27 April 2011
Professorship in Graphic Design and Visual Comm., Aalto TAIK, Finland – apply by May 31, 2011
The Aalto University School of Art and Design, Department of Media invites applications for:
PROFESSOR OF PRACTICE POSITION IN GRAPHIC DESIGN AND VISUAL COMMUNICATION
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The Aalto Professor of Practice system is intended especially for the field of art, design and architecture. The Professor of Practice position provides departments with the possibility to hire highly respected professionals opening new areas of teaching and research / artistic and professional work. The position also provides possibility for re-evaluation and dynamic development of the field. The candidate will be appointed for a fixed 5-year term. The position will begin during the academic year 2011-12.
The Professor of Practice is considered a professorial position with Aalto-level requirements and external evaluation. A doctoral degree or comparable artistic qualifications and significant expertise in teaching and/or research/artistic and professional work are required for obtaining a Professor of Practice position. Furthermore, Professors of Practice are required to be committed to developing the field through research/artistic and professional work and teaching activities.
Aalto University is a new university with over a century of experience. Created from a high-profile merger between three leading universities in Finland - the Helsinki School of Economics, the Helsinki University of Technology and the University of Art and Design Helsinki - Aalto University opens up new possibilities for strong multi-disciplinary education and research. The university's ambitious goal is to rank among the top universities in the world in its areas of specialization. At Aalto University, there are 20,000 students with the number of alumni around 75,000. We have a staff of 4,500 persons of which 300 are professors.
The goal of the Aalto University School of Art and Design is to be a dynamic, international school that promotes the development of creative fields, the regeneration of Finnish culture and artistic education and furthers innovation-based business that supports sustainable development. The School cooperates actively with industry, the cultural sector and the surrounding society and forms networks with the best international universities and centers of expertise in order to realize its goals. The teaching and research of the school focus on design, media, art education, visual culture and audio-visual presentation. The Aalto University School of Art and Design has approximately 1900 students and 400 staff.
DEPARTMENT OF MEDIA
The above-mentioned position is located in the Department of Media, please find more information from these websites: http://www.taik.fi/en/departments/media.html and http://media.taik.fi/.
The Department of Media is an academic community of approximately 500 students and 80 staff members created through a restructuring of the School of Art and Design in January 2010. The department conducts research and provides education in bachelor, masters and doctoral programmes across a broad range of subjects and themes. The study programmes and research of the department are organized within three units; Graphic Design, Media Lab and Photography.
More information about the unit of Graphic Design is found here:
http://www.taik.fi/en/departments/media/studies/graphic_design.html
Within the unit of Graphic Design, the successful candidate is expected
- - to have an overall knowledge of visual communication and also have some specific area(s) of expertise within graphic design
- - to have the ability to teach degree students in all levels
- - to participate in the curriculum development
- - to create and maintain international professional and academic networks
For additional information, please contact Professor Marjatta Itkonen by e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
APPLICATION MATERIALS AND APPLICATION PROCEDURE
- 1. Application letter addressed to the President of Aalto University (1 page, PDF format)
- This should be sent by email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
THE REST OF THE MATERIALS SHOULD BE SENT BY MAIL TO THE REGISTRY OF AALTO UNIVERSITY ON A DVD (2 copies)
- 1. Curriculum vitae (PDF format)
- 2. Motivation letter including the applicant's view of the current state and future of visual communication (max 2 pages, PDF format)
- 3. Artistic portfolio including 5-10 most significant designs with short descriptions (preferably PDF format, size max. 20 M)
- 4. Teaching portfolio (written text only, max 5 pages, PDF format).
All application materials should be in English.
Please find detailed application instructions on the right side of the page! The language requirements for applicants are also described in more detail in the application instructions.
Aalto University follows the new salary system of universities, but applicants may also provide salary requirements.
The applications for this position are to be addressed to the President of Aalto University and submitted to the Registry of Aalto University ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and P.O. Box 31000, FI-00076 Aalto, Finland) no later than on Tuesday May 31st, 2011.
Please do not use links. Documents submitted electronically shall be submitted in PDF format and the file names are to follow the format lastname_firstname_appendixname.pdf. (e.g. lastname_firstname_appendix1.pdf). Please send the email with the subject "Graphic Design and Visual Communication".
The artistic portfolio and other materails on DVD should submit via mail to the postal address: Aalto University, School of Art and Design, P.O. Box 31000, FI-00076 Aalto, Finland. The registry closes at 3.00 p.m.
Should there be a lack of eligible applicants, the application period may be extended. Aalto University reserves the right to also consider other candidates for the professorial positions.
The application materials will not be returned.
Helsinki, 19.4.2011
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE PROFESSOR OF PRACTICE
POSITION IN GRAPHIC DESIGN AND VISUAL COMMUNICATION
The Aalto University School of Art and Design has been a leader in art and design education for 140 years. It
is an international postgraduate university institution with students from over 50 countries. It offers
doctorate, master and bachelor degrees in a wide range of disciplines ‐ fine art, design, new media, art
education, visual culture, motion picture and production design. School of Art and Design is a pioneer in
research and in developing interdisciplinary study programmes.
The school has approximately 1,900 students in various degree programmes. Almost 19 percent of students
come from abroad. In its field the School of Art and Design is a dynamic international university that
promotes the development of creative industries, the regeneration of the national culture, artistic
edification and innovative entrepreneurship based on sustainable development.
The School of Art and Design is part of a local concentration of universities and polytechnics, which will
provide international‐level conditions for high‐standard research, teaching, artistic endeavour and effective
innovation. The school participates in active cooperation with industry and commerce, culture and the
surrounding society. To achieve its aims it also networks with the best international universities and centres
of learning.
THE DEPARTMENT OF MEDIA
The Department of Media is an academic community of approximately 500 students and 80 staff members
created through a restructuring of the School of Art and Design in January 2010. The department conducts
research and provides education in bachelor, masters and doctoral programmes across a broad range of
subjects and themes. The study programmes and research of the department are organized within three
units; Graphic Design, Media Lab and Photography.
More detailed information on the department, its education and research and its various units can be
found from the following links:
the department of Media : http://media.taik.fi/
the unit of Graphic Design: http://www.taik.fi/en/departments/media/studies/graphic_design.html
Professor of Practice in Graphic Design and Visual Communication
APPLICATION MATERIALS
Please address your application to the President of Aalto University and submit it with application materials
to the Aalto University Registry no later than May 31st, 2011. The application materials will not be returned.
The application materials should include the following:
1. Application letter addressed to the President of Aalto University (1 page, PDF format)
This should be sent by email to rekry‐ This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
THE REST OF THE MATERIALS SHOULD BE SENT BY MAIL TO THE REGISTRY OF AALTO UNIVERSITY ON A
DVD (2 copies)
2. Curriculum vitae (PDF format)
3. Motivation letter including the applicant's view of the current state and future of visual
communication (max 2 pages, PDF format)
4. Artistic portfolio including 5‐10 most significant designs with short descriptions (preferably PDF
format; size max. 20 M)
5. Teaching portfolio (written text only, max 5 pages, PDF format).
Teaching portfolio should include the following elements: teaching experience, teaching
philosophy, methods & materials, awards and acknowledgements, learning outcomes and
networks and collegial co‐operation.
Note. More materials can be requested from the applicants selected to the second stage of the process!
Documents submitted electronically shall be submitted in PDF format and the file names are to
follow the format: lastname_firstname_appendixname.pdf (firstname_lastname_appendix1.pdf).
The applications for this position are to be addressed to the President of Aalto University and submitted to
the Registry of Aalto University by e‐mail to rekry‐ This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it no later than May 31st, 2011. Please send
the email with subject "Graphic Design and Visual Communication".
The DVD including rest of the materials should be submitted via mail to the postal address: Aalto
University, School of Art and Design, P.O. Box 31000, FI‐00076 Aalto, Finland.
APPLICATION PROCESS
From amongst the applicants, Aalto University will select those who will be asked to supplement their
application materials. Supplemented applications are submitted for review by experts (the second stage of
the application process). The experts also have an opportunity to accept other applicants for review than
those originally selected by the University. According to the Aalto University's tenure track policies and
procedures, the eligibility and merits of the applicants will be reviewed by at least four experts. The
disqualification of experts will be determined as provided in the Sections 27-29 of the Administrative
Procedure Act (434/2003). Both the external experts and the departmental committee will evaluate the
applicants.
Professor of Practice in Graphic Design
and Visual Communication
The criteria for evaluating Professors of Practice follow the general criteria for evaluating tenure track
professors: The evaluation is based on the total assessment of the candidate in each main dimension of the
work profile (research/artistic work, teaching, and activity in scientific community and academic leadership)
in accordance with the weight of the dimensions in the candidate's work profile. For more information on
the reviewed areas, please see http://www.aalto.fi/en/about/careers/professor_of_practice_position/ .
LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS
Applicants are required to have such proficiency in English as is required for the exercise of the duties.
ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS FOR NATIVE FINNISH CITIZENS
Native Finnish citizens in teaching and research positions at universities are required to have good
command of the language of instruction, Finnish or Swedish, used on their courses. Those in teaching and
research positions at universities which offer degrees in both Finnish and Swedish are also required to have
at least satisfactory oral and written proficiency in the other official language of Finland.
Foreigners and non‐native Finnish citizens may be appointed notwithstanding the provisions pertaining to
teachers', researchers' and officials' requisite proficiency in Finnish and Swedish.
The applicant is deemed to be sufficiently proficient in Finnish if he or she has demonstrated excellent oral
and written proficiency in Finnish as defined in the decree on the requisite proficiency of Finnish and
Swedish of State civil servants (481/2003) or
has demonstrated excellent command of written and oral Finnish in an examination by the
Language Examination Board set by the National Board of Education or
has received his or her basic education in Finnish or taken a maturity test at a higher education
institution;
has taken the Finnish matriculation examination with at least the grade of magna cum laude
approbatur in the required Finnish examination
has taken the Finnish matriculation examination with at least the grade of eximia cum laude
approbatur in its ‘Finnish as a second language' examination. ‘Finnish as a second language' is an
examination for foreigners, substituting the Finnish examination.
The applicant is deemed capable of understanding Swedish if he or she
has demonstrated at least satisfactory ability to understand oral and written Swedish as provided in
the decree on the requisite proficiency in Finnish and Swedish of State civil servants (481/2003);
has, according to a certificate issued by the language examination board of some Finnish university,
or by a member thereof, adequate command of written and spoken Swedish.