Job: University lecturer at University of Oulu (Philosophy)
The University of Oulu is an international science community that promotes skills of the future, wellbeing and culture through multidisciplinary research and education. Renewal, responsibility and a culture of collaboration provide a solid foundation for all our operations. There are approximately 15,000 students and 3,000 employees at our University. We offer a working environment where individuals can cultivate their skills, do meaningful work, and develop professionally. The strengths of the University of Oulu include its broad multidisciplinarity and modern study and research environment, as well as its close collaboration with international research and education institutes.
The University of Oulu announces the following opening:
University lecturer, philosophy, open-ended contract starting 1 January 2021, or as agreed.
Working environment
Philosophy is taught as a minor in the Faculty of Humanities within the subject of History of Sciences and Ideas, whose staff consists of two professors, three university lecturers and one university researcher. One professor and one university lecturer represent the field of philosophy. The History of Sciences and Ideas belongs to the Research Unit for History, Culture and Communication Studies.
Due to its status as a minor subject, there is no direct student intake for philosophy. A large number of students who take the minor come from the Faculty of Humanities, but there are representatives from all the faculties of the University. A significant proportion of philosophy students go on to work as teachers.
At the University of Oulu, it is possible to study philosophy at basic and intermediate levels. In addition, one of the two master’s level study lines taught in the History of Sciences and Ideas, namely history culture and philosophy,focuses on the philosophy of history.
Also, The Centre for Philosophical Studies of History, a research unit specialising in the philosophy of history, is part of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Oulu. Besides its other scholarly functions, the Centre is the editorial office of the Journal of the Philosophy of History. In addition to the traditional philosophy of history, the philosophy of history as conceived at the Centre comprises studies of the relationships between history and philosophy in general, such as the philosophy of the historiography of science. A more detailed description is available on the Centre’s agenda: https://www.oulu.fi/sites/default/files/content/files/Centre_Agenda_alkuosa.pdf
Discipline and related responsibilities
During their 1,612 working hours per year or in accordance with a separately agreed annual working time plan, the selected university lecturer will be expected to conduct academic research, offer high-quality research-based teaching, supervise and review theses, and handle administrative duties pertaining to the subject and faculty.
The university lecturer is primarily responsible for implementing minor studies together with the professor of philosophy. He or she is also expected to support the teaching of history culture and philosophy in the master’s line. The university lecturer teaches three to five courses per year. They can be seminars or lecture modules.
Applicants are required to have a research speciality and teaching competence in the fields required by the unit. With regard to research speciality, the university lecturer is expected to strengthen the current research profile of the unit. The field of speciality can be one or several of the following or a similar field: analytical or other philosophy of history; philosophy of the historiography of science; history and philosophy of science; as well as philosophical questions related to conceptual and intellectual history. The university lecturer must be able to teach at least two of the following: ethics, political philosophy, theory of knowledge, philosophy of science, philosophy of language, or be able to teach introduction to philosophy. This entails the ability to plan and teach courses concerning the abovementioned themes.
Teaching can be provided in Finnish or English. The appointed university lecturer must acquire at least a moderate proficiency in Finnish within two years of the appointment.
Remuneration
The wages of a university lecturer will fall within wage levels 5–7 for teaching and research personnel in accordance with the university payment plan. In addition to the task-specific wage element, the university lecturer will receive a wage element based on personal performance, which may be a maximum of 50% of the task-specific wage element. At the beginning of the employment relationship, the salary is typically approximately EUR 3,400–4,700.
A trial period of six months applies to the position.
Qualifications
A doctorate and the ability to provide high-quality teaching are prerequisites for the university lecturer. Particular attention is paid to the following: extensive knowledge of the field, research experience in the applicant’s own field of speciality, the ability to produce both national and international academic publications, and the ability to produce teaching materials and teach in a flexible and innovative manner. We are also interested in new research visions and ideas on how to develop the teaching of philosophy.
The applicants will be asked to prove their teaching skills in a demonstration lecture. When assessing applicants, the factors to be taken into account are their academic work, familiarity with the field, teaching experience and pedagogical training. If the successful applicant has not completed studies in university pedagogy or equivalent studies by the time the employment relationship begins, they are expected to undertake a minimum of 25 credits of such studies within two years of the appointment.
The qualification requirements are based on the University of Oulu guidelines that entered into force on 1 January 2016.
Applying for the position
Please submit your application and the required appendices via our electronic application form by 9 October 2020 (23.59 Finnish local time)
Contact information
For inquiries about the application process, please contact Professor Jouni-Matti Kuukkanen, tel. +358 294 483 203 Email: jouni-matti.kuukkanen@oulu.fi
The following appendices must be included
I) A short curriculum vitae
II) A list of publications
III) Your teaching merits relevant to the position in the form of a teaching portfolio or a similar report. Applicants should adhere to the format presented below.
IV) A brief description of your research merits applicable to the position and a letter of motivation, max. 3 pages
V) A brief research plan, max. 3 pages.
Demonstration lecture and interview
The applicants deemed most competent may be invited to offer a demonstration lecture on a subject matter in the field of the open position, to be separately determined. Alternatively, they may be offered the opportunity to orally present their views regarding development of the position.
TEACHING PORTFOLIO FORMAT
1) Teaching philosophy and characterisation of yourself as a teacher
2) Your practical teaching experience and development of teaching
3) Feedback on your teaching (student assessments, peer group evaluations, awards and approved demonstration lessons)
4) Your vision for the development of teaching (a brief description of how you plan to develop your teaching and teaching work in the near future in relation to the curriculum of the subject, for example)
To apply see https://rekry.saima.fi/certiahome/open_job_view.html?did=5600&lang=en&id=00009748&jc=1
Jouni-Matti Kuukkanen
Professor in Philosophy
Department of History of Sciences and Ideas
The University of Oulu
FIN-90014
Oulu, Finland
Tel. +358 294483203
The Centre for Philosophical Studies of History
http://www.oulu.fi/centreforphilosophyofhistory/
Editor-in-Chief
Journal of the Philosophy of History
