Department of Arts and Cultural Studies, Faculty of Humanities, University of Copenhagen (UCPH), Denmark, invites applications for a tenure-track assistant professorship in Comparative Literature to be filled by January 1st, 2021 or as soon as possible thereafter.

At the Department of Arts and Cultural Studies we research and offer degree programs in the histories of various art forms from antiquity to the present day, as well as the interactions between art forms and their relations to tendencies in contemporary culture. 

Further information about the department and about the curricula in Comparative Literature can be found at http://kunstogkulturvidenskab.ku.dk

Job content

A tenure-track assistant professorship is a six-year, fixed-term academic position involving both research and teaching. The successful candidate post will be obliged to complete a teacher-training course designed especially for assistant professors, and will be expected to be able to take part in all the activities of the Department, including examinations and administration.

Approximately six months before the end of the six-year period as assistant professor, a committee set up by the Dean will assess whether the assistant professor can be considered for promotion to a tenured position as associate professor. 

Read more about the tenure-track program at the UCPH at this homepage: http://employment.ku.dk/tenure-track/tenure-track-at-ucph/.

Qualification requirements

The TT- assistant professorship position requires research, scientific publication and communication as well as research-based teaching on BA and MA level within the historical, theoretical and analytical disciplines of Comparative Literature (see curricula) as well as with regard to the pedagogical training of researchers at the department and any potential new and more interdisciplinary areas of education. 

Applicants must be able to document qualifications at an international level within the field of comparative literature. Preferably, these qualifications should include topics within literary history, literary analysis, and literary theory across periods and language areas. Emphasis will also be placed on the applicant possessing broader cultural-historical and cultural-theoretical qualifications.

The applicant is expected to provide a statement of his/her academic and pedagogical approaches to university teaching.

The duties of the position are evenly distributed on tasks related to teaching and tasks related to research (including relevant administration and knowledge-sharing). Documented competences in both of these main fields of activity, as well as the ability to reflect on them, will be weighted in the assessment process (see further below).

Furthermore, emphasis will be placed on the following academic and personal qualifications:

Research qualifications, which will be assessed in relation to the period of active research, the degree of originality, and academic output, e.g. number of publications published in internationally recognized, peer-reviewed journals or in comparable high-ranking series published with internationally recognized publishing houses. 

The applicant’s scientific record, academic breadth and depth, rigour, thoroughness, and accuracy.  

• Research qualifications, which will be assessed in relation to the period of active research, the degree of originality, and academic output, e.g. number of publications published in internationally recognized, peer-reviewed journals or in comparable high-ranking series published with internationally recognized publishing houses.
• The applicant’s scientific record, academic breadth and depth, rigour, thoroughness and accuracy
• Teaching qualifications: Read more about our Educational Charter at http://www.humanities.ku.dk/about/vision_and_goals/educational_charter/ and Pedagogic Basis and Guidelines at http://uddannelseskvalitet.ku.dk/quality-assurance-of-study-programmes/university-guidelines/pedagogic-basis-and-guidelines/
• Experience and qualifications with regard to dissemination of research, knowledge-sharing and engagement with the wider public, the media and the world of politics
• Documentation of possible administrative qualifications

Applicants are encouraged to read the University guidelines for teaching portfolio when appointing staff at the UCPH https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/job-application-portfolio/

Tenure-track assistant professors must hold an academic record demonstrating internationally competitive research, and/or have internationally recognized potential to make a future impact.

Assessment of applicants will primarily consider their level of documented, internationally competitive research. Teaching qualifications are not mandatory, but documented teaching qualifications and teaching experience will be taken into account. Applicants’ outreach qualifications, including the ability to attract external funding, will also be considered.

Within a reasonable period of time (max. 2 years), non-Danish-speaking appointees are expected to acquire proficiency in Danish sufficient to be able to interact with colleagues and students.

For further details about the qualification requirements for tenure-track assistant professor, can be found in the ministerial Order on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Universities 2019 here: https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/criteria-for-recognising-merit/dokumenter/Ministerial_Order_no._1443_of_11_December_2019_on_Job_Structure_for_Academic_Staff_at_Universities.pdf

For further information about the position, please contact Head of Department Helle Munkholm Davidsen, e-mail: hmd@hum.ku.dk.

Application 

Please click on the “Apply online” icon at the bottom of the page.

The application must be written in English and must include the following enclosures:

• Application letter/cover letter
• Curriculum vitae (with the applicant’s email address, telephone number and list of referees (maximum five names))
• Documentation of qualifications (examination certificates/PhD diploma, etc.).
• Complete and numbered list of publications. The enclosed publications must be marked with *.
• Research plan, including a short description of previous research and a plan for the coming years that includes an account of involvement in organising research, establishment of research seminars, symposia and congresses, etc.
• Teaching portfolio. Documentation of teaching qualifications and research dissemination (organisation of classes, materials, courses and other forms of teaching).
• Publications. Applicants may choose a maximum of five publications for assessment, of which at least two must have been published within the five years immediately preceding the deadline for applications. At least two of these publications must have been published in internationally recognized, peer-reviewed journals or in comparable high-ranking series published with internationally recognized publishing houses. Publication dates must be clearly marked on the publication list. The publications selected must be uploaded as attachments and listed from 1 to 5.
• Reference/recommendation

Should any material submitted consist of work with named co-authors, or work that is otherwise the result of collective academic endeavours, the extent of the applicant’s contribution to the work must be clearly stipulated. The Faculty may ask for a signed statement from the co-authors stipulating the extent and nature of each individual’s contribution.

Only material in English, German, French, Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish will be assessed.

Appointment procedure

After the application deadline, the Dean and Head of Department selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the Appointment Committee.  All applicants are notified whether their application has been accepted for assessment. The Dean subsequently appoints an expert assessment committee tasked with carrying out an assessment of the selected applicants for the specific post. Selected applicants are notified of the composition of the committee. Applicants are ultimately offered the opportunity of commenting on the part of the assessment relating to themselves before the appointment is finalized.

Applicants will be continuously informed about the progress of the procedure by e-mail.

Further information about the application procedure is available from HR Rikke Dall, e-mail: hrsc@hrsc.ku.dk, please refer to ID number 211-0067/20-2N

Salary and conditions of employment

Terms of appointment and salary will be in accordance with an agreement between the Ministry of Finance and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC). The salary range starts at DKK 34,654.76 (EUR 4,919.83) per month + a 17,1 % contribution to the pension scheme. It is possible to negotiate salary supplements on an annual basis.

The Danish Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC) have further agreed on a protocol that makes it possible for international researchers employed by the University to achieve a pension exemption, whereby the pension contribution will be paid out as salary.

For more information about the different pension schemes, please see http://ism.ku.dk/onarrival/pension/

A special tax scheme is offered to researchers recruited abroad, http://ism.ku.dk/onarrival/

The Faculty of Humanities offers a special start-up package, read more here https://humanities.ku.dk/about/tenuretrack/

If you consider applying from abroad, you may find useful information on how it is to work in Denmark and at UCPH. See: http://ism.ku.dk, http://www.nyidanmark.dk/en-us/frontpage.htm and https://www.workindenmark.dk/

UCPH wishes to encourage everyone interested in this post to apply, regardless of personal background.

The closing date for applications is 17 August 2020, 23:59 CEST

Applications or supplementary material received thereafter will not be considered.

Part of the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU), and among Europe’s top-ranking universities, the University of Copenhagen promotes research and teaching of the highest international standard. Rich in tradition and modern in outlook, the University gives students and staff the opportunity to cultivate their talent in an ambitious and informal environment. An effective organisation – with good working conditions and a collaborative work culture – creates the ideal framework for a successful academic career.

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