Junior Professorship (W1) with Tenure Track leading to a W2 (Tenure-Track Professorship) for wood Science, with a Focus on Bionics on the Basis of Lignocellulose

Junior Professorship (W1) with Tenure Track leading to a W2 (Tenure-Track Professorship) for wood Science, with a Focus on Bionics on the Basis of Lignocellulose

Institution: Faculty of Mathematics, Informatics and Natural Sciences
Salary level: W1 with Tenure Track leading to a W2
Commencement of duties: as soon as possible
Application deadline: 2021-09-02

As a University for sustainability, we put human resources development and especially the development and advancement of our early career researchers at the fore of our strategic endeavors. By strengthening the tenure-track professorship, Universität Hamburg has introduced a specific career opportunity for early career researchers. Junior professorships are aimed at researchers in the early stages of their career, within four years after completion of doctoral studies.

Due to the success of the tenure-track program run by the Ministry for Education and Research Universität Hamburg invites applications for this tenure-track professorship.

Responsibilities:

The professorship encompasses teaching and research in the field of wood science, with a focus on bionics on the basis of lignocellulose. Duties require an interdisciplinary natural science approach to studying hierarchical, multifunctional structures composed of lignocellulose. The professorship should focus on the interaction of cellulose, hemicelluloses, lignin, and other components. Furthermore, the functional principles of lignocellulose should serve as a model and/or template for the purpose of building new bio-inspired systems and new nano-structured materials.

The position includes cooperation in the area of materials sciences with research groups from Universität Hamburg, Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon , and DESY within the context of the Center for Integrated Multiscale Materials Systems (CIMMS). This work will lay the groundwork for a common research cluster.

Suitable candidates for this appointment fulfill one or more of the above criteria. They are capable of integrating their work into the existing research environment as well as developing new fields of research. The candidate should describe these new fields in a research concept.

The professorship is situated within the Institute of Wood Science in the Department of Biology.

In their application, applicants are expected to indicate to which of the University’s core research areas, emerging fields, or profile initiatives (https://www.uni-hamburg.de/en/forschung/forschungsprofil/forschungsschwerpunkte.html) their research can best be assigned. Duties include working in one or more of the core research areas, emerging fields, or profile initiatives.

Section 12 subsection 7 sentence 2 of the Hamburg higher education act (Hamburgisches Hochschulgesetz, HmbHG) applies.

Requirements:

Academic qualifications and additional requirements as specified in Section 18 HmbHG.

Additional Criteria:

Applicants are expected to have international research experience as well as a successful track record in acquiring external funding and carrying out externally funded projects. The University places particular emphasis on the quality of teaching and therefore requests that applicants provide details of their teaching experience and objectives.

Non-German-speaking post holders are expected to acquire the language skills necessary to teach in German (Level C1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) within two years of commencing employment. Junior professors have academic autonomy in their research and teaching. To ensure synergies in research and teaching, applicants’ subject interests are expected to relate to topics in the area of wood science.

A tenure-track evaluation will be conducted during the second phase of the junior professorship in order to determine whether requirements for appointment to a W2 professorship have been met. Section 15 HmbHG applies. If the evaluation is positive, the candidate will be offered a tenured W2 professorship. The regulations prohibiting internal appointments also apply to this junior professorship.

As a University of Excellence, Universität Hamburg is one of the strongest research universities in Germany. As a flagship university in the greater Hamburg region, it nurtures innovative, cooperative contacts to partners within and outside academia. It also provides and promotes sustainable education, knowledge, and knowledge exchange locally, nationally, and internationally.

In accordance with Section 14 subsection 3 sentence 3 HmbHG, Universität Hamburg seeks to increase the proportion of women in teaching and research and encourages female academics to apply.

Suitable disabled candidates or applicants with equivalent status with comparable qualifications, abilities, and experience receive preference in the application process.