Professor/Assistant/Associate Professor, governance of food security and pharmaceutical preparedness

Job description

The Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry and the Faculty of Pharmacy invite applications for the position of PROFESSOR OR TENURE TRACK ASSISTANT / ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN GOVERNANCE OF FOOD SECURITY AND PHARMACEUTICAL PREPAREDNESS The position may be filled as a full professor or tenure track assistant professor or tenure track associate professor depending on the candidate’s merits and career stage. I nformation about our tenure track system: University of Helsinki tenure track . The goal of the tenure track is to advance to a permanent professor position. The field of the professorship in governance of food security and pharmaceutical preparedness lies at the intersection of economics and business administration, with a strong systems-analytical perspective. The central objective of the field is to understand the interdependencies through which food security and pharmaceutical preparedness can be strengthened through collaboration between the public and private sectors. From the public sector perspective, research focuses particularly on the design of optimal regulation and incentives for companies and civil society actors. From the business perspective, key areas of interest include supply chain risk management and the optimisation of associated costs. Enhancing understanding of the factors affecting the governance of availability and accessibility is essential for safeguarding the needs of consumers and medicine users in changing environments in Finland and globally. Future developments related to the global operating environment, the sustainability transition, digitalisation, artificial intelligence, and emerging production technologies also play an important role in shaping food security and pharmaceutical preparedness. The utilization of extensive public and firm-level datasets, as well as the development of novel analytical methods and governance solutions based on such data, may also fall within the scope of the professorship’s research area. The appointee will supervise theses and contribute to teaching on Bachelor’s, Master’s and doctoral programmes. The appointee participates in the development of teaching at the faculties and is also expected to work in the management teams of the degree programmes. The professorship will also contribute to strengthening collaboration with the Faculty of Social Sciences’ new Master’s Programme in Societal Security. The position is based at the Ruralia Institute's Mikkeli unit in the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, placing both research and teaching within a rapidly evolving regional ecosystem focused on comprehensive security. REQUIREMENTS An appointee to the position of assistant professor or associate professor in the tenure track system shall have a doctoral degree the ability to conduct independent scholarly work the teaching skills required for the position the ability and motivation to pursue an academic career, as demonstrated by publications and other means a dynamic and future-oriented research plan strong ability to work in multidisciplinary teams and environments An appointee to the position of professor shall have a doctoral degree high-level academic qualifications experience in leading scientific research the ability to provide research-based teaching and supervise dissertations and theses evidence of international cooperation in the research field they represent academic leadership skills a dynamic and future-oriented research plan strong ability to work in multidisciplinary teams and environments The degree requirement (doctoral degree) must be met by the end of the application period. When considering the candidates’ qualifications, attention shall be given to scientific and teaching merits. In addition, the candidates’ leadership and interaction skills, as well as activity in the scientific community and public engagement shall also be taken into account. Scientific merits include scientific publications and other research results of academic value success in obtaining external research funding international research experience other international experience Teaching merits include teaching experience pedagogical training the ability to produce learning material other teaching merits a teaching demonstration participation in doctoral education According to the Government Decree on Universities, professors and tenure track associate/assistant professors must be proficient in Finnish. They must also have at least satisfactory spoken and written skills in Swedish. Foreign citizens, non-native Finnish citizens or citizens who have not been educated in Finnish or Swedish may be exempted from this requirement without a separate application. If the appointee is not proficient in Finnish, they are expected to acquire intermediate level skills within a reasonable time after the appointment. The University will support the appointee in acquiring the necessary Finnish language skills and time for language studies can be included in annual working plan. To successfully attend to the duties of the position, the appointee must have good English skills. WHAT WE OFFER We offer an interesting opportunity to work in a diverse research environment. At the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry and the Faculty of Pharmacy you will carry out research-based teaching at the highest education level in the field in Finland and have the opportunity to take part in internationally valued, first-class research activities. The position is also an opportunity to develop your own professional skills in a multidisciplinary work community of the faculty. Your work will be supported by the research and teaching staff of the department and the faculty as well as the administrative and technical staff at Viikki campus. Furthermore, the university takes care of your well-being by flexible work arrangements, comprehensive occupational health care and wide-ranging, low-cost UniSport services. Professional development is supported in different ways, i.e. by offering versatile staff training, mentoring etc. The professor’s gross annual salary varies between 75 000 and 96 000 euros and the assistant/associate professor’s between 60 000 and 72 000 euros, depending on the appointee’s qualifications and experience. There is a six-month trial period in the position. The appointee is expected to reside in Finland while employed by the University of Helsinki. HOW TO APPLY Applicants are requested to enclose with their applications a SINGLE PDF file that includes the following documents in English: 1) CV 2) A short motivation letter and report on how the applicant intends to develop his or her research and focus his or her activities, if appointed in the position (1-2 pages) 3) Report on the applicant’s research activities (including activities in scientific communities, the acquisition of research funding and international scholarly work) (max. 5 pages) 4) A numbered list of publications 5) A report on pedagogical expertise (see the instructions via the link below under University portfolio – Teaching and supervision) For more detailed instructions on the application documents, please see Applications with the above attachments must be submitted in a single PDF file , which is named: food security_ lastname_firstname. Other attachments are not required. The faculties may request shortlisted applicants to submit 5-10 publications of their choice to be sent to the assessors via the electronic recruitment system after the application deadline. In the case of shortlisted applicants, aptitude evaluation may be used as part of the recruitment process. External applicants, please submit your application using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System via the Apply Now link. Applicants who have a username and a valid employment contract, a grant researcher's contract, a visiting researcher's or visiting professor's contract at the University of Helsinki are requested to leave their application by using the Employee login . The University of Helsinki welcomes applicants from a variety of genders and linguistic and cultural backgrounds. The closing date for applications is 6.10.2026 at 23:59 EEST. FURTHER INFORMATION About the position: Director Sami Kurki, sami.p.kurki(at), tel. +358 294140338 Recruitment process and the recruitment system: HR Specialist Mirkka Juntunen, recruitment(at), tel. +358 294157583 ABOUT US The Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry is located on the Viikki campus. The mission of the faculty is to promote the sustainable use of renewable natural resources through scientific research and research-based teaching. We focus on agricultural and forest sciences, food and nutrition, microbiology, as well as on economics and management. We cover the full natural resource chain from farm to fork, the entire field of forest sciences from soil chemistry to marketing, as well as the environmental effects of related activities. Graduates from the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry are versatile experts in food and forest sectors. The Faculty of Pharmacy is a multidisciplinary research and education unit located at the Viikki campus, nationally and internationally recognized, with an extensive network of collaboration. The faculty educates experts in pharmacy, who work in the pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical wholesale companies, administrative and regulatory positions, as well as in pharmacies and hospital pharmacies. The aim of the faculty's research is to identify new targets for drug action, discover and develop new drug candidates and study the mechanisms of action of drugs, develop drug delivery methods and advance technologies in the field, improve medication safety, and address societal and economic issues related to drug therapy and pharmaceutical care. WHY UNIVERSITY OF HELSINKI, CITY OF HELSINKI AND FINLAND Why should you choose University of Helsinki: Why Finland is a great place to live and work: 10 reasons to work in Helsinki: Support for international staff: International House Helsinki: Welcome to Helsinki: A diverse and equitable study and work culture is important to us. That is why we do our best to promote an inclusive university community. We encourage all qualified applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply for our positions. Click this link to read about accessibility and inclusivity at our University. JOIN US TO BUILD A BETTER WORLD – TOGETHER! #HelsinkiUniCareers