued by tenured academic staff within the Lund Vision Group. The applicant’s scientific merits will be judged principally on the basis of the quality and quantity of their peer-reviewed scientific publications.

As part of their application, the applicant must describe their current research and also present a research plan for the coming years, explaining how they can add to, strengthen and renew research at the department. The applicant will be assessed on their potential to strengthen and complement the department’s research and teaching in sensory biology and neurobiology, as well as how the applicant can benefit from available infrastructure.

Currently, the scope of research and postgraduate education is strongly dependent on the skills and abilities of individual researchers to attract external funding. The applicant must therefore possess a documented ability to competitively attract external funding from national and/or international funding sources.

Documented experience and ability to teach within the candidate’s own and neighbouring fields, at both basic and advanced levels (including postgraduate levels), is of merit, as is documented experience of supervision of Masters and PhD students.

Documented experience and ability of leadership is of merit.

The applicant must possess excellent abilities in written and spoken English and be a skilful communicator. Personal qualities of merit are creativity, a strong motivation, an ability to collaborate, a proficiency for working in teams, openness, endurance, an interest in (and a talent for) teaching, an interest in sharing knowledge and collaborating inside and outside academia, a respectful attitude towards colleagues, and the ability to give constructive feed-back. The ability to collaborate with research and teaching personnel both internally and externally is of significant importance.

The assessment of pedagogical merits will be given the same priority as the assessment of scientific merits.

When making the appointment, consideration will be given to the Lund University Appointment Rules.

It is expected that within three years a non-Swedish-speaking appointee will sufficiently master the Swedish language to teach and to communicate with the university administration in Swedish.

Promotion
A highly merited senior lecturer may, after commencement of the position, apply to be promoted to professor.

Design and content of the application
Your application must be written in English, since it will be assessed by international experts. The application should be formulated according to the Faculty of Science’s Instructions for applications for an academic position. Please upload the application as PDF-files in the university’s recruitment system.

We look forward to receiving your application!