Associate Professor in Artificial Intelligence - Befattningen är under tillsättning eller redan tillsatt, och det är inte längre möjligt att lämna in en ansökan

The Department of Computing Science is looking for an Associate Professor in Artificial Intelligence with focus on Responsibility and Ethics of AI. Last day to apply is 2019-08-20.

Work description
Foundational research on a wide area of AI subjects, with primary focus on societal impact. Although focus is on foundational artificial intelligence, the person holding the position should also be able to apply the research in different application areas.

Work will also include teaching and supervision on all levels. It also includes research management (in particular planning and managing research projects, new applications for research grants, and valorisation efforts), and communication with stakeholders and the public in general. It may also include administrative assignments, including academic leadership on departmental and other levels within Umeå University.

The content of the work assignments, like the distribution between research and teaching, can change over time. However, the proportion of teaching will be 50 % per year on average over three years.

Qualifications
An applicant shall qualify for appointment as an Associate Professor if she/he has demonstrated pedagogical skills and holds a doctorate or has attained equivalent academic competence or other professional skills relevant with regards to the subject area of the appointment, and the work description.

The subject area for the doctoral thesis shall be Artificial Intelligence, with focus on human-AI interaction.

Assessment criteria and their weight
In the selection of candidates, emphasis will primarily be put on the degree of scientific expertise. Next, pedagogical skills, in particular proven supervision experience (at graduate and undergraduate levels) will be taken into account. Management and administration skills, as well as communication and collaboration skills will be given equal weight to pedagogical skills.

Scientific expertise refers to

• ability to independently carry out research of high international quality
• ability to independently plan, organize, lead and manage research and coordinate research projects
• ability to develop new methods and apply them to new problems
• ability to competitively obtain research funding
• proven active participation in large European or national projects
• experience with proposal writing and consortium forming
• commissions of trust in the scientific society

Scientific expertise must relate to a relevant field of Artificial Intelligence. Documented experience in research on AI impact and/or the interaction of humans and intelligent systems is a prerequisite. Experience on computational methods for Responsible and Ethical AI, such as design and verification of ethical principles, algorithmic fairness, bias detection, explanation is particularly relevant.

The quality, originality, and timeliness of the research contributions will be assessed. Significant emphasis will be put on scientific work published in internationally recognized scientific journals and proceedings of scientific conferences that apply a peer-review system, as well as on the ability to develop and manage a research program.

The notion of pedagogical expertise refers to:

• documented skills and experience to plan, conduct and evaluate research-informed teaching,student supervision and examination at graduate and undergraduatelevels
• the ability to vary teaching methods and forms for examination in relation to expected study results and the character of the subject
• ability to demonstrate a reflective attitude about your teaching and the learning of students
• ability to establish good communication with and motivate students, and to pass on to them an enthusiasm and interest for the subject
• taking part in the development of learning environments and teaching material.

Teaching experience must include the area of artificial intelligence. Proven experience of teaching at both undergraduate and graduate/research level is required, as well as documented experience in supervision of theses. Experience in the development of new academic courses in the area of social and ethical aspects of AI and/or human-AI interaction is a merit.

Management skills are evaluated by the ability to lead and develop activities and staff at the university, and the ability to manage education on basic, advanced, and PhD level.

Communication and collaboration skills will be assessed based on the ability to establish collaboration with public and private organisations, general public, and researchers from other disciplines; the ability to communicate research to a varied range of stakeholders, present research to the general public, and contribute to debate about research and societal policy.

An excellent level of proficiency in both spoken and written English is a requirement.

Application
The application should preferably be written in English. Instructions for what to include in the application, as well as how to describe scientific and educational activities can be found here:

https://www.aurora.umu.se/globalassets/dokument/enheter/teknat/for-vara-anstallda/personal-och-organisation/lektorsarenden/instructions-for-applicants-when-applying-for-a-teacher-appointment.pdf

The department of Computing Science is actively striving for gender balance, and thus encourages applications from women.

The application is to be submitted using the e-recruitment system of Umeå University  August 20, 2019 at the latest.