Assistant Professor in Movement Analysis with focus on Neuropediatrics

Division
A research position is available at the at the Division of Pediatric Neurology.

The employment as Assistant Professor is 50% of full time and time limited for 4 years with the right to apply for promotion to Senior Lecturer.

Research group
The position is available at the Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Women’s and Children’s health, led by Professor Eva Weidenhielm Broström. Our research in pediatric neurology aims to develop instruments that aim to assess and contribute to increased knowledge of underlying factors influencing motor function in children and adolescents with movements disorders especially in children with cerebral palsy. Our research is mainly clinical and spans from covering self-reported data on participation to activities during movement and specific body functions and structures on muscular levels. Research is conducted in close collaboration with Highly Specialized Pediatric Orthopedics and Pediatric Medicine at Astrid Lindgren’s Children’s Hospital, Karolinska University Hospital. Self-reported data, physical assessments, motion analysis, sensory functions including vision, and muscle structure measurements are combined to get a broad understanding of an individual during movement.

The research project

The overall research goal of this position is to increase the understanding of perception and action with special emphasize on the significance of the sensory system, spasticity, and dyskinesia and also on skeletal muscle function in children with movement disorders and with cerebral palsy in particular. Moreover, the project aims at investigating how exercise can influence on health and functioning in cerebral palsy and how it differs from that of typically developing children. The close link between clinical research and clinical work will facilitate a transfer of the findings into clinical practice.

The employment as Assistant Professor is time limited for 4 years with the right to apply for promotion to Senior Lecturer.

Prerequisites and duties
The position as Assistant Professor in Movement Analysis with focus on Neuropediatrics is directed to research. The preferred candidate is a specialized physiotherapist in pediatrics and have a PhD with experience working with motion analysis and children and adolescents with movements disorders such as cerebral palsy. Knowledge of 3D motion analysis, instrumented spasticity assessments and developing of assessment tools is essential. A robust background (academic degree and/or published papers) in the influence on the sensory system on movement and measuring movement disorders is required as this in an ongoing focus in the research unit. Participation in national and international projects as principal and co-investigator in the field of developing assessment tools is valued. The successful candidate should have experience in motion analysis, assessment of skeletal muscle function, surface EMG to measure muscle activity, in measuring of movement disorders as spasticity and dyskinesia), and in developing assessment tools. Past participation in teaching of undergraduate/postgraduate courses, as well as experience in supervision of undergraduate, Master and PhD students is preferred. Publications in peer-reviewed journals in the area of motion analysis and pediatric neurology preferably in the area of cerebral palsy, is expected from the candidate.

Those eligible for employment as an Assistant Professor are individuals who have been awarded a PhD or attained equivalent research competence. Preference should be given to those who were awarded a PhD or attained equivalent research competence no more than five years prior to the expiry of the application period for the position as assistant professor.

Those who have been awarded a PhD or attained equivalent research competence earlier may however be considered if special grounds exist. 

Special grounds refer to:

• parental leave,
• positions of trust in trade union organizations
• mandatory service in the total defense forces
• long-term illness
• general medical internship (maximum 24 months)
• specialist medical residency for clinically active professionals (maximum 24 months).

Ground, dates and extent must be clearly specified in the application and verified with relevant documentation.

The candidate should have a track record of both grants and publications in human physiology, as well as the ability to interact with other national and international research groups. An excellent level of English, spoken and written, is a requirement as well as documented pedagogical merits.

For Assistant Professor with focus on research:

Scientific expertise will be most important when assessing applicants.

Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Our vision is to pursue the development of knowledge about life and to promote better health for all. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct innovative medical research and provide the largest range of biomedical education in Sweden. Karolinska Institutet is a state university, which entitles employees to several benefits such as extended holiday and a generous occupational pension. Employees also have free access to our modern gym and receive reimbursements for medical care.

Location: Solna

https://ki.se/kbh/rorelse-funktion-och-halsa

We prefer that Your application is written in English, but You can also apply in Swedish. An application must contain the following documents: Resumé, qualifications and description of planned research, presented in accordance with Karolinska Institutet’s qualifications portfolio .

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system

An Assistant Professor employed in accordance with the Higher Education Ordinance Chapter 4 Section 12a shall be promoted to Senior Lecturer if he or she is eligible for an employment as Senior Lecturer in accordance with the Instructions regarding the Appointment Procedure for Teachers at Karolinska Institutet and is assessed to be suitable for such employment in accordance with the assessment criteria that KI has decided should be applied when being promoted to Senior Lecturer. The assessment criteria stated in the Instructions regarding the Appointment Procedure for Teachers at Karolinska Institutet that was valid at the time of appointment as Assistant Professor will be applied when applying for promotion to Senior Lecturer. Current assessment criteria is found here. Such promotion results in a permanent position as Senior Lecturer.