171626 Associate professor in Clinical Proteomics and Data-Driven Biomarker Discovery for Neurodegenerative Disease (Fixed-Term, 5 Years)

Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences

University of Copenhagen



The University seeks to appoint an time limited associate professor at the Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology to commence March 1st 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter

Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology is committed to advancing human health through discovery, design, and evaluation of safe and effective medical treatments. To achieve this, we work in a dynamic and committed academic community, that bridges health science and life science in a translational and innovative approach from molecule to patient. We value interdisciplinary research and education, development of individual competences, and finding solutions to todays and tomorrows challenges in society. The department furthermore prioritizes sustainability in all aspects of research and education.

The department is organized in six research sections and furthermore houses Center for Pharmaceutical Data Science Education and Center for Protein Design. Further information on the Department can be found at: https://drug.ku.dk/

Job description

We seek an established researcher to lead an independent research programme at the interface of clinical proteomics, molecular neuropathology, and translational neuroscience. The successful candidate will drive biofluid biomarker discovery and drug-target identification in Huntington’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders, contributing to the department’s data-driven target and drug discovery activities and to its concerted effort to integrate data science and AI into research and teaching. Using state-of-the-art mass spectrometry-based proteomics, multi-omics, and machine learning, the candidate will connect mechanistic insight to clinical application through disease-relevant models and human sample cohorts, supporting AI-powered translational prediction and clinical decision support for personalized treatment.

Responsibilities

The associate professor’s responsibilities will primarily consist of:

• Research, including publication/academic dissemination of results to the scientific community and attraction of external funding
• Develop, organize, and conduct research-based teaching, including associated examination.
• Research leadership, including guidance and supervision of students and researchers
• Obligation to share knowledge with the rest of society, including participation in public debate
• Academic assessments
• Engage in outreach and/or innovation activities both within the Department and towards academia, the clinic, and industry in general.

Qualifications of the applicant

When evaluating applicants, primary emphasis will be placed on the applicant's ability to document original scientific work of the highest international standard, an innovative mindset, and strong ambitions for advancing teaching within the fields of biochemistry and pharmacology, with particular focus on teaching on compulsory courses at the BSc and MSc levels.

Applicants already having sustainability integrated in all aspects of their research and teaching, or a clear plan for doing so, will have preference. Likewise, a clear and structured plan for internal and external collaborations will be given positive consideration.

Overall criteria for the position:

To be qualified for an associate professor position, you will be assessed according to these five overall criteria for recognising merit at the University of Copenhagen: Research, teaching, innovation & societal impact, organisational contribution and leadership. Find information about each criterion.

Furthermore, each applicant must be able to document:

• Research qualifications at the level that can be achieved by satisfactorily completing a period of employment as an assistant professor/postdoc, but may also be obtained in other ways
• Teaching qualifications and pedagogical competencies
• Research-based teaching

The associate professor is also required to possess good interpersonal and communicative skills.

Desired qualifications:

• Strong, independent research record in neurodegenerative disease, with expertise in mass spectrometry-based proteomics and biofluid biomarker discovery.
• Experience integrating multi-omics data with machine learning and AI, and working with preclinical models and cell-type-resolved approaches.
• A track record of securing competitive external funding and of research leadership.
• Teaching experience and formal teaching qualifications (e.g. Universitetspædagogikum), together with supervision experience.
• Ability to bridge discovery and translation (from molecule to patient) and to collaborate across academia, clinic, and industry, including innovation and spin-out activity

Terms of employment
The position is a time limited position for 5 years. The average weekly 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 organisations.

You can read more about salary levels in the state sector www.loenoverblik.dk (in Danish).

The position is covered by the Job Structure for Academic Staff at Universities 2025.

Questions
For further information, please contact Head of Department Dan Stærk, ds@sund.ku.dk. For information about the Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology and the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences (SUND), please see www.drug.ku.dk and https://sund.ku.dk/.


Foreign applicants may find this link useful: https://www.ism.ku.dk/ (International Staff Mobility).

Application
The application must be submitted in English and must include the following documents:

• Application, including motivations for applying for the position (maximum 1 page)
• Curriculum vitae, including information about external funding
• Diplomas (Master’s, PhD, and other relevant certificates)
• A complete list of publications
• Research plan (3-5 pages)
• Uploads of maximum 5 (associate professors) publications to be considered in the assessment
• Teaching plan
• Teaching portfolio (Guidelines: https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/job-application-portfolio)

Application procedure
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the Appointments Committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment. The Dean then appoints an expert assessment committee in order to make an assessment of the selected applicants for the specific post. Selected applicants are notified of the composition of the committee, and each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant him/herself. You can read about the recruitment process at The university's Job Portal.

Please note that the applicant will be contacted if the assessment committee requires further documentation.

The applicant 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 applicants to apply for this position.

Please submit the application with the required attachments. The closing date for applications is 23.59 CET on 20 November 2026.