Assistant Professor in artificial intelligence (AI) with a focus on precision medicine

We are looking for an up-and-coming researcher who wants to conduct pioneering research to take up a position as Assistant Professor in artificial intelligence (AI) with a focus on precision medicine.

What we offer the successful candidate

Those who want to become a research leader of tomorrow in research, through pioneering projects and research ideas, have the opportunity to start as an Assistant Professor (Associate Senior Lecturer in the official Swedish translation) at Lund University. You develop your qualifications over a period of 5 years and the position is tenure track with possibility for promotion to permanent employment as a senior lecturer.

You will receive five weeks of training in teaching and learning in higher education and also get the opportunity to learn Swedish through the University’s Swedish language courses for new international staff. We offer you support for the move to Sweden. If you have a family, they will find new contacts and support through Lund’s International Citizen Hub.

The Swedish Research Council, Sweden's largest scientific funder, will announce attractive funding for Assistant Professors with an international background at the turn of the year 2025/2026. Lund University is now making a joint announcement that also aims to find candidates that the university can nominate to the Swedish Research Council at the end of 2025.

Read more about the Swedish Research Council: https://www.vr.se/english.html  

Read more about the University joint announcement: https://www.lunduniversity.lu.se/shape-future-research

Duties – what we expect from you

The rapid increase in development of both artificial intelligence (AI) and life science opens completely new possibilities for prevention of disease, disability and premature death. It is well-known that common complex diseases have multifactorial backgrounds. Today’s disease risk prediction models and preventive interventions designed to reduce such risk are not precise enough. 

Lund University expects approaches with advanced AI methods based on multimodal data that have the potential to result in a paradigm shift from focus on “prevention with one size fits all” to “precision prevention”, the latter meaning specific preventive therapies tailored to individuals with similar molecular susceptibility patterns and responses to preventive treatments and actions. 

The area of research encompasses advanced computational methods based on multimodal health data derived from health records, registries, devices, imaging, and biosamples, including e.g. genomics, metabolomics and proteomics. The research should have a strong focus on potential for intervention studies and implementation into health care.

In this call we search for a highly skilled aspiring researcher with documented international research experience, a demonstrated potential for creativity and a high degree of expertise in the field, for example in clinical medicine, epidemiology, bioinformatics or mathematical modelling including handling of large-scale data sets.

We expect the successful candidate to become one of the future research leaders at the Faculty of Medicine within the field of AI and precision prevention medicine. You will get the opportunity to work in synergy with ongoing preclinical and clinical research at the faculty and be expected to interact within reputable existing research environments with focus on AI and health at Lund University.

As an Assistant Professor, you will have the chance to apply a long-term focus on the challenging research questions you are passionate about. To qualify as a senior lecturer, you will also need to develop your teaching skills during your time as an Assistant Professor, learn Swedish for teaching, be a good colleague and show that you are good at interacting with the surrounding community. And, of course, you will also participate in the department’s everyday work and development.

At the Medical Faculty you will mainly work with research and supervision on postgraduate level. To enable promotion within five years, up until 20 % of the position can be designated to teaching at the faculty on all levels. The Medical faculty offers a range of educations with courses on both basic and advanced level, out of which several are held in English.

You will work closely with several different strong research environments and have access to world-class research infrastructure, such as the  Center for Translational Genomics (CTG), the Lund Bioimaging Center (LBIC) and MAX IV.

Other work duties may be added.

Qualifications for employment as an Assistant Professor

You hold a doctoral degree or have corresponding research expertise in medical research.

We will primarily prioritise those applicants who have obtained a doctoral degree within the last 7 years from the closing date for applications for the position. If you have documents recognised in Sweden proving that there are special grounds, such as parental leave, military service or illness, after graduating that have prevented you from working as a researcher, the doctoral degree in the subject can in such cases have been awarded earlier.

Requirements – what you must have in order to carry out duties

We hope that one of your first duties will be to conduct an innovative basic research project that is funded by the Swedish Research Council. Therefore, we are seeking those who have:

• A good ability to initiate, develop and implement high-quality research.
• Several years of recent experience conducting medical research in an international environment outside of Sweden at the postdoctoral level.
• Conducted independent research in the field, resulting in publications at a high scientific level.
• Good teaching ability.
• A project description for an innovative project within in artificial intelligence (AI) with a focus on precision medicine, that you submit with your application.
• Documented good leadership skills, e.g. through elected office assignments, leadership courses and assessed leadership skills.
•  Good communication skills.
• Very good oral and written English language skills. 
• Good motivation and the ability to learn new languages.

 Additional qualifications – other credentials that we consider desirable  

We very much want you to thrive at Lund University and be able to make the best of your time at the Faculty of Medicine. For that reason we consider it preferable if you can also demonstrate that you:

• Have contributed in a positive way to your work environment.
• Have obtained research funding, in competition, from funding bodies outside Sweden.
• Currently hold an international position in the research field, and that you have not received a salary or grant from Sweden since before 31 December 2021. 
• Have documented administrative skills including supervision, the ability to organize, develop and lead a research group and the ability to interact with the world outside academia.

 Promotion – what is required to be promoted to senior lecturer

As an Assistant Professor, you can apply for promotion to permanent employment as a senior lecturer. You will undergo a special assessment to determine if you fulfil the faculty’s requirements for employment as a senior lecturer. It is important for you to know that you can only apply only once for promotion and that you must apply for promotion at least six months before your employment as an Assistant Professor ends.

When you apply for promotion, you will be assessed based on whether you have:

• Completed at least 5 weeks of qualifying higher education pedagogical training and had teaching assignments according to the faculty’s requirement for an associate professor.
• Independently been the senior author of several peer-reviewed original articles in reputable international journals – the benchmark is three original articles of which at least two must have been published during the employment as Assistant Professor.
• Received external research grants in national or international competition as the main applicant, at a level that makes it possible for the applicant to continue to lead and finance your own research.
• Have supervised at least one doctoral student from admission to mid-term review as principal supervisor (consideration will be given to any absence of the doctoral student due to illness, parental leave or similar).
• Qualified as associate professor according to the guidelines of the Faculty of Medicine.

An Assistant Professor is to be appointed on application to a permanent position as senior lecturer if they have the required qualifications and is deemed to be suitable with reference to the qualifications and assessment criteria for promotion and appointment as senior lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine. See:  Senior Lecturer- General requirements profile and assessments criteria.

The appointment will be made after preparation in the Academic Appointments Board.

Form of employment

Fixed-term position, 5 years, in accordance with Chapter 4, Section 12a of the Higher Education Ordinance, with the opportunity for promotion to permanent employment as a senior lecturer.

Further information

For information about the position please contact:   

Dean Maria Björkqvist, phone: +46462228084, E-mail: Maria.Bjorkqvist@med.lu.se or

Pro Dean Jonas Larsson, phone +46462220580, E-mail: Jonas.Larsson@med.lu.se or

Professor Olle Melander, phone +4640391209, E-mail: Olle.Melander@med.lu.se

Information on application formalities may be obtained from Recruitment Officer Robert Norrman, phone: + 46462224410, e-mail: Robert.Norrman@med.lu.se

Application

Applications are to be made electronically via Lund University's applications portal by the 17th of August 2025.

Applications are to be submitted in accordance with the Faculty of Medicine's guidelines for academic appointments (see www.med.lu.se/recruitment_process under the headings List of qualifications for lecturers and Create a CV).

The applicant’s name may be listed on the Faculty’s homepage unless the applicant has disagreed to this. The application should be written in English as international evaluators may be consulted.