Faculty of Landscape Architecture, Horticulture and Crop Production Sciences

Department of Plant Breeding

SLU’s Department of Plant Breeding, located in Alnarp (near Lund and Malmö, in southern Sweden), focuses on research, education and innovation of strategic importance for a sustainable and profitable cultivation of crops for production of plant based food, feed and industrial products in a changing climate. The Department offers an inspiring, multidisciplinary, innovative and creative research environment and cooperation around current and future challenges, encompassing three main areas: Plant Breeding, Plant Biotechnology, and Plant Product Quality. The research efforts include basic as well as applied research. The Department utilises a wide range of techniques from field experiments and characterisation of agricultural biodiversity to genetics, genomics, phenomics, genetic engineering, gene editing, biochemistry, physical chemistry, physiology and modelling. As an integral part of the activities, the Department also runs public plant breeding programs in apples and potatoes for Sweden. The department provides a strong supporting, collaborative and international environment and hosts numerous large-scale grants including from the European Research Council, Novo Nordisk foundation, Swedish Research Council and Formas.

Read more about the Department here.

Read more about our benefits and what it is like to work at SLU via the following link.

Subject area

The subject area for the position is plant breeding and crop diversity.

Duties

The professor is responsible for the development of research and education within the subject of plant breeding and crop diversity in collaboration with the faculty's and the university's other researchers and teachers.

Possible research areas include, but are not limited to, research on genetic improvement of crops and crop diversity comprising areas such as abiotic and biotic stresses, plants adaptation to the climate in northern latitudes as well as in the Global South and resilience to climate change effects.

The research shall comprise both basic and applied questions relevant for the subject area. The use of methods based on genetics, genomics, bioinformatics and phenomics shall be central in the research.

The candidate shall within the subject area for the position:

• act in accordance with the vision, goals and values of SLU
• lead and contribute to develop successful international research and education
• secure funding (nationally and internationally) to support the research and breeding programs,
• publish in high quality peer reviewed journals
• collaborate with other researchers and teachers at the faculty and university, as well as disseminating research results and other relevant subject information to the public
• actively collaborate with industry in outreach to producers and develop a national reputation for excellence
• carry out administrative assignments within the Department, Faculty and University
• oversee the public plant breeding programs in potato and apple for Sweden
• undertake teaching and supervision responsibilities in advanced plant breeding and genetics at all levels
• supervise PhD candidates and postdocs on research in plant genetics and crop breeding

The department has a parallel linguistic working environment. The professor will be able to conduct most academic tasks in English. However, as Swedish is the official working language of the university, the candidate is expected to gain a functional level of Swedish or a Scandinavian language within four years of taking up the position. The department is committed to providing support for the candidate to achieve this objective.

Qualifications

The successful candidate shall have:

• a PhD in biology, plant breeding or genetics, and competence as associate professor (docent) or equivalent academic qualifications
• be scientifically skilled within the subject area for this appointment and have demonstrated the ability to obtain external research funds in competition
• demonstrated a proven ability to lead and develop a successful multidisciplinary research group as principal investigator
• demonstrated record of publishing research results in peer-reviewed articles of high impact journals
• be pedagogically skilled through a proven track record in teaching and mentoring students at all levels
• have the ability to integrate research and scientific perspectives in teaching
• a proven track record of collaboration with the plant breeders and other relevant stakeholder groups
• have a good ability to communicate in oral and written English.

Assessment Criteria

Bedömningsgrunder för anställning av professor kommer i första hand att baseras på i vilken grad den sökande besitter de för anställningen angivna meriter.

Vid bedömning av den vetenskapliga skickligheten beaktas:

• genomförd forskningsverksamhet och pågående forskning inom ämnesområdet
• nuvarande och framtida forskningsplaner inom ämnesområdet
• förmåga att självständigt initiera, leda och utveckla innovativ forskning inom ämnesområdet
• förmåga att attrahera extern finansiering i konkurrens

Vid bedömning av den pedagogiska skickligheten beaktas förmågan att:

• planera, genomföra och utvärdera utbildning och undervisning på alla nivåer
• handleda och examinera postdoktorer och studenter på alla nivåer
• förmedla och implementera pedagogisk vision och integrera aktuell forskning och vetenskapliga förhållningssätt i undervisningen

Vid bedömning av annan skicklighet beaktas:

• förmåga att utveckla och leda verksamhet och personal inom akademin
• förmåga att kommunicera inom och utanför akademin
• förmåga att samverka med externa intressenter och det omgivande samhället, samt samarbetsförmåga

It is considered to be of merit if the applicant has documented ability in application of modern plant breeding methods for plant improvement, knowledge of applied breeding programs and cultivar development, been actively engaged in research projects in the Global South, has a strong international scientific network, and knowledge of the Swedish language.

The position is offered to the person who, after a qualitative overall assessment, is judged to have the best conditions to carry out, develop current duties, and contribute to a positive development of the work activities at the Department of Plant Breeding.

This position offers the vibrant research climate at SLU. The benefits of the position include Swedish family health care provisions, parental leave including generous paid leave of absence policies that allow both parents to care for newborns and toddlers. Additionally Sweden has a well-established pre-school structure as well as an educational system that provides no-cost education through university studies. Find out more facts and stories about Sweden at www.sweden.se

SLU Alnarp is located in the Southern region of Sweden close to the university cities Lund and Malmö, and to Copenhagen in Denmark, the Öresund region offers a rich history and culture, and is a true academic and cultural hub.

Final date for application:

2023-12-18

Place of work:

Alnarp

Extent:

100%

Form of employment:

Tillsvidare

Starting date:

Enligt överenskommelse

Application:

Use the document Application guidelines for appointment as professor, senior lecturer or associate senior lecturer at SLU as guide when you fill in your application.

Please apply by clicking the apply-button below.

Academic union representatives:

https://internt.slu.se/en/my-employment/employee-associations/kontaktpersoner-vid-rekrytering/

The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) has a key role in the development for sustainable life, based on science and education. Through our focus on the interaction between humans, animals and ecosystems and the responsible use of natural resources, we contribute to sustainable societal development and good living conditions on our planet. Our main campuses are located in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, however, the university also operates at research stations, experimental forests and teaching sites throughout Sweden.

SLU has around 3,000 employees, 5,000 students and doctoral students and a turnover of over SEK 3 billion. We are investing in attractive environments on all of our campuses. We strive to provide a work environment characterised by inclusivity and gender equality, where different experiences generate conversations between people and pave the way for science, creativity and development. Therefore, we welcome applications from people with diverse backgrounds and perspectives.

Contact person

URL to this pagehttps://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/work-at-slu/jobs-vacancies/?rmpage=job&rmjob=9041&rmlang=UK