The Department of Design, Media and Educational Science at the University of Southern Denmark (SDU), invites applications for a position as Associate Professor in Media Studies with a focus on digital media. The position is located at SDU, Odense and is available from 1^st October 2025  or as soon as possible thereafter. 

The Department of Design, Media and Educational Science is part of SDU’s Faculty of Humanities and conducts research within a wide range of areas, including Design Studies, Media Studies, Education Sciences, Philosophy, Information Studies, Library Science, Organizational Communication, and Web Communication. 

About the position

As an associate professor, you are expected to conduct high-quality research within the field of Media Studies, develop research projects and national and international collaborations. The position involves research grant applications and research management as well as supervision of Ph.D. students and postdocs.

The Danish Media Studies tradition originates from Cultural Studies. Consequently, the candidate is expected to conduct cutting edge research within Media Studies at the intersection of the Humanities and Social Sciences or within the Humanities. A central aspect of the candidate’s research profile should be a focus on digital media as phenomena, with respect to their uses, meanings, history, and co-shaping of identities, relations, practices, and societies.

The candidate is expected to actively participate in the Media research group. This includes collaborations on research activities such as co-writing and co-editing, reading and giving feedback to colleagues’ publications and grant proposals, participate in activities for Ph.D. students, etc.

The candidate will conduct research-based teaching, examination and supervision in the BA and MA study programs, in relation to one or more of the following areas idea generation, prototyping and the use of sound media; digital production and communication via social network media, web, and apps; and transmedial communication and production. All these areas of teaching contain hands-on engagement with various media formats, involving design processes, and the use of software that is used within media industries. Other relevant topics are forms, uses, meanings, and history of media formats, as well as quantitative and digital methods. 

The teaching obligation for academic staff is described in the faculty's norm agreement (Danish version / English version).

Furthermore, the candidate is expected to undertake various administrative tasks related to research, curriculum development and teaching, such as membership of different boards, councils and committees, course lead or head of study programme.

Associate Professors in the department have the opportunity of applying for the professor promotion programme.

Candidate profile

The successful applicant is expected to document research and teaching qualifications at associate professor level within theory, methodology, and criticism of digital media from a Media Studies perspective in relation to their form, history, uses, meanings, and/or co-shaping properties. 

A successful applicant for the associate professorship, is expected to 

• have a well-defined research profile 
• have published a substantial number of peer-reviewed articles in renowned journals and/or books or book chapters,
• have participated in internationally renowned seminars and conferences,
• be a part of relevant national and international research networks
• have a record of outreach activities
• have experience with applying for external research funding
• be able to present an ambitious and realistic plan and strategy for the development of their own research profile as well as the research area, including funding possibilities
• be able to present an ambitious and realistic plan for outreach activities related to their research 
• have completed a lecturer training program or be able to document qualifications at a similar level
• be able to present an ambitious and realistic plan for the ongoing development of their pedagogical and didactic skills
• have documented experience in teaching and supervising BA and MA students

Further qualifications that will be valuable in relation to the position include experience with research project leadership, competences with interdisciplinary and practice-oriented research, and research collaboration. Administrative experience and experience with course and curriculum development will also be considered strengths in an applicant’s profile. 

Media Studies and the Department of Design, Media and Educational Science

The Media Studies programmes at SDU places a strong emphasis on mandatory and elective courses in practical media production based on the premise that using media is a way to learn about and understand them better. In terms of teaching and research, we focus particularly on digital media in all their variety of forms, uses, meanings, outcomes, etc. Subject matters include, for instance, theories and history of analogue media, theories and history of digital media, basic and advanced methods, digital methods, film production, media planning, and much more. 

The Media Research Group has nine senior members and a varying number of associated younger researchers. The group collaborates on both research, education, and administrative tasks. The group is accommodating and friendly with a track record of joint publications and co-authoring. Between the members, the group has expertise across various distinct media domains including film, television, playful media and digital games, auditory media, and social network media. We are invested in tracking the dynamic trajectories of these respective industries and their cultural fields. We take pride in our expertise in understanding contemporary media usage, with specific insights into the needs and behaviours of diverse groups, including children, older people, and people with disadvantages. We are also dedicated to addressing societal challenges, such as climate change, and are currently pioneering innovative approaches to the greening and sustainability of media industries. Applicants are encouraged to consider how their research expertise might contribute to collaborations with other members of the research group.

The Department of Design, Media and Educational Sciences is one of two departments at the Faculty of Humanities at SDU. The department has approximately 150 employees and houses research and teaching in a wide range of different areas that besides Media Studies include Design Studies, Educational Science, Philosophy, Information Studies, Library Science, Organisational Communication, and Web Communication. The department is located at Campus Odense, Campus Kolding and Campus Sønderborg.  

The department places great emphasis on strong collegial collaborations within and across research groups, high-quality research, and outreach activities.

Media Studies SDU is based in University of Southern Denmark Campus Odense. Odense is Denmark’s third largest city with a population of about 200.000. It is one of the oldest cities in Denmark with a rich culture and history. Odense is nicely located and well-connected to both Copenhagen and Aarhus. A train to Copenhagen is approximately 1 hour.   

Please be advised that continuous, physical presence at the Odense campus is expected of all staff members.

We recommend that as an international applicant, you take the time to visit Work in Denmark where you will find information and facts about moving to, working, and living in Denmark, as well as the International Staff Office at SDU.  

Contact information
Associate Professor and Programme leader Sara Mosberg Iversen (siv@sdu.dk) or Head of Department, Alexandra Holsting (aho@sdu.dk), can be contacted for further information.

Conditions of employment
Appointment to the position will be in accordance with the salary agreement between the Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Please check links for more information on salary (only available in Danish) and taxation. 

Application
The Faculty expects applicants to read the information "How to apply" before applying. 

The application must include: 

• Application letter
• Curriculum Vitae
• Diplomas/Certificates
• Teaching portfolio (if you are applying for the associate professor - Please read more here)
• Plan for research dissemination and societal impact
• List of publications indicating the publications attached
• If applying for the associate professor position, a maximum of 6 of the most relevant publications. Applicants for the assistant professor position may include a maximum of 4 relevant publications. Please attach one pdf-file for each publication. For any publication with a co-author, a co-author statement must be submitted as part of the pdf-file 
• References letters and other relevant qualifications may also be included.

Application and all appendices must be in English. Please always include a copy of original diploma/certificates.  We only accept files in pdf-format no more than 10 MB per file. In case you have more than one file per field you need to combine the pdf-files into a single file, as each field handles only one file. We do not accept zip-files, jpg or other image files. All pdf-files must be unlocked and allow binding and may not be password protected.

The assessment process
Applications will be assessed by an assessment committee and the applicant will receive the part of the evaluation that concerns him/her. The assessment report will subsequently be forwarded to the Head of Department who will assemble an appointments committee. An interview may form part of the overall assessment of the applicants' qualifications.   

The committee may request additional information, and if so, it is the responsibility of the applicant to provide the necessary material.

If the application does not meet the requirements mentioned above, the Faculty of Humanities may reject your application without further notice. Applications received after the deadline will neither be considered nor evaluated.

Shortlisting and tests will be used in the assessment process. Please note that only a shortlisted applicant will receive an assessment. Here you can read more about shortlisting at SDU. 

Application deadline
Application deadline is May 26, 2025 at 11.59 PM/23.59 (CET/CEST). 

The University wishes our staff to reflect the diversity of society and thus welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background.  

About SDU and Odense 
SDU was founded in 1966 and now has more than 27,000 students, almost 20% of whom are from abroad. It has more than 3,800 employees, and 115 different study programmes in the fields of the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, health sciences, and engineering. Its main campus is located in Odense, the third largest city in Denmark, but is present also in Kolding, Sønderborg, Esbjerg and Copenhagen.

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