High-quality teaching is a priority at Aarhus University, because it contributes to good student learning outcomes, and because the university is committed to offering internationally competitive research-based education. For this reason, we place a strong emphasis on the theoretical and practical qualifications of teaching staff, both in connection with the assessment of candidates during the recruitment process and in terms of professional development during employment. The teaching qualifications of applicants to academic positions are assessed systematically. This is done in order to ensure that applicants are qualified to carry out the specific teaching duties involved in the position.
Applicants to postdoc or research positions with teaching obligations, as well as applicants to (teaching) assistant professorships, (teaching) associate professorships and professorships, must document their teaching experience and qualifications in the form of a teaching portfolio which is submitted together with their application, and on which the assessment of the applicant’s teaching qualifications will be based. The seniority of the position is taken into consideration when assessing teaching qualifications.
Applicants to associate professorships and professorships must submit a teaching statement in addition to the teaching portfolio. A teaching statement is a short personal essay describing the applicants’ approach to teaching, with practical examples illustrating their philosophy.
In exceptional cases, a department/school may wish to hire an applicant with research qualifications at associate professor/senior researcher level who lacks the necessary teaching qualifications. In such cases, the department/school must draft a detailed, specific training plan for how the applicant is to acquire the necessary teaching skills within the first two years of employment.
See the faculties’ descriptions of their recruitment procedures for more detailed information on their requirements with regard to the content of the teaching portfolio and the teaching statement.