Instructions for applicants for teaching and research positions

Applicants for teaching and research positions at the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry are requested to follow the below instructions for CVs, the assessment of teaching qualifications and the list of publications.
Instructions for CVs

Applicants for teaching and research positions at the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry are requested to follow the below instructions for CVs, the assessment of teaching qualifications and the list of publications.

  1. Full names
  2. Current position
  3. Previous professional appointments
  4. Education
  5. Academic awards and honours
  6. Major research funding
  7. Other academic and professional activities
Instructions concerning teaching qualifications

Teaching qualification requirements for teaching and research personnel

According to the Regulations of the University of Helsinki, professors shall have the ability to provide top-level teaching based on research and to supervise theses and dissertations. University lecturers shall be able to provide high-quality teaching based on research and to supervise theses and dissertations. Postdoctoral researchers shall have the teaching skills necessary for the position, and university instructors shall have teaching experience. Applicants for the title of docent must have good teaching skills.

As specified in the Regulations of the University of Helsinki, the minimum requirements for teaching skills vary between positions. Teaching skills are assessed on the following scale: excellent, very good, good, satisfactory, passable.

Minimum requirements for different research and teaching positions:

  • Full professor: teaching skills as a whole at least good
  • Associate professor: teaching skills as a whole at least satisfactory
  • Assistant professor: teaching skills as a whole at least satisfactory
  • Senior university lecturer and senior clinical instructor: teaching skills as a whole at least good
  • University lecturer: teaching skills as a whole at least good
  • Clinical instructor: teaching skills as a whole at least satisfactory
  • University instructor: teaching skills as a whole at least good
  • Docent: teaching skills as a whole at least good (Universities Act, section 89)

In the assessment of teaching skills (teaching merits), attention will be paid to the following:

  1. Teaching experience and development;
  2. Pedagogical training and thinking;
  3. Ability to use and produce learning materials;
  4. Other teaching qualifications; and
  5. If deemed necessary, teaching skills as demonstrated in a lecture.

Items 1–4 above will be assessed on the basis of an academic portfolio or a description of teaching qualifications submitted by the applicant. Teaching skills will be assessed using the teaching evaluation matrix.

FAF teaching skills assessment matrix 2020

Guidelines: description of teaching qualifications

 

 

Demonstration of teaching skills

The lecture to be given as a demonstration of teaching skills should be seen as a learning situation. When evaluating a demonstration of teaching skills, primary attention will be given to the applicant’s ability to steer and enhance the audience’s learning during the lecture.

All teaching demonstrations are open to the public. The rival candidates themselves, however, may not attend each other’s lectures. The Faculty’s Teaching Skills Committee will attend the lecture for assessment purposes.

A failed lecture cannot be given a second time, unless the failure resulted from a technical (remote demonstration lectures) illness or other such reason.

The topic, level, duration and language of the demonstration of teaching skills

In the case of openly advertised positions, all applicants are provided with the same topic, and the target audience determined for the demonstrations is also the same. Applicants for the title of docent can choose the topic of their teaching demonstration. When planning the demonstration of teaching skills, the applicant should take into consideration that the lecture is an authentic learning situation and address it to the audience present. The topic should be narrowed down appropriately so that the content of the lecture can be discussed in 30 minutes, which is the maximum length of the demonstration of teaching skills. At the beginning of the lecture, the applicant must specify the level of the intended audience (basic-, intermediate- or advanced-level students) and the course or module to which the lecture belongs. The applicant is free to choose the manner and means of delivering the teaching demonstration.

Feedback

After the demonstration of teaching skills, the applicant must leave the room and the Teaching Skills Committee will discuss the lecture with the audience (approx. 15 minutes). Then the applicant and the Teaching Skills Committee will meet for a feedback discussion (approx. 15 minutes), which will be taken into consideration in the assessment of the applicant’s teaching skills. If the head or deputy head of the department and the chair of the Search Committee so wishes, he or she may listen to the feedback.

Statement

The Teaching Skills Committee will provide a written statement on the applicant’s teaching qualifications (overall assessment), which will be submitted to the applicant once  the position has been filled.

 

 

Professor

Required enclosures:

1. An English-language CV and a brief English-language report of the following:

  • Research and scientific activities
  • Involvement in administrative duties
  • Other activities which the applicant wishes to bring to the Faculty’s attention

2. Description of teaching qualifications (guidelines below)

Guidelines: description of teaching qualifications

mtdk_teaching_skills_assessment_matrix_2020.pdf

or, alternatively, an academic portfolio containing the above documents (sections 1-2)

3. A numbered list of publications. The listed publications should be classified as follows:

a) Articles in international scientific journals with referee practice

b) Articles in international scientific compilation works and international scientific conference proceedings with referee practice

c)  Articles in Finnish scientific journals with referee practice

d)  Articles in Finnish scientific compilation works and Finnish scientific conference proceedings with referee practice

e) Scientific monographs

f) Other scientific publications, such as articles in scientific non-refereed journals and publications in university and institute series.

In addition, other publications (textbooks, articles popularising science, etc.), patents, computer programs, presentations, visiting lectures, radio and TV programmes, etc., may be listed separately. In the case of unpublished manuscripts, the applicant shall specify the stage of the publishing process at the time of the closing of the applications.

4.The Faculty may request shortlisted applicants to submit 10 publications of their choice to be sent to the assessors via the electronic recruitment system after the application deadline. In the case of an article dissertation, the conclusion is counted as one publication and each article as one publication. The maximum number of publications to be sent to the assessors is indicated in the call for applications.

Open positions are advertised on the UH website: https://www.helsinki.fi/en/open-positions

The applications must be submitted using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System via the link Apply for job. Applicants who are employees of the University of Helsinki are requested to leave their application via the SAP HR portal.

 

 

University lecturer, postdoctoral researcher, university instructor and doctoral students

Required enclosures:

1. An English-language CV and a brief English-language report on the following:

  • Research and scientific activities
  • Involvement in administrative duties
  • Other activities which the applicant wishes to bring to the Faculty’s attention

2. Description of teaching qualifications (guidelines below)

Guidelines: description of teaching qualifications

mmtdk_teaching_skills_assessment_matrix_2020.pdf

or, alternatively, an academic portfolio containing the above documents (sections 1-2)

3. A numbered list of publications. The listed publications should be classified as follows:

a) Articles in international scientific journals with referee practice

b) Articles in international scientific compilation works and international scientific conference proceedings with referee practice

c) Articles in Finnish scientific journals with referee practice

d) Articles in Finnish scientific compilation works and Finnish scientific conference proceedings with referee practice

e) Scientific monographs

f) Other scientific publications, such as articles in scientific non-refereed journals and publications in university and institute series.

In addition, other publications (textbooks, articles popularising science, etc.), patents, computer programs, presentations, visiting lectures, radio and TV programmes, etc., may be listed separately. In the case of unpublished manuscripts, the applicant shall specify the stage of the publishing process at the time of the closing of the applications.



Applicants for post-doctoral researcher positions must enclose a research plan with their applications.



Applicants for doctoral student positions must enclose a research and postgraduate study plan with their applications.

The applications must be submitted using the University of Helsinki Recruitment System via the link Apply for job. Applicants who are employees of the University of Helsinki are requested to leave their application via the SAP HR portal.