04 July 2012
Senior lecturer in industrial design
Umeå Institute of Design, Sweden
Apply by August 27, 2012
Umeå Institute of Design is a department within the Faculty of Science and Technology at Umeå University, and is one of the units that is active in the building of the Umeå Arts Campus. We conduct education and research in the subject of Industrial Design on an artistic foundation. The degree programmes in Industrial Design are at the forefront internationally, and we have been named a Centre of Excellence in Higher Education on the basis of our strong commitment to teaching, advanced equipment, fit-for-purpose premises, an open and creative atmosphere and long-term, close cooperation with industry and the surrounding community.
Our courses and programmes attract students from around the world – at present 29 countries – who, after completing their education, are in demand on the labour market and are quickly employed as industrial designers in Sweden and the world.
The degree programmes we offer are a BA in Industrial Design, three Master’s degrees: Advanced Product Design, Interaction Design and Transportation Design, and a PhD in Industrial Design. In addition there is a one-year course package, Industrial Design Introduction (Bachelor’s level), and around ten shorter courses that are open to other student groups.
Who are we looking for?
We are now looking for a senior lecturer on an artistic basis, in Industrial Design, who has solid professional experience and a strong commitment to teaching, who can take responsibility for developing the common core educational areas for all our specialisations. The position is for teaching and supervision at Bachelor’s and Master’s levels, mostly conducted in English. The person we are looking for has worked professionally as an industrial designer for a longer period of time and has a passion for actively influencing and forming the education of future industrial designers.
We are looking for someone who can relate the professional role of an industrial designer to the role of a teacher, and who has the ability to convey methods, knowledge and reflections on the different parts of the design process in an pedagogical manner to groups of students with varied levels of previous knowledge in the design field. You therefore have a good grounding in the area of industrial design, as well as curiosity and a desire to investigate different educational methodologies for teaching in industrial design, and developing both teaching forms and subject content. You may previously have worked as a teacher, or have specific professional experiences of tutoring and learning, and may therefore, based on your vision of the professional grounds of industrial design and how they are best supported and developed through education, be strongly motivated to further develop these in an educational context.
Which would that person's competencies be?
We are looking for applicants with competence to teach design methodology, from the idea phase to information collection, methods for documentation, analysis and evaluation, creative methods and visualisation methods. It is an advantage if you also have one or more areas of specialisation on which you particularly want to focus. For example, these could be the design process in a professional environment, form, sketches or visualisation, but also other areas.
The development and execution of teaching at Umeå Institute of Design takes place with teachers and other staff, in dialogue with students and often in cooperation with external parties, so you must also have documented good experience of working in groups and of long-term planning. You possess good skills in expressing yourself in English, verbally and in writing.
You are expected to be responsible for running and developing the basic core subjects that are common to each specialisation in out programmes and courses, in close partnership with the programme directors and other staff, with a particular focus on your own area of specialisation.
Formal requirements and previous experience
Applicants eligible for employment as senior lecturer on an artistic basis are those who have demonstrated pedagogical skills and who have been awarded a PhD in the arts, demonstrated artistic proficiency, or who have some other form of professional skills that are significant in relation to the subject content of the position and the work tasks included in the position. The successful applicant will be able to display many years of well-documented practical experience of the profession of industrial designer and documented knowledge and experience of, and reflection on, artistic and professional aspects of industrial design.
Experience of educational activities in the area of design, with a special focus on issues of importance to the profession, is of merit. Educational activities may include teaching-related tasks in professional work and experience of supervising, informing and arguing to create an increased understanding of and knowledge of design processes. The applicant must also be able to demonstrate good, documented experience of leading a design process in a professional context, and of cooperating with different stakeholders and experts in such processes.
The degree of professional/artistic and educational expertise will be used as grounds for assessment for suitability for the position. Specifically, the applicant’s experiences of and reflections on professional activities as an industrial designer will be taken into account, as will previous experience of supervising and/or teaching the subject of industrial design, as well as the applicant’s motivation and commitment to issues related to knowledge development and education in industrial design. In addition, administrative skills, the ability to renew and develop teaching in industrial design, and to work with the surrounding community, will be used as a basis for assessment. Equal attention will be paid to the assessment of artistic/professional expertise as to pedagogical expertise. In addition, regard will be paid to other grounds for assessment. For otherwise equally merited applicants, pedagogical expertise may be decisive.
Applications
Your complete application, marked with reference number 312-609-12, should be sent to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (state the reference number as subject) or to the Registrar, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden to arrive August 27, 2012 at the latest.
Please attach the following to your application:
- CV
- copies of relevant degree certificates and publications
- a written presentation of your vision of the future of the profession of industrial designer and how teaching in industrial design should be formed to support this
- a written reflection on your view of teaching and learning and how to support learning
- a visual and written account/reflection of your professional activities
- other documentation you wish to be considered.
Applications may be submitted electronically or as hard copy. Documents that are sent as hard copies must be sent in triplicate and material that is sent electronically must be in Word or pdf file formats.
For additional information, please contact Head of Department, Tapio Alakörkkö, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ; +46 (0)90 786 9835 or Anna Valtonen, Rector, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ; +46 (0)90 786 5353. www.uid.umu.se
Trades union information is provided by SACO, +46 (0)90 786 5365, SEKO civil, +46 (0)90 786 5296 and ST, +46 (0)90 786 5431.