Associate Professor in British Literature and Culture

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Associate Professor in British Literature and Culture

The Faculty of Humanities at the University of Bergen (Norway) invites applications for a permanent position as Associate Professor in British Literature and Culture at the Department of Foreign Languages. The starting date for the position is 1 August 2024, or as soon as possible thereafter.

The Department of Foreign Languages (IF) employs an academic staff of around sixty, eleven administrative staff members, and around 20 postdocs and PhD candidates. The Department offers programs in Arabic, English, French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, German, and Spanish Language and Latin America studies. The English program is the largest of the programs, and currently has 15 permanent staff members, distributed among different disciplines (linguistics, literature and teacher education). The English program offers teaching on all levels in the three disciplines. The literature discipline offers courses in British and American literature and culture at undergraduate and graduate levels and may also offer specialized courses in World Literatures.

The Department and the Faculty of Humanities host several research groups and have formal agreements of exchange and collaboration with countries in Europe, Africa, Asia, North and Latin America, as well as collaboration with other Norwegian universities and university colleges.

Teaching and research:

The responsibilities of an Associate Professor in British Literature and Culture include research, supervision, teaching, course development, and student assessment on all levels in the English literature program, as well as administrative duties related to the English program and the Department. The successful applicant will also be expected to contribute to and participate in the teacher education program.

Candidates must be able to teach a wide range of courses in British literature and culture on undergraduate and graduate levels, including survey courses, more specialized and advanced courses on BA and MA levels, as well as supervise students at all levels, including PhD. We are looking for candidates whose areas of expertise include literature after the Second World War and can supplement the program’s existing research areas.

The successful candidate is expected to participate in the continued development of the research environment, and is expected to assume an active role in project development, attraction of external funding and dissemination. The successful candidate is expected to maintain and develop research collaboration between the English program at the University of Bergen and other relevant national and international research communities.

While the language of instruction is English, the appointee is required to master Norwegian, or another Scandinavian language, at B2 level (The Common European Framework) within three years of appointment. The University offers courses in Norwegian for foreign employees.

One may apply for promotion to full professor after a competency assessment based on scholarly merit according to the guidelines from The Norwegian Association of Higher Education Institutions.

Qualifications and personal qualities:

• To be considered for the position, the candidate must have relevant research competence in British literature and culture corresponding to the level of a Norwegian doctoral degree.
• Teaching and supervision experience on undergraduate and graduate levels in British literature and culture is a requirement.
• Documented competency in project leadership, coordination of researc activities and strategic research planning will also be given weight.
• Experience with initiating research projects and securing external research funding is a plus.
• Basic teaching training and experience in the supervision of students at university level is a requirement for the position as associate professor. This implies completed formal pedagogical training, as well as basic skills in planning, implementation, evaluation and development of teaching and supervision. Relevant courses in combination with actual teaching experience could replace a university pedagogy program. Should the successful applicant not have such competence at the time of appointment, they will be required to document such training within two years of the date of appointment. Pedagogical training must be documented in a pedagogical portfolio which should include a documented overview of practical experience and competence as well as a brief reflection statement. The statement should primarily describe the applicant’s own teaching philosophy and an evaluation of their own teaching in relation to their knowledge of students’ learning at a higher education level. For further information on how to document pedagogical training, please click here.

Evaluation of candidates:

In the evaluation of the applications weight will be given to:

• The quality and relevance of the applicant’s research and publishing record relative to career stage.
• Teaching experience on undergraduate and graduate levels.
• Record of grants, awards and/or research projects.
• Background relevant to the position’s profile described above.

Applicants for the position will be evaluated and ranked by an expert committee. The best qualified candidates will be invited to an interview and asked to give a trial lecture. The final selection process includes an assessment of this, as well as the candidate’s personal suitability for the position.

The University of Bergen emphasizes educational qualifications when appointing to academic positions.

Additional requirements:

All employees must generally, and irrespective of academic specialization, take on a shared responsibility for the development of subjects and course offerings. All employees must also be willing to take on administrative tasks such as for instance serving on committees and boards for the program, the department, or the faculty.

As part of their regular work duties employees may be required to teach, supervise, or carry out exam-related work within their field of competence outside of the Department to which the position is connected.

The appointee will be required to carry out their duties at the University of Bergen campus and participate in the day-to-day running of the Department.

We can offer:

• Salary in accordance with pay grade 71-75 (code 1011) on the State Salary Scale. This currently amounts to an annual salary of NOK 708.000-759.100 before taxes. Further increase in salary will depend on seniority. From the gross salary a statutory 2 % deduction for membership in the State Pension Fund (Statens Pensjonskasse) is deducted. A higher salary may be considered for particularly well-qualified applicants.
• A thriving and professionally stimulating working environment.
• Attractive research conditions, including approximately 46 per cent research time.
• Enrolment in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund.
• Excellent career opportunities, including the opportunity to apply for personal promotion to full professor at a later stage.
• Employment in an inclusive workplace (IA enterprise).
• Good welfare benefits.

Your application must include:

The application must be sent electronically within the deadline by using the link “APPLY FOR THIS JOB”. The applicant must fill in the electronical CV form, and the application must include:

• Cover letter.
• CV including a complete list of academic publications.
• Diplomas and transcripts verifying completion of the degrees (scanned versions of originals or certified copies of all Higher Education diplomas).
• Information and documentation of pedagogical qualifications.
• Pedagogical portfolio and reflection statement (more information here).
• Information regarding administrative experience and other relevant qualifications.
• Up to five academic works (may include theses, monographs and articles/chapters).
• Names and contact information of 3 referees.

The application and attachments, with certified translations into English or a Scandinavian language, must be uploaded to Jobbnorge by the deadline. Attachments may be uploaded as Word or PDF files. If necessary, the committee may ask for additional documentation.

NB: Please note that applicants will be evaluated based on the information available on Jobbnorge after the closing deadline for applications. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that all information is uploaded by the deadline.

General information:

Further information about the position can be obtained by contacting the Program Coordinator for English literature, Professor Randi Koppen, e-mail randi.koppen@uib.no, phone + 47 55 58 23 68 or Head of Department, Martin Paulsen, e-mail m.paulsen@uib.no, phone + 47 55 58 23 86.

The public sector shall reflect the diversity of Norwegian society to the greatest extent possible. People with immigrant backgrounds and people with disabilities are encouraged to apply for the position.

The University of Bergen applies the principle of public access to information when recruiting staff for academic positions. Information about applicants may be made public even if the applicant has asked to have their name withheld from the list of applicants. Applicants must be notified if their request is not met.

For further information about the recruitment process, click here.

Guide for applicants here. For questions regarding the online application process, please contact fakadm@hf.uib.no.

About The University of Bergen

The University of Bergen is a renowned educational and research institution, organised into seven faculties and approximately 54 institutes and academic centres. Campus is located in the centre of Bergen with university areas at Nygårdshøyden, Haukeland, Marineholmen, Møllendalsveien and Årstad.

There are four departments and four centres at Faculty of Humanities. Read more about the faculty and departments.