Associate Professor positions within Life Cycle Engineering and Energy System Analysis

The SDU Center for Life Cycle Engineering (SDU LCE) at the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) is seeking applications for an Associate Professor position within Life Cycle Engineering and Energy System Analysis. SDU LCE is part of the Department of Green Technology (IGT) at the Faculty of Engineering at SDU. The position is available from 01 October 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Job Description

The candidate will contribute to building up the area of quantitative sustainability assessment as part of industrial ecology. 

The successful candidate will drive internationally recognized research, work closely with industry, and is expected to attract competitive external research funding. The candidate will play a key role in providing outstanding education, supervising bachelor's and master’s students, and developing junior research staff.

We offer:

• A dynamic and international workplace with excellent facilities and strong collaborations with research organizations and industry.
• Continued education of members of staff
• Flexibility in planning working hours
• An attractive working environment and work-life balance prioritization

Qualifications:

We seek an ambitious and collaborative candidate with qualifications at the level of associate professor and an excellent track record of achievements. The candidate must have a PhD degree and have at least 3 years’ experience as an assistant professor.

• The candidate should be able to teach/plan/manage courses related to material flow analysis, quantitative sustainability, life cycle assessment, techno-economic assessment, sustainable development.
• The candidate should have an established research portfolio, including Web of Sciences publications in the field of sustainability, industry ecology, and green transitions.
• The candidate need to show substantial teaching and supervision experience in several subjects.
• The candidate preferably should be able to document experience with obtaining external research funding.
• Experience in research communication, outreach, and dissemination to a wider public
• The ability to strengthen national and international collaboration within the research area
• Strong interpersonal skills.

Required skills:

• Strong background in industrial ecology, sustainable resource management, life cycle assessment and green transition strategies 
• Excellent experience in (dynamic) material flow analysis, including modelling development and applications 
• Future/prospective scenario modeling and application hereof in material flow analysis
• Expertise in developing tools and methods for dynamic/prospective sustainability assessment
• Experience in decoding material-energy-emission nexus in green transitions
  • An application letter including a statement of motivation.

Department of Green Technology

The Department for Green Technology (IGT) at the Faculty of Engineering, SDU, is a highly interdisciplinary department equipped with state-of-the-art laboratories.

You will be part of a team of researchers working in the department supporting excellence within research and teaching.

We warmly invite all qualified candidates to apply. We are dedicated to embracing human diversity, believing that the key to achieving exceptional and outstanding research lies in fostering an inclusive community that welcomes individuals from all backgrounds

The city of Odense, where SDU’s main Campus is and IGT is located, is an international and family-friendly city with a rich cultural life, situated on the fjord. It is about an hour from Copenhagen and has a direct train connection to Copenhagen’s international airport several times each hour.

SDU’s Odense Campus is nestled in the beautiful Danish countryside, surrounded by fields and forests, with remarkable wildlife right at its doorstep.

SDU Life Cycle Engineering

SDU Life Cycle Engineering (SDU LCE) conducts unique research in system analysis and systems integration. The research at SDU LCE focuses on environmental system analysis, including material flow analysis, life cycle assessment, energy system design and analysis, industrial ecology, green hydrogen and power-to-x technologies and techno- and socio-economic assessment.

By applying and further developing these methods, SDU LCE aims to understand and characterize the sustainability of socio-economic development, including societal infrastructure development, urban development, and the technological development of industrial and agricultural products and systems. SDU LCE actively participates in international research communities related to Quantitative Sustainability Assessment and Industrial Ecology and contributes to international sustainable development agendas such as bio-economy and circular economy.

SDU LCE is primarily externally funded and engaged in numerous strategic research projects supported by various sources, including the European Union, national strategic funding bodies, private foundations, and NGOs.

The education and teaching portfolio at SDU LCE covers a broad range of technology courses related to the centers research areas. SDU LCE is responsible for SDU's Master's program in Environmental Engineering and is involved in both the Bachelor's and Master's programs in Energy Technology, Integrated Design & Sustainable Product Development and Chemical Engineering & Biotechnology. 

Conditions of employment 

Appointment as associate professor is permanent, and the preferred start date is from 01 October 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter

Employment as an associate professor requires academic qualifications at PhD level as well as scientific and teaching qualifications commensurate with the position as an associate professor. Employment will be in accordance with the collective agreement between the Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations for academics in the state with the associated circular on the protocol for the job structure for academic staff at Danish universities and the provisions for associate professor as described herein. Further information on salary and taxation. Persons employed in the position may, based on a specific individual managerial evaluation, be exempted from time registration, also known as a “self-organizer”. 

For further information regarding the position, please contact the Head of SDU LCE, Professor Morten Birkved, at tel.: +45 6550 7636 or email: morb@igt.sdu.dk.

If you experience technical problems, please contact hcm-support@sdu.dk.  

Application deadline: 31 August 2025 at 11.59 PM/23.59 (CET/CEST).

Assessment and selection process 

Applications will be assessed by an assessment committee. Shortlisting may be applied, and only shortlisted candidates will receive a written assessment. Read about shortlisting at SDU.  Interviews and tests may be part of the overall evaluation. 

Read about the Assessment and selection process.   

An application must include:

• Detailed Curriculum Vitae, preferably including ORCID ID and Scopus profile link.
• Evidence of experience in teaching (Teaching portfolio).
• Evidence of research experience and a research plan for the next 5 years including an overview of all externally acquired funding for research.
• Complete list of publications preferably including DOIs for all publications.
• Up to 8 of the most relevant publications (Please attach one pdf-file for each) for the position
• Certificates/Diplomas (any relevant Master's degree, PhD degree, or other relevant certificates e.g. completed courses on pedagogical training for university teaching etc.) – Danish or English transcripts are required.
• Documentation of other qualifications with relevance to the position 

UPLOAD GUIDE:  

Motivated application shall be uploaded as ‘Cover letter’ (max. 5 MB), Curriculum Vitae shall be uploaded as ‘Resume’ (max 5 MB). All other documents shall be uploaded as ‘Miscellaneous documents’ (max 10 files of max 50 MB per file).  

All documents must be in English and PDF format. CPR number (civil registration no.) must be crossed out. All PDF-files must be unlocked and allow binding and may not be password protected.  

Since not all members of the appointment committee are Danish speaking, it is recommended that all documents are submitted in English. Further information for international applicants about entering and working in Denmark can be found at our website.

About SDU

The University of Southern Denmark was established to create value for and with society. Whether our contributions come in the form of excellent research, innovative solutions, education or learning, we must make a positive difference to society and contribute to a sustainable future. We do this by cultivating talents and creating the best environments for research and learning. It is therefore crucial that SDU retains, develops and recruits talent. At the same time, we need to ensure consistently high quality in all our activities – and we can only do that with the right people. The University’s researchers, lecturers, students, managers and technical/administrative staff are the foundation of our success.