Tenure Track Assistant Professor or Associate Professor in Disease Management of Arable crops

Are you a plant pathologist with an interest in future sustainable disease management strategies for arable cropping systems? Will you contribute to and support the green transition of Danish and European crop protection? If so, the Department of Agroecology at Aarhus University, Denmark, offers an attractive position in the Crop health section, where you will perform team-based research projects to reduce the reliance on chemical pesticides. This is an excellent opportunity to further develop your research portfolio on plant pathology, develop methods to detect plant diseases in the field, and implement integrated disease management in future arable cropping systems. You will contribute to the development of the department through research of the highest international quality and your primary tasks will be to conduct independent research, including publication in high-impact scientific journals; be responsible for teaching, guidance and examination of BSc and MSc degree students and co-supervision of PhD students; as well as attracting external research funding. As part of the department’s responsibilities towards Danish authorities, you may also be involved in policy support activities.

You will get the opportunity to collaborate with relevant national and international research environments and in your daily work, you will work closely with both Danish and international colleagues.

We expect that you will be an important part of the research environment and that you will contribute positively to the social working environment.

Depending on the qualifications of the applicants, the position is offered as either a Tenure Track Assistant Professor or an Associate Professor. In your application, you must indicate if you apply for the Tenure Track Assistant Professorship, the Associate Professorship, or both. The position is full-time starting on 1 March 2025 or as soon as possible afterward.

Your profile

Your competencies as Tenure Track Assistant Professor:
You have independent research-related qualifications in plant pathology at a high international level, and you have the potential to become a skilled research leader. Your qualifications are assessed based on research output, including peer-reviewed publications, international research collaboration, potential to perform ground-breaking research, attraction of external funding, communication skills, ability to collaborate and build relationships, and undergraduate/graduate teaching. You have completed at least one productive stay in a different research environment.

Your competencies as Associate Professor:
You have established yourself as a prominent researcher within plant pathology and you possess documented solid research and teaching qualifications at a high international level. Assessment of your qualifications is based on research output, including high-level peer-reviewed publications, international research collaboration, and long-term research stay(s) at another internationally acknowledged university or research institution, proven ability to attract external funding, demonstrated ability to deliver high-quality undergraduate/graduate teaching and supervision of students, good communication skills and ability to collaborate and build relationships. You should be ready to take responsibility for the development of the department’s research and education at the highest international level and for ensuring that we maintain a good work environment.

Besides the requirements for either a tenure track assistant professor or associated professor, you must:

• Hold a Ph.D. in plant disease management or plant pathology
• Document experience in scientific writing with several papers in high-quality journals or other high-quality publication channels
• Provide a 2 to 3-page plan for research over the next 3 to 5 years within focused parts of the research area and have a clear potential to perform ground-breaking research and attract external funding. If you are selected, the research plan will be the basis of an application for a starting grant
• Have proven international research collaborations (e.g., joint papers and/or applications)
• Be dedicated and possess the ability to collaborate and build relationships

Further, we will prefer candidates with some of the following qualifications:

• Experience in planning and conducting field-work and greenhouse trials
• Insight into the use of new technologies to detect diseases in the field
• Experience in planning and conducting laboratory work with pathogenic fungi
• Experience in testing and handling fungicides as well as biological control organisms as means of controlling plant pathogens
• Insight into fungicide resistance and the use of the different field- and lab-diagnostic tools
• Experience with collaboration with private companies and/or policy support

Please refer to the tenure track guidelines for the tenure review criteria and for the tenure review process.

Who we are

At the Department of Agroecology, our main goal is to contribute to sustainable solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems within the areas of soil, plants, animals, humans, and the environment. We want to make a difference by contributing to both fundamental knowledge generation and the attainment of sustainable production systems via innovative research, contracted policy advice, and education. We offer professional laboratories, greenhouses, semi-field, and field-scale research facilities, advanced computing capacities as well as an extensive national and international researcher network. The department consists of nine research sections with around 320 highly dedicated employees. More information can be found here.
We believe in encouraging inclusion, acceptance, and understanding by employing staff who bring unique perspectives to our department.

What we offer

• An informal and multicultural research environment with high professionalism, where accountability, commitment, helpfulness, flexibility, and close collaboration are prerequisites for solving our core tasks
• A good social environment with activities and routines that make it possible to talk across and strengthen the inclusive relationship, and where mutual trust, respect, kindness, and professional sparring are emphasized
• A flexible workplace with a good work-life balance
• A workplace where we work actively with diversity, equity and inclusion
• An exciting and varied working environment, where two days rarely resemble each other. We are often busy, and we work creatively for solutions to societal challenges
• Aarhus University offers a wide variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including a Relocation Service and an Expat Partner Programme

Special benefits when working in Denmark

• Subsidized preschool childcare and a free education system from primary school up to university level
• Universal health insurance as a resident of Denmark, including family members officially residing in Denmark
• Five weeks paid holiday per year
• In connection with childbirth: the right to have a total of 52 weeks shared maternal/paternal leave with full or partial salary pay

Place of Work

The place of work is Aarhus University, Flakkebjerg, Forsøgsvej 1, 4200 Slagelse. The affiliation will be with the Department of Agroecology.
More information can be obtained from René Gislum (rene.gislum@agro.au.dk)