Professor in Physics with specialization in Physics Education Research (PER)

Updated: about 1 year ago
Deadline: 31 Jan 2023

Published: 2022-11-30

Uppsala University is a comprehensive research-intensive university with a strong international standing. Our ultimate goal is to conduct education and research of the highest quality and relevance to make a long-term difference in society. Our most important assets are all the individuals whose curiosity and dedication make Uppsala University one of Sweden’s most exciting workplaces. Uppsala University has over 54,000 students, more than 7,500 employees and a turnover of around SEK 8 billion.

The research conducted at the Department of Physics and Astronomy encompasses a wide range of physics topics, distributed over ten divisions. Physics Education Research at Uppsala University, UU-PER is one of these divisions. The department is located in the Ångström laboratory and employs nearly 400 people, 125 of whom are doctoral students. It offers a broad physics curriculum to undergraduate and graduate students, participation in nationally and internationally leading projects for researchers, and opportunities for partnership with industry and various outreach activities. For a full overview of the department see https://www.physics.uu.se/?languageId=1 .

The good working conditions in Sweden, including comprehensive social benefits (e.g. generous family-focused policies making healthcare, childcare and children’s education available and highly affordable) are summarized at https://www.uu.se/en/about-uu/join-us/advantages/ . Specific employee benefits at Uppsala University are described at https://uu.se/en/about-uu/join-us/employee-benefits/

The UU-PER research programme carries out pedagogical and didactic research projects that are directed at enhancing the teaching and learning of physics and astronomy at the university level. In addition and connection to this activity, UU-PER also contributes to the departmental teaching of physics and physics-teacher didactics. The research programme is now looking for a full professor, to take on a leading role in research, teaching, and administrative responsibilities, as described below.

Description of subject area of the employment:

The research activity is expected to be situated in mainstream PER; to study, analyse and describe educational relationships in physics. As such it is expected to have theoretical and practical components that are also valuable for the support and development of the Department’s educational practices. This activity calls for the university physics curriculum to be central in the work, although other areas of PER-related research such as physics teacher education are also valued. Descriptions of recent threads of work can be found here: https://www.physics.uu.se/research/physics-education-research/ongoingresearch/

Duties:

  • As professor you represent your subject. With the title follow responsibility for the content,development and quality of this subject in both research and undergraduate and graduate education. 
  • Research, teaching and administration. Supervision and teaching at third-cycle level and teaching at first- and second-cycle level. Teaching duties include course responsibility and course administration. First, second and third levels correspond to BSc, MSc and PhD studies, respectively. The teaching responsibility explicitly includes physics topics across  the undergraduate curriculum, the student laboratory, PER methodology, and physics-teacher education. Research in the person’s PER-area of specialization, including leading the planning and implementation of associated  projects. 
  • Information about research and development and participation in the planning of research projects.
  • Follow developments within the subject area and the development of society in general that is important for the work at the university.
  • The position includes administration and management tasks at the research program or department levels. 
  • Collaboration both within the Department and the wider university. Acting as a resource for pedagogical improvement within the department and across the wider university. While courses taught to the physics-teacher education programme are typically given in Swedish, many courses on other programmes, as well as graduate courses and faculty professional development, can be taught in English. Support is offered to new employees learning Swedish.

Qualifications Required:

  • Research Expertise and Teaching Expertise. It is necessary that the pedagogical skills, the research expertise and the professional skills are relevant to the content of the employment and the tasks that will be included in the employment.
  • Applicants must have completed teacher training of relevance to operations at the University, comprising ten weeks, or have acquired the equivalent knowledge. If special circumstances apply, this training for teachers in higher education may be completed during the first two years of employment.
  • Documented ability to teach in Swedish or English is a requirement unless special reasons prevail.
  • Personal capabilities necessary to carry out fully the duties of the appointment.

Assessment Criteria/Ranking of applicants that fulfil the above-mentioned qualifications required

The ranking of eligible applicants will be based primarily on research and teaching expertise, which will be given equal weight.

Research Expertise comprises research merits. In addition to academic merits, research merits from other activities, including technology development, may also be taken into account including research merits obtained outside the academy, which includes for example technology development and innovation ability. In assessing research expertise research quality must be the prime consideration. The scope of research, primarily in regard to depth and breadth, must also be afforded consideration. In assessing research expertise special weight will be attached to research merits in Physics Education Research that is anchored at the university level. Research competence and experience in utilizing  qualitative and quantitative (expertise in one and some experience in the other is required) methodologies will be considered to be fundamental to the ability to take on the leadership role in UU-PER.

Furthermore, consideration must be given to the capacity to plan, initiate, lead, and develop research and education in the third cycle, the ability to acquire funding for research in competition, as well as the demonstrated capacity to interact with others both within academia and in the wider community.

Teaching Expertise comprises educational and teaching qualifications. This expertise can have been achieved outside the academy through supervision, internal training, mentoring programs, etc. In assessing teaching expertise teaching quality must be the prime consideration. The scope of teaching experience, in terms of both breadth and depth, must also be afforded consideration. In assessing teaching expertise special weight will be attached to merits in teaching of university physics across all levels, physics-teacher education and teaching of mainstream PER methods, as well as supervision of students at undergraduate and PhD levels.

Furthermore, consideration must be given to the capacity to plan, initiate, lead, and develop teaching and instruction, as well as the ability to connect research to teaching in respect to research in the subject at hand, subject didactics, as well as teaching and learning in higher education. The ability to interact concerning issues of teaching and learning in higher education with actors inside and outside the University is also included in teaching expertise.

Administrative Expertise is important for the employment and will be given consideration. Administrative expertise is demonstrated, for example, through the capacity to plan, organise, and prioritise work in an efficient and task-related manner as well as through the ability to assign and observe time frames. Expertise includes overall operational planning and the capacity to manage resources in a way that reflects operational priorities as well as the ability to work in a structured manner based on an awareness of goals and quality. Administrative expertise also includes entrepreneurship.

Management Expertiseis important and willbe afforded high consideration. Management expertise is demonstrated through the capacity to lead operations and personnel, make decisions, take responsibility, and motivate others, providing them with what is needed for the efficient achievement of common goals. The abilities to coordinate the group and help create a sense of involvement, participation, and enjoyment in work and to deal with conflicts constitute further examples of demonstrated expertise.

Collaboration Expertise is important and will be afforded high consideration. Collaborative expertise is demonstrated by the ability and skill of planning, organizing and implementing interaction with the surrounding community. Popular publications, public debate and lectures are examples of forms of interaction with the surrounding community. Other examples of collaboration arephysics-teacher education and general physics and astronomy educational development initiatives. The ability to translate knowledge sharing with the surrounding community into activities of importance to the education's development and quality is part of the collaboration expertise.

All merits must be documented in a manner that makes it possible to assess both quality and scope.

In filling this position the university aims to appoint the applicant who, following a qualitative holistic assessment of her/his competence and expertise, is judged to have the best potential to carry out and develop the relevant duties and to help advance operations.

Further information

In an overall assessment of the applicant’s qualifications, parental leave, part-time work relating to care of children, union assignments, military service, or the like are to be regarded as work experience.

University appointment regulations

Faculty appointment regulations

Instructions for application

For further information about the position, please contact Professor Gabriella Andersson, [email protected] , or Assistant Professor Bor Gregorcic, [email protected] .

Salary: Individually negotiated salary.

Starting date: As agreed

Type of position: Permanent full-time position, probationary period may be applied.

Number of positions: 1

Scope of employment: 100%

Town: Uppsala

Please submit your application by January 31 2023, UFV-PA 2022/3734.

In the event of any disagreement between the English and the Swedish versions of this announcement, the Swedish version takes precedence.

If you are an international candidate, you will find a lot of information about working and living in Sweden at www.uu.se/joinus .

Please do not send offers of recruitment or advertising services.

Submit your application through Uppsala University's recruitment system.


Placement: Department of Physics and Astronomy

Type of employment: Full time , Permanent position

Pay: Fixed salary

Number of positions: 1

Working hours: 100%

Town: Uppsala

County: Uppsala län

Country: Sweden

Union representative: Seko Universitetsklubben [email protected]
ST/TCO [email protected]
Saco-rådet [email protected]

Number of reference: UFV-PA 2022/3734

Last application date: 2023-01-31


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