Call for open-rank academic position in child and adolescent developmental psychology

The Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Copenhagen (UCPH) seeks an excellent candidate for an open-rank, academic position in psychology.

The position is available from October 1st, 2026, but an earlier or later starting date is also possible.

The periods of childhood and adolescence are key components of the current strategy of the Department of Psychology, at the University of Copenhagen. We would like to strengthen our expertise, and impact around middle-childhood and adolescent development. Thus, we invite applications for a strategic, full-time, open-rank position (i.e. Tenure-Track Assistant Professor / Associate Professor / Full Professor) in this area.

We invite applicants whose research and teaching focus either on middle-childhood or adolescent development. We are especially interested in applicants whose work engages with contemporary challenges and/or has applied relevance, including but not limited to:

• Digitalization and youth culture
• Neurodiversity and developmental variation
• Identity and socioemotional development

A preferred candidate would have:

• A strong research profile within basic, applied or clinical middle-childhood or adolescent psychology
• For applicants with an applied profile, clinical training and expertise would be an advantage

The call includes the following types of positions:

• Tenure-Track Assistant Professor: The position comes with research and teaching obligations and offers the candidate a contract of six years that can result in a tenured associate professorship (contingent on positive evaluation).
• Associate Professor: The position is a permanent position with research and teaching obligations.
• Full Professor: The position is a permanent position with research and teaching obligations. Please note that candidates will only be evaluated at the level of position(s) that they apply for, but that candidates can apply for more than one level.

Hence, it is important that applicants clearly indicate the position(s) they are applying for.

The hired candidate will join a group of faculty members researching and teaching in different areas of Psychology. Teaching includes lectures, practical/training and theoretical seminars as well as supervision of Bachelor’s and Master’s theses in Clinical, Developmental, Neuropsychology, and/or Educational Psychology. The teaching responsibilities within these areas are shared across the faculty members (e.g., the hired candidate would teach parts of the lecture series). The candidate is expected to contribute to a new educational specialisation in applied child and youth psychology.
At the Department of Psychology, teaching is carried out in Danish or English.

The Department
The Department of Psychology at the University of Copenhagen is organized around three main research sections: Personality, Educational, Work and Organizational Psychology, and Social Psychology; Clinical and Health Psychology and Psychological Humanities; and Cognitive and Neuropsychology. The section that the candidate will join will depend on their primary area of research but if possible, they will be expected to work across different research sections where relevant.

A considerable proportion of the education at the Department is directed towards the psychological profession and is characterized by a high level of critical engagement with theoretical, methodological, and applied contents. Our education also connects to other scientific disciplines and the department takes part in several interdisciplinary academic programmes.

Research at the Department is of high international and ethical standards and is characterized by a fundamental curiosity to shed light on various phenomena from a psychological perspective. Our research takes advantage of synergistic interactions across basic and applied psychological research and knowledge, as well as of interdisciplinary approaches. Research at the department benefits from state-of-the-art facilities (e.g. eye-tracking, neuroimaging), access to large populations through the Danish registries, and established collaborations with local hospitals for access to patient populations.

For further information about the Department, please see: Department of Psychology – Department of Psychology - University of Copenhagen

For further information about the Clinical and Health Psychology and Psychological Humanities, see: Clinical, Health, and Humanistic Psychology – Department of Psychology - University of Copenhagen

For a more detailed presentation of our current departmental strategy, please see: Strategy – Department of Psychology - University of Copenhagen

For a summary of our Departmental Code of Conduct, please see: Code of Conduct

Duties and Responsibilities:
Duties and responsibilities of the positions include contributing to the scholarship and intellectual life of the University by conducting high quality basic or applied research, delivering excellent teaching and support to students across undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and fulfilling additional roles and responsibilities depending on the level of appointment.

We expect applicants to conduct and develop their own research in synergy with the ongoing work within the Department, and to contribute to implementing the current departmental strategy and helping to define our ongoing shared goals and aspirations.

Your Competencies and Opportunities:
To apply for the position, candidates must hold a PhD degree in Psychology, or a neighboring field, and be engaged in an active research programme of relevance to Clinical/Applied Psychology. Additional required qualifications and experiences are commensurate with rank. Candidates must have an emerging (Tenure-Track Assistant Professor) or established (Associate Professor and Full Professor) track record of successful research and research-based teaching within the field, as well as experience with supervision of junior researchers for Associate and Full Professor appointments.

It is essential that candidates have strong collaborative skills and are willing to take on academic and organizational citizenship or leadership roles (commensurate with rank) within the Department of Psychology.

The Department of Psychology views teaching as an integral part of employment at the department. Therefore, candidates should be able to demonstrate experience with teaching and teaching planning and coordination. Associate and Full Professor appointments would be expected to have undergone a formal education in teaching and learning in higher education.

A successful candidate will have strong interpersonal skills as well as an aptitude for working collaboratively with colleagues in planning and delivering teaching, in research projects and in the discharge of administrative duties.

Furthermore, applicants must demonstrate a commitment to student learning, supporting student welfare and enhancing the student experience.

Merit criteria and career progression:
Six general criteria apply to the employment of assistant professors, associate professors and full professors at the University of Copenhagen. The six criteria (research, teaching, societal impact, organizational contribution, external funding and management) are considered as a framework for an overall assessment of the applicant. In addition, each applicant must be assessed according to the specific requirements set out in the advertisement.

Information about the criteria for recognizing merit can be found here: Criteria for recognising merit – University of Copenhagen

Employment as an assistant professor requires academic qualifications at PhD level. The assistant professorship is an educational position where the main tasks are research (including publication / academic dissemination duties) and research-based teaching (with related examination duties). Assistant professors must complete a university pedagogical programme and a written assessment of the teaching qualifications must be provided no later than three months before the termination of employment. The position as assistant professor may be filled as part of a tenure track programme under which the employee after a maximum of six years transfers to employment as an associate professor. Such transfer requires that the employee is assessed and found to be academically qualified for the level of associate professor. The department will continuously follow up on the assistant professor's development in relation to the set criteria.

More information about the tenure-track Assistant Professor programme for promotion to Associate Professor can be found here: Tenure track at the University of Copenhagen – University of Copenhagen

Who to Contact:
If you have questions to the position, please write to Head of Department, Annemarie Olsen; ano@psy.ku.dk.

Terms of appointment
Terms of appointment and salary is in accordance with the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (Akademikerne). In addition to the salary a 18,07 % contribution to the pension scheme is paid. It is possible to negotiate salary supplements on an annual basis.

International applicant?
The University of Copenhagen offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including support before and during your relocation and career counselling to expat partners. Please find more information about these services as well as information on entering and working in Denmark here: For international researchers at the University of Copenhagen – University of Copenhagen

Non-Danish speaking employees are strongly encouraged to acquire the proficiency in Danish required to teach and interact with colleagues in that language in 3-6 years. The Department will provide and pay for the necessary language training.

An Equal Opportunity Workplace
The University of Copenhagen is committed in its pursuit of academic excellence to equality of opportunity and to creating an inclusive working environment and therefore encourages all qualified candidates to apply, regardless of personal background, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, ethnicity etc. For more on the diverse working place environment at the University and the University’s participation in the HRS4R HR Excellence in Research, see HR Excellence in Research – University of Copenhagen

How to Apply
Submit a complete application at our online portal. Click on the “Apply for position” icon at the bottom of the page to apply.

The application material must be in Adobe PDF or Word format. ZIP files and files that exceeds 20 MB cannot be uploaded.

Your application must be written in English and include the following documents:

• Motivated application (max. 3 pages)
• Curriculum vitae
• Certificates and Diplomas
• Publication list. A complete list of all publications with clearly marked publication dates. The uploaded publications must be marked with * on the list to be assessed.
• Publications. Applicants can submit a maximum of 6 publications. The 6 most important publications, of which at least three must have been published within the five years immediately preceding the deadline for application. The publications selected must be uploaded as attachments and named from 1 to 6.
• Research plan that includes a brief description of previous research as well as a plan for the next few years (max. 3 pages)
• Teaching portfolio. Documentation of teaching qualifications in accordance with the University guidelines for teaching portfolios when appointing academic staff at the University of Copenhagen
• Documentation of societal impact and ability to disseminate information. Documentation of the ability to disseminate information to and share knowledge with society.

Please note that candidates will only be evaluated at the level of position(s) that they apply for, but that candidates can apply for more than one level.

Hence, it is important that applicants clearly indicate the position(s)/level(s) they are applying for.
Furthermore, if you are applying for positions at several levels, please indicate 1st and 2nd priority.

The recruitment process
Further information on the recruitment process at University of Copenhagen can be found here: Recruitment process – University of Copenhagen

Information about the recruitment process is available from HR, e-mail: hr-soendre@adm.ku.dk, please refer to ID number: 211-0350/26-2K #1

The closing date for applications is June 10, 2026 at 23:59 (CEST]

Applications or enclosures received thereafter will not be considered.