Assistant / Associate Professor in Laser Scanning in Management of Renewable Natural Resources

The Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry invites applications for the position of 

TENURE TRACK ASSISTANT / ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN LASER SCANNING IN MANAGEMENT OF RENEWABLE NATURAL RESOURCES

from 1.9.2024 onwards or as agreed. The position may be filled as a tenure track assistant professor or tenure track associate professor depending on the candidate’s merits and career stage. Information about our tenure track system:  University of Helsinki tenure track . The goal of the tenure track is to advance to a permanent professor position. The position is a joint tenure track assistant / associate professorship with the National land surveying / Finnish Geospatial research institute (NLS/FGI) 70% UH / 30% NLS (FGI)

The key research fields of the position are the methods of laser scanning and its added value applications related to forests or agriculture. This, for example, includes but is not limited to the following: 1) precision forestry and agriculture: 3D technologies and the production of added value related to detailed information, 2) sensors measuring trees and their point cloud processing, 3) models depicting trees and forest, 4) measuring and utilizing the quality of trees in the production of added value in forest bioeconomy, 5) laser scanning in the valuation of forest assets, 6) forest change detection in tree growth, carbon balance, health status or diversity

The appointee must show evidence of independent research in at least one of the themes above. Research expertise in several themes is considered an advantage.

In addition, knowledge of the following fields is considered an advantage: artificial intelligence applications, drones, mobile mapping or robotics.

The field of the position focuses on management of natural resources in boreal zone. Knowledge of Finnish natural resource management is essential.

The appointee maintains and strengthens the teaching resources of the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry by participating in the teaching of Forest resource management and geoinformatics study module https://blogs.helsinki.fi/marv-gis-en/ which is offered forest science study programs, and geoinformatics & remote sensing study module https://blogs.helsinki.fi/forest-sciences-gis-en/ which is offered to all University of Helsinki students, especially at Viikki campus. The appointee will be responsible for bachelor's level courses and master's level courses. The appointee participates in the development of teaching at the faculty and is also expected to work in the management teams of the degree programs.

Teaching and research ideally include active and systematic collaboration and networking with relevant business and industrial actors. For reaching high societal impact, interest and active building/developing of business collaboration is appreciated and expected from the appointee.

The position is shared between the University of Helsinki (UH) and National land surveying (Finnish Geospatial research institute, FGI). The tasks that support the FGI operations include the ideation, preparation and implementation of joint research projects, as well as the publication and utilization of the results in teaching. The appointee’s duties also include active maintenance of cooperation between UH and FGI in Finland and abroad, as well as active participation in social interaction.

REQUIREMENTS

An appointee to the position of assistant professor or associate professor in the tenure track system shall have

• a doctoral degree
• the ability to conduct independent scholarly work
• the teaching skills required for the position
• the ability and motivation to pursue an academic career, as demonstrated by publications and other means

The degree requirements must be met by the end of the application deadline.

When considering the candidates’ qualifications, attention shall be given to scientific and teaching merits. In addition, the candidates’ leadership and interaction skills, as well as activity in the scientific community and public engagement shall also be taken into account.

Scientific merits include

• scientific publications and other research results of academic value
• success in obtaining external research funding
• international research experience
• international elected positions

Teaching merits include

• teaching experience
• pedagogical training
• the ability to produce learning material
• other teaching merits
• a teaching demonstration (if necessary)
• participation in doctoral education

To successfully attend to the duties of the position, the appointee must have good English skills. According to the Government Decree on Universities, tenure track associate/assistant professors must be proficient in Finnish. They must also have at least satisfactory spoken and written skills in Swedish. Foreign citizens, non-native Finnish citizens or citizens who have not been educated in Finnish or Swedish may be exempted from this requirement without a separate application.  If the appointee is not proficient in Finnish, they are expected to acquire intermediate level skills (CEFR level B2; https://europa.eu/europass/en/common-european-framework-reference-language-skills ) within five years after the appointment. The University will support the appointee in acquiring the necessary Finnish language skills and time for language studies can be included in annual working plan.

WHAT WE OFFER

We offer an interesting opportunity to work in a diverse research environment. At the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry you will carry out research-based teaching at the highest level in the field in Finland and have the opportunity to take part in internationally valued, first-class research activities. The position is also an opportunity to develop your own professional skills in a multidisciplinary work community of the faculty. Your work will be supported by the research and teaching staff of the department and the faculty as well as the administrative and technical staff at Viikki campus.

The assistant/associate professor’s salary will be on level 7 of the job requirement scheme for teaching and research personnel in the salary system of Finnish universities. In addition, the appointee will be paid a salary component based on personal work performance. Annual gross salary for an assistant professor amounts to approximately 55,000–63,000 euros, and for an associate professor to approximately 60,000–70,000 euros depending on the appointee’s qualifications and experience.

Furthermore, the university takes care of your well-being by flexible work arrangements, comprehensive occupational health care and wide-ranging, low-cost UniSport services. Professional development is supported in different ways, i.e. by offering versatile staff training, mentoring etc.

HOW TO APPLY

Applicants are requested to enclose with their applications a SINGLE PDF file that includes the following documents in English:

1) CV

2) A short motivation letter and report on how the applicant intends to develop his or her research and focus his or her activities, if appointed (1-2 pages)

3) Report on the applicant’s research activities (including activities in scientific communities, the acquisition of research funding and international scholarly work) (max. 5 pages)

4) A numbered list of publications

5) A report on pedagogical expertise (see the instructions via the link below under University portfolio – Teaching and supervision)

For more detailed instructions on the application documents, please see

https://www.helsinki.fi/en/about-us/careers/open-positions/instructions-applicants-teaching-and-research-positions

Applications with the above attachments must be submitted in a single PDF file, which is named:

_lastname_firstname. Other attachments are not required.

The Faculty may request shortlisted applicants to submit 10 publications of their choice to be sent to the assessors via the electronic recruitment system after the application deadline. In the case of shortlisted candidates, aptitude evaluation may be used as part of the recruitment process.

External applicants, please submit your application using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System via the Apply Now link.

Applicants who have a helsinki.fi username and a valid employment contract, a grant researcher's contract, a visiting researcher's or visiting professor's contract at the University of Helsinki are requested to leave their application by using the Employee login.

The University of Helsinki welcomes applicants from a variety of genders and linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

The closing date for applications is 31.1.2024 at 23:59 EET.

FURTHER INFORMATION

• About the position: Head of Department, Professor Markus Holopainen, markus.holopainen(at)helsinki.fi, tel: +358 294158181
• Recruitment process and the recruitment system: HR Specialist Mirkka Juntunen, mirkka.juntunen(at)helsinki.fi, tel. +358 294157583

ABOUT US

The Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry is located on the Viikki campus. The mission of the faculty is to promote the sustainable use of renewable natural resources through scientific research and research-based teaching. We focus on agricultural and forest sciences, food and nutrition, microbiology, as well as on economics and management. We cover the full natural resource chain from farm to fork, the entire field of forest sciences from soil chemistry to marketing, as well as the environmental effects of related activities. Graduates from the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry are versatile experts in biosciences and business, able to meet the needs of both the business sector and society at large. www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-of-agriculture-and-forestry

www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-of-agriculture-and-forestry

The Department of Forest Sciences is a unit under the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, which has over 100 employees. The Department conducts research of a high international standard in the forest sciences and provides the highest education based on this research. The focus areas of the Department’s research and teaching are forest ecology and forest resource management as well as forest economics, business and society. The goal of the Department’s multidisciplinary operations is to provide teaching in the sustainability and sustainable use of forests, as well as conduct related scholarly research and public engagement. The Faculty grants Bachelor and Master of Science (Agriculture and Forestry) degrees, as well as Doctor of Science (Agriculture and Forestry) degrees in the University’s doctoral programmes. The Department’s degree programmes have roughly 350 undergraduate and 60 postgraduate students. The Department of Forest Sciences is active in its public engagement and it has a long history of successful collaboration with research institutes in the field, other universities, public administration and businesses both nationally and internationally.

https://www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-agriculture-and-forestry/research/forest-sciences

WHY FINLAND AND HELSINKI

Finland is a member of the EU, has high quality and inexpensive childcare, free schooling and tertiary training (also in English), generous family benefits and healthcare, and was recently ranked as the best country in the world for expat families. Finland repeatedly tops the World Happiness Report (https://toolbox.finland.fi/life-society/finland-the-happiest-country-in-the-world ).