Professor in Occupational and Environmental Medicine combined with position as specialist physician att Uppsala University Hospital

The Department of Medical Sciences (www.medsci.uu.se) is a large clinical department with approximately 250 employees and more than 600 affiliated individuals, mainly through Uppsala University Hospital. The department has a broad research profile with strong research groups working in various fields. The research is conducted in close association with the clinical activities at Uppsala University Hospital and encompasses both basic studies of disease aetiology and the development and evaluation of new methods for diagnostics and the quantification of exposure. Research within the Occupational and Environmental Medicine (AMM) group focuses on how environmental factors affect human health across all age groups. The research is both thematically and methodologically broad. It covers the work environment, indoor environment and ambient environment, as well as physical, chemical, biological, psychosocial and organisational exposures. The research relies on both quantitative and qualitative approaches, with projects ranging from epidemiological and experimental studies to intervention studies, as well as the development of new measurement methods.

Occupational and Environmental Medicine (AMM) is a university healthcare unit (USVE) at Uppsala University Hospital, funded by the Mid Sweden Healthcare Region, and serves as a shared resource for Region Dalarna, Region Gävleborg and Region Uppsala. The overall mission is to serve as a knowledge centre and expert resource for other actors within the catchment area who work to prevent work- and environment-related illness and poor health, both indoors and outdoors.

Description of the subject area

The subject area includes epidemiology, toxicology, ergonomics, risk communication, and preventive measures concerning the relationship between health and illness in relation to the work environment, outdoor environment, and home environment.

Duties

Work responsibilities include research, teaching, clinical practice, and administration. Teaching duties include course coordination and administration and supervision of doctoral students. The successful candidate will also be responsible for keeping up with developments in their field. One third of the appointment consists of clinical work as a specialist/consultant physician in the Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

Qualifications

A person eligible for appointment as professor is one who has demonstrated both scholarly and teaching competence (Chapter 4, Section 3 of the Swedish Higher Education Ordinance). A general eligibility requirement in Section 5 of the Appointment Regulations for Uppsala University (AO) is that the applicant must have the ability to cooperate and otherwise meet the requirements for suitability needed to perform the duties well.

The research expertise must have been demonstrated by independent research efforts and by the applicant's qualifications in an international perspective maintaining a very high quality. The applicant shall have demonstrated skill in the planning, initiation, leadership and development of research and the ability to obtain research grants in competition, as well as well-documented skills in supervising doctoral studies. The applicant's contribution to the international and national academic community shall be assessed on the basis of the quality and scope of academic publication, among other aspects. The requirements on the acquisition of international qualifications shall be assessed with due consideration for the nature and specific conditions of the subject. (AO Section 31)

Pedagogical expertise must have been demonstrated through substantial qualifications in education in accordance with Section 22 of the AO. Furthermore, the applicant shall demonstrate well-documented skills in supervision at the undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate levels. Completion of relevant academic teacher training, comprising a minimum of ten weeks, or the equivalent is a prerequisite in order for the applicant to be considered to possess the necessary teaching skills. If special reasons exist, the successful candidate who does not have training in teaching and learning in higher education may undergo such training during the first two years of employment. Academic teacher training shall include doctoral supervisor training. (AO Section 32)

The applicant must have documented ability to teach in Swedish or another Scandinavian language, as well as in English. Cf. Section 6 of Uppsala University’s Appointment Regulations.

To be eligible for this appointment, a medical degree and a Swedish certificate of specialist competence in occupational and environmental medicine, or its former designation, occupational and industrial medicine, are required. If the applicant does not hold a Swedish certificate of specialist competence in this specialty, they must have submitted an application for it to the National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) no later than the application deadline for the appointment. However, the applicant must have obtained a Swedish certificate of specialist competence in occupational and environmental medicine/occupational and industrial medicine by the time a decision on the appointment is made.

If the successful candidate fulfils Uppsala University Hospital’s requirements for appointment as a consultant, they will be offered an appointment combined with the post of consultant.

Assessment criteria

In selecting qualified applicants, greater importance will be placed on research expertise than on teaching expertise. However, a balanced assessment will be made so that an applicant with significantly greater teaching expertise can be ranked ahead of an applicant with a slight advantage in terms of research expertise.  Clinical expertise, leadership and collaboration abilities, are also important for the appointment and will be assigned significance.

Research expertise refers to qualifications as a researcher. In the assessment of research expertise, research quality shall be the primary consideration. The scope of research, particularly in terms of depth and breadth, will also be assigned significance Furthermore, consideration will be given to the ability to plan, initiate, lead and develop research and education at the doctoral level, the ability to secure research funding competitively, and the ability to engage with the wider society through research. (AO Section 20) Cf. Section 3 of the Guidelines and Assessment Criteria for Recruitment and Promotion within the Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy.

Pedagogical expertise refers to qualifications in teaching and learning. In the assessment of teaching expertise, quality shall be the primary consideration. Scope, both in terms of breadth and depth, shall also be considered. In addition, the ability to plan, initiate, lead and develop education and teaching, as well as the ability to link the education to research are assigned significance. Teaching expertise includes the ability to interact with stakeholders within and outside the University on issues related to learning and teaching in higher education, (AO Section 22) Cf. Section 4 RB.

Clinical expertise is demonstrated through clinical practice and clinical training, as well as participation in clinical development. Clinical development includes measures that have enhanced the quality or efficiency of health and medical care. (AO Section 24)

Administrative and leadership skills are significant to the position and will be assigned considerable importance. The ability to collaborate with the surrounding society, such as cooperating with relevant authorities, risk communication with labour market stakeholders and the general public, and informing about research and development activities, will also be considered.

Administrative skills are demonstrated, among other things, by the ability to plan, organise, and prioritise work efficiently and appropriately, as well as by the ability to define and adhere to timeframes. Administrative expertise includes overall operational planning and the capacity to manage resources in a manner that reflects operational priorities, as well as the ability to work in a structured fashion based on set goals and levels of quality. (AO Section 28) Cf. Section 5 RB.

Leadership skills are demonstrated through the ability to lead operations and staff, make decisions, take responsibility and motivate others and provide them with the prerequisites for effectively achieving common goals. Further examples of demonstrated skills include the ability to coordinate a group, foster commitment, encourage participation and create job satisfaction, as well as the ability to manage conflicts. (AO Section 30) Cf. Section 5 RB.

When assessing collaboration skills, experience and proficiency in popular science, editorial activities, and other activities related to knowledge exchange between the University and the outside world, including relevant industries and authorities within the field, as well as collaboration with the healthcare sector in various areas (e.g. occupational health services), will be taken into account. (RB Section 6)

In a holistic assessment of the applicants’ qualifications, parental leave, part-time work due to childcare, union duties, military service or similar shall be  considered as work experience. (AO Section 94)

When the University is to appoint new teachers, the applicants are to be selected who, through a qualitative assessment of the whole picture regarding competence and skills, are considered to have the best qualifications for the implementation and development of the tasks in question, and for contributing to a positive development of the activities. (AO Section 4)

The aspect of gender equality shall be applied in appointments if, following a qualitative assessment, two applicants of different genders have equivalent or nearly equivalent qualifications, and if one gender is underrepresented (constituting less than 40% within the relevant position category and at the relevant workplace). (AO Section 95)

All qualifications must be documented in a manner that allows an assessment of both quality and scope.

International experts may be involved in the assessment of submitted applications. In such a case,
application documents written in Swedish may need to be sent to a translator contracted by the
University.

Links to relevant regulations and guidance

Appointment Regulations for Uppsala University

Guidelines and assessment criteria for the recruitment and promotion of teachers at the disciplinary domain of medicine and pharmacy

Qualifications portfolios: Instructions for the compilation of qualifications and guidelines for qualification evaluation for the recruitment of teachers, Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy

Information regarding the appointment may be obtained from
Head of Department Josef Järhult, josef.jarhult@medsci.uu.se  

Please submit your application by March 16th, UFV-PA 2025/1302