Center leader for The Center for Pharmaceutical Data Science Education
Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology
University of Copenhagen

The new Center for Pharmaceutical Data Science Education anchored at the Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen is seeking a dedicated and innovative Center leader from February 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter. We are looking for candidates at either associate professor or at professor level.
About the Center
The Center’s vision is to make pharmaceutical data science a catalyst for life science and healthcare strongholds. To achieve this, the Center will develop and deliver research-based education for the future workforce – spanning bachelor, master, Ph D, and life-long learning. The Center is based upon grant funding of DKK 123 million from three Danish private foundations; the Novo Nordisk Foundation, the Lundbeck Foundation, and the LEO Foundation. The Center is a collaboration between the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) and the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) and encompasses seven departments. For further information on the Center, see https://cpdse.ku.dk/.
About the Center leader candidate
The Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology invites applications from dedicated and innovative candidates who can lead successful implementation of pharmaceutical data science education, both at UCPH and SDU, and lead fruitful collaborations among the participating departments and external stakeholders.
The candidate should have an international research profile within data science relevant to pharmaceutical sciences and have a personal passion for teaching and educational development within the field. Moreover, the candidate should have a visionary and involving approach to leadership and be able to demonstrate strong results in leadership at institutional or research programme levels.
Job description
The Center leader will have the overall academic, financial, and personnel responsibility for the Center. The Center leader will ensure the strategic development of the Center, set out a clear direction, and create a strong Center profile both internally and externally.
A key task for the Center leader will be to establish a close collaboration between UCPH and SDU and the seven participating departments. The Center leader will be responsible for establishing a common strategy for pharmaceutical data science education and branding, and for nourishing a stimulating collaborative working environment for both staff and students. Such an environment will also support the development of scientific talents and continuous career development for all Center members.
The Center leader is expected to represent the Center externally, and to develop and maintain good working relations with external parties, including the pharmaceutical industry and relevant private and public foundations.
The Center leader is expected to establish and lead her/his own research group within pharmaceutical data science.
Overall responsibilities associated with the role as Center leader include:

• Leadership, including guidance and supervision of scientific and support staff
• Education development and research-based teaching, including associated examination
• Research, including publication/academic dissemination
• External collaborations with e.g., other universities, the pharmaceutical industry and relevant private and public foundations
• Obligation to share knowledge with the rest of society, including participation in the public debate
• Academic assessments

Qualifications of the applicant
The qualifications of the applicant can be either at associate professor level or at professor level. When considering applications for the position, emphasis will be on the applicant's relevant leadership results and experiences, and on the ability to document a high level of original scientific work at an international level within data science relevant to pharmaceutical sciences. Furthermore, the candidate’s formal competences and experiences within research-based teaching, educational development, supervision, examination, and organization will be considered.
The successful candidate should have a strong leadership profile and have insight into academic research and education as well as in interacting with the surrounding society both nationally and internationally. Therefore, a keen interest in and flair for communication and outreach is desirable.
As a leader, the candidate should be empathetic with an appreciative, listening, and involving leadership style – and at the same time demonstrate decision-making ability and decisiveness in a complex center setting. The candidate should be motivated by facilitating and stimulating interdisciplinary collaboration.
Overall criteria for the position:
Six overall criteria (research, teaching, societal impact, organizational contribution, external funding, and leadership) are considered a framework for the overall assessment of candidates at each of the academic levels. Find information about each criterion here:
Criteria for associate professor level: https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/criteria-for-recognising-merit/dokumenter/5b_Criteria_for_recognising_merit_-Associate_professors.pdf
Criteria for professor level: https://jobportal.ku.dk/videnskabelige-stillinger/kriterier-for-videnskabelige-stillinger/dokumenter-til-meritering/5c_Criteria_for_recognising_merit_-professors.pdf
Terms of employment
The position as associate professor or professor is a permanent position, whereas the position as Center leader is limited to the duration of the Center grant.
For candidates applying at the level of associate professor, enrolment in the UCPH promotion programme, leading to employment as a professor within an 8-year time frame, could be a possibility for the successful candidate.
The average working hours are 37 hours per week.
Salary and other terms and conditions of appointment are set in accordance with the Agreement between the Ministry of Finance and AC (Danish Confederation of Professional Associations) or other relevant professional organizations.
The position is covered by the Job Structure for Academic Staff at Universities 2020.
Questions
Please contact interim Center leader Jette Sandholm Kastrup, jsk@sund.ku.dk if you have questions about the position, and Head of Department Dan Stærk, ds@sund.ku.dk if you have specific questions about the Department. For information about the Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology and the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences (SUND), please see https://drug.ku.dk/ and https://sund.ku.dk/
Foreign applicants may find the following links useful: https://www.ism.ku.dk/ (International Staff Mobility).
The Center is anchored at Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen. At the Shanghai Ranking with Academic Ranking of World Universities, the University of Copenhagen is ranking 7th world-wide within the subjects of ”Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences”.
The Center is located at Nørre Campus in the Copenhagen district Østerbro. It can be reached in 10 minutes by public transportation from one of the city’s central transportation hubs, Nørreport station, however, most staff choose to cycle to work. Copenhagen, Denmark, is placed 2nd in the 2023 Global Liveability Ranking published by the Economist Intelligence Unit, based on assessments of stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Application
The application must be submitted in English, and must include the following documents:

• Application, including the level of appointment sought (associate professor or professor), motivation for applying for this position, and approach to leadership (maximum 2 pages)
• Curriculum vitae, including information about leadership responsibilities and obtained funding
• Diplomas (e.g., Ph D, formal management training, and other relevant training)
• A complete list of publications
• Copies of publications to be considered in the assessment (max. five publications for applications on associate professor level, and max. ten publications for professor level)
• Research plan (2-4 pages)
• Teaching experience/teaching portfolio, including documentation of formal qualifications and teaching experience presented in the portfolio (Guidelines)
• Teaching plan (2-4 pages)

Application procedure
After the application deadline has expired, the Chair of the Appointment Committee selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the Appointment Committee. All applicants are immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment. The Dean appoints an expert Assessment Committee to assess the selected applicants for the specific position. Selected applicants are notified of the composition of the Assessment Committee and each applicant can comment on the part of the assessment that relates to their own application. You can read about the recruitment process at https://jobportal.ku.dk/.
Please note that selected applicants who have applied at the professor level will be assessed at the associate professor level if they are found not-qualified for the professor level. Furthermore, the applicant will be contacted if the Assessment Committee requires further documentation.
The application will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.
The University of Copenhagen encourages all interested in this position to apply.
Please submit your application with the required documents. Only online applications will be accepted. The application deadline is Sunday, 13 October 2024, 23.59 p.m. CET.
Interviews for this position are expected to be held on 5 December 2024.

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