An appointment as Senior Lecturer in plant physiology /Assistant Professor (tenure-track) with focus on RNA biology, primarily in trees, is available at the Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Umeå. The department is part of Umeå Plant Science Centre.
Last day to apply: August 19, 2026
Faculty of Forest Sciences - The Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology
The Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology is part of the Umeå Plant Science Centre (www.upsc.se). The Umeå Plant Science Centre is one of Europe’s strongest research environments in experimental plant science. Approximately 200 people work within UPSC, including 30 research group leaders. Our core activity is academic research in experimental plant biology, with the goal of understanding all aspects of plants in relation to the environments in which they live
Read more about the department at https://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/organisation/departments/forest-genetics-plant-physiology/
Read more about our benefits and what it is like to work at SLU at https://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/work-at-slu/.
Read more about the department and UPSC at www.upsc.se/.
Subject Area
The subject area for the position is plant physiology with a focus on RNA biology, primarily in trees.
Duties
The employee is responsible for developing research in the subject area genomics together with researchers within the faculty and other parts of SLU. The employee shall also contribute to the pedagogic development in the subject area.
The research shall encompass both fundamental and applied questions relevant to the subject area and make use of the research infrastructure associated with UPSC. Genomics and so‑called omics technologies shall be central to the research.
This means that the employee shall:
- act in accordance with the vision, goals and values of SLU
- contribute to the strategic development of the department and the faculty
- develop and lead internationally successful research in the subject of plant physiology with a focus on RNA biology, primarily in trees
- publish scientific articles in international journals with peer-review
- apply for external funding in competition at national and international level
- supervise doctoral students and mentor postdoctoral researchers
- lead, develop and participate in teaching and supervision of students at first, second and third cycle level
- collaborate with researchers within the department, faculty and other parts of SLU, as well as nationally and internationally
- collaborate and develop regional, national and international networks with the society at large
- disseminate research findings
- fulfil administrative tasks within the department, the faculty and the university, including responsibility for budget and staff
Swedish and English are used in parallel at the department. The senior lecturer should be able to perform most of their tasks in English. However, as a public authority, the university has Swedish as its main language according to the requirements of the Language Act. Non-Swedish-speaking staff members are expected to, within four years of first being employed, have sufficient knowledge of Swedish to understand information in Swedish. The department will support the holder of the position to achieve this.
Qualifications
The applicant must:
- have completed a doctoral degree in a subject area relevant for the position
- be scientifically skilled within genomics and RNA biology
- be pedagogically skilled
- have demonstrated leadership skills
- have good knowledge of English
Assessment Criteria
The assessment criteria for employment shall primarily apply to the degree of such skill, which is a requirement for eligibility for employment.
The assessment of scientific skills will consider:
- completed research activities and ongoing research within the subject area
- earlier experience in genomics and RNA biology
- future research vision within the subject area
- ability to independently initiate, lead and develop innovative research within the subject area
- ability to attract external funding in competition
- ability to supervise and examine at doctoral level and mentor postdoctoral researchers
The assessment of pedagogic skills will consider the ability to:
- plan, conduct and evaluate their own teaching at basic and advanced levels, including doctoral level
- supervise and examine undergraduate, master level and graduate students
- convey and implement their pedagogical vision
- integrate up-to-date research and scientific approaches into teaching
The assessment will also consider:
- ability to develop and manage academic units and staff
- vision for leadership
- ability to communicate and collaborate
- ability to collaborate with external stakeholders and the surrounding society
- dissemination of information on research and development projects
The position will be offered to the candidate who, after a qualitative overall assessment, is assessed to be most suitable to carry out and develop the above-mentioned duties and to contribute to the positive development of the organization.
Application
Application deadline: 2026-08-19
Place of work: Umeå
Extent: 100%
Form of employment: Permanent employment
Starting date: By agreement
It is desirable that the application is written in English, as the applications will be assessed by experts both in Sweden and abroad.
For the guidance of your application, there is SLU's appointment procedure for teachers at SLU and General assessment criteria for the appointment of teachers, which you can read here.
You can find the full job description on the SLU homepage following the below link. Please apply via the e-recruitment system of SLU using the apply-button at the bottom of this page: https://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/work-at-slu/jobs-and-vacancies/universitetslektor-i-vaxtfysiologi/
Ref: SLU.ua.2026.2.5.1-1818
Contact persons
- Ulrika Ganeteg,
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. - Totte Niittylä,
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About Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC)
The Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology is part of Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC) which is a centre of excellence for experimental plant research and forest biotechnology in Northern Sweden. Our mission is to perform excellent and innovative basic research and generate knowledge that benefits forestry, agriculture, environment and society. We work across a wide range of disciplines in plant science reaching from cell biology to ecophysiology and from basic research to industrial applications. Our common goal is to understand the plants’ ability to grow, adapt and acclimate to a changing world and how we can breed better plants.
UPSC belongs to two universities, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) and Umeå University. About 200 people from more than 40 different nationalities work here. We host some 30 principal investigators, and our researchers have access to state-of-the-art analytical platforms, unique tree germplasm resources and plant growth facilities. We strive for a collaborative work environment and support our scientists throughout all career stages by providing professional training opportunities and individual career mentoring.