The University of Oulu is an international science university creating new knowledge, well-being and innovation for the future through multidisciplinary research and education. Close cooperation with research institutes, companies and the public sector has created an internationally significant research and innovation hub that has changed the world. Every day 2.6 billion people use technology developed in Oulu. In addition, the university’s location close to the Arctic offers unique conditions for a wide variety of research.

The Geography Research Unit of the University of Oulu is opening a 2-year position for a postdoctoral researcher to work in Arctic tourism geography in collaboration with the University’s scientific profiling area Arctic Interactions and Global Change (ArcI). The position will be based in the Geography Research Unit and specially in the Tourism Geographies and Sustainable Mobilities (TOGSUM) Research Group led by Professor Jarkko Saarinen (https://www.oulu.fi/university/researcher/jarkko-saarinen ; https://www.oulu.fi/geography/node/57381).

The Geography Research Unit (https://www.oulu.fi/geography/) has currently five key focus areas: Geoinformatics, Physical Geography, Regional Development and Regional Policy, Regional and Political Geography, and Tourism Geographies. The unit has six professorships, five postdoctoral positions and four doctoral student positions based on research unit funding. Several PhD and postdoctoral researchers funded externally work at the unit. In total, the research unit has approximately 35 faculty members and 150 BSc, 200 MSc and 25 PhD students.

The unit offers a progressive, stimulating and international working environment. According to international rankings (e.g., QS-ranking), the Geography Research Unit has been consistently one of the strongest units at the University of Oulu. According to Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) the University is the strongest in tourism and hospitality management studies in Finland, and most of the related research is based on the work by TOGSUM Research Group. Researchers working at the unit have contributed substantially to international research and debates in several sub-fields of geography, including tourism geography.

Work description

A successful candidate must have demonstrated experience in Arctic tourism research or tourism research focusing on northern environments. This experience can be based on socio-cultural, economic and/or environmental aspects of tourism and tourism development in the Arctic/North.

The position is funded by ‘Arctic Interactions and Global Change (ArcI)’. ArcI promotes cross-faculty and multidisciplinary cooperation through recruitment and mobility programmes, seed money actions and science events. The ArcI postdoc programme will fund talented researchers from a variety of disciplines to strengthen the current community of Arctic researchers at University of Oulu. This open position will be linked especially to the ArcI theme on Human-environmental relationships (ArcI 2) (https://www.oulu.fi/en/arctic-interactions ).

Qualifications

• PhD in Geography (or a related discipline), obtained within the past 10 years.
• Demonstrated experience (by publications) on tourism research in the Arctic areas and/or northern environments.
• Fluency in both written and spoken English.
• Good communication and teamwork skills.
• Strong and consistent record of scientific publishing in the top journals of the research field.

Assessment of the applicants’ qualifications will be based on the following criteria acknowledging the content of the job: scientific publications from the research field and motivation letter (e.g. research plans), previous work experience, activity in the scientific community, national and international mobility, and other academic merits.

Terms of employment

The duration of the position is 2 years, beginning on September 1, 2021 (or based on agreement). A six-month trial period will be applied to the position.

The salary is in accordance with the university salary system (for teaching and research personnel) level 5 of the demand level chart (postdoctoral researcher). In addition to the basic salary, supplementary salary will be paid for personal achievement and performance, the sum rising to a maximum of 50% of the basic salary level for the post. The typical salary for a starting postdoctoral fellow is €3,300 per month but may be larger for exceptional candidates depending past experience and qualifications.

How to apply

Applications, together with all relevant enclosures, should be submitted using the electronic application form by April 26, 2021 at 23:59 (Finnish local time).

The eligible applicants best fitting the expected research profile may be invited to a remote interview. All applicants will be notified when the selection process has been completed.

The application should be written in English and include the following documents:

1. A motivation letter summarizing applicant’s professional experience and expertise and describing why applicant is interested in about this position and what research ideas the applicant has on the topic of Arctic tourism. Also information on career plans are valuable to provide here (max. 3 pages).

2. A curriculum vitae (max. 4 pages) in accordance with the guidelines of the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity (https://www.tenk.fi/en/template-researchers-curriculum-vitae ).

3. A publication list based on the guidelines of the Academy of Finland (https://www.aka.fi/en/research-funding/apply-for-funding/how-to-apply-for-funding/az-index-of-application-guidelines2/list-of-publications/ ).

4) Names and full contact information of two persons for possible references.

For further information, please contact:

Professor Jarkko Saarinen, +358 (0) 40 48 40 777, jarkko.saarinen(at)oulu.fi

Tourism Geographies and Sustainable Mobilities Research Group (TOGSUM), Geography Research Unit