Senior lecturer in Computer Science, Specialisation in AI and Software Engineering

Description

The Department of Mathematics and Computer Science hereby invites applications for a senior lectureship in Computer Science with a specialisation in AI and Software Engineering.

The Computer Science subject has a staff of around 60 people. The research and education in Computer Science focus on distributed systems and communications, security and privacy, and software engineering with AI playing an important role for the research in all three areas. In autumn 2025 we launched a Bachelor's programme in AI that received record thousands of international and national applications. The department works closely with international, national, and regional partners from the academic community, public institutions and private businesses. Close collaboration between research groups and focus areas is vital to the department.

Welcome to join us as we advance the frontiers of AI. We are launching an ambitious initiative and recruiting four Senior Lecturers in AI to strengthen our research environment and inspire curious minds. Here, you will find a collegial community and an inclusive working environment that values intellectual courage and diverse perspectives. Take part in shaping knowledge that matters. We truly look forward to receiving your application!

The senior lecturer in AI and Software Engineering will further extend the expertise in the overall department and the research group on Software Quality and Digital Modernization (SQuaD) specifically. In its research, the SQuaD group investigates engineering aspects related to software quality, such as software quality assurance, technical and non-technical debt, and software architecture and software process improvement. The interplay of AI for ensuring software quality as well as the development of robust and high-quality AI-based systems applying software engineering methods are among the group's specific research areas.

Duties

The successful candidate will be expected to contribute to both teaching and research at the department and within SQuaD research group. The candidate will also be expected to actively contribute as a lecturer for first-cycle (Bachelor) and second-cycle (Master) courses, with a focus on delivering cutting-edge AI/ML content, in particular in deep learning and in topic bridging AI and software engineering. This includes teaching courses that align with your research expertise. Lecturing in other areas in the broader computer science curriculum can also be expected. Duties also include course administration and development, degree project/thesis supervision at first-cycle and second-cycle levels as well as supervision of doctoral students.

The employed person is expected to conduct research that complements and contributes to the research areas of the SQuaD group, which span aspects of software quality, such as software quality assurance, technical and non-technical debt, and software architecture.  

Research areas of interest include AI and its applications in engineering software systems (AI for SE), such as AI for designing, testing, and evolving software systems, as well as applying software engineering methods to the engineering of AI-based systems (SE for AI), such as software process improvement, MLOps, and robust architectures.

Striving for research collaboration with other colleagues at the department, industry, and other academics is of paramount importance. The candidate is expected to expand our international networks and contribute to increasing research funding at the national and international levels.

The candidate is expected to collaborate with the wider community for a mutual exchange, as well as work towards ensuring that the knowledge and expertise available at the university is of benefit to society.

To contribute to a positive work environment and further the department’s activities, you are expected to be a present and active part of the day-to-day operations and workplace community.

Qualification requirements

To be eligible for the position of senior lecturer in Computer Science, applicants are required to have a doctoral degree or equivalent scientific qualifications in Computer Science or corresponding qualifications in AI, or equivalent professional qualifications deemed relevant to the nature of the position and the duties included therein. Additionally, applicants are required to have documented pedagogical skills.

Pursuant to Karlstad University’s Appointments Procedure, teachers must have the personal qualities required to perform the duties included, as well as have completed training in higher education pedagogy.

Candidates who have not completed courses in higher education pedagogy may still be hired, provided that they use the time allotted to continual professional development to complete the required courses within two years of employment, or that they apply for validation of prior experience. For other eligibility requirements, refer to Karlstad University's Appointments Procedure.

The position requires proficiency in Swedish and English. Candidates who are not proficient in Swedish may still be hired, provided they actively work to acquire Swedish proficiency.

Additional qualification requirements include:

• High quality and relevance in scientific production
• Ability to collaborate with the surrounding society and disseminate information about activities and results
• Ability to initiate and develop research or activities within the relevant subject area
• Demonstrated ability to plan, conduct, develop and evaluate teaching, examination and other pedagogical activities at different levels and using varied teaching methods

For accurate requirements and assessment criteria, see the Appointments Procedure from February 17, 2026 here: https://www.kau.se/en/work-us/work/vacancies

Assessment criteria 

In the assessment of scientific and pedagogical excellence, equal weight will be given to both.

Special weight will be given to the candidate's documented  

• experience in teaching topics of AI, in particular deep learning (e.g., deep reinforcement learning, generative AI, large multimodal models, and diffusion models), and AI Engineering (e.g., MLOps), at Bachelor's or Master's level, including the supervision of theses at these levels,
• pedagogical skills as well as knowledge and application of modern methods for engaging teaching and learning, on campus as well as in remote or hybrid settings, and
• experience of conducting high-quality research and/or development work related to the aforementioned areas of AI for SE and SE for AI, and the potential contribution of the candidate's research to the development of the SQuaD research group.

Considerable weight will be given to the candidate's documented 

• experience in teaching topics of software engineering at Bachelor's or Master's level,
• ability to collaborate with academia, industry and public sector across disciplines,
• experience in course development at the Bachelor's or Master's level,
• potential to actively drive, and contribute to, the future development to the areas of research and education as specified above
• personal traits aligning with the university's and department's staff, such as a solid sense of responsibility, a constructive attitude towards colleagues and students, and the ability to work in teams, and
• ability to teach, present, and generally communicate, orally and in writing, in English.

Weight will be given to the candidate's documented 

• international work experience from working abroad, international exchanges, or collaborating in international projects and networks,
• experience in collaborating with the wider society and communicating research findings and results of development work, and
• experience of successfully initiating research activities and obtaining research funding. 

Merit will be given to the candidate's documented 

• ability to teach and communicate in Swedish and
• pedagogical education related to the supervision of PhD students 

Terms 

This is a tenured/permanent full-time position. Start date as agreed upon by both parties. A probationary period may be applied.

Application

Submit the application via the University's web-based recruitment tool, Varbi. For advice on how to draft your application, refer to ``What should be included with my application?'' 

Applicants are responsible for submitting a complete application in accordance with the advertisement, for providing translations of any documents written in a language other than Swedish, Norwegian, Danish or English, and for ensuring that the documentation allows for objective and qualitative assessments. A complete application should be submitted by the application deadline. An incomplete application may jeopardise a fair assessment of qualifications. 

The application should include: 

• CV
• cover letter describing the applicant’s qualifications in relation to the duties of the position
• an in-depth account of teaching experience (including student evaluations if available)
• certificate to verify completed courses in higher education pedagogy or an account of equivalent skills
• an in-depth account of research experience
• an account of managerial and administrative experience
• a document with plans for future work in relation and relevance to the position
• an account of collaborations, international network experience, etc.
• a list of publications (in multi-authored publications, describe your contribution)
• an account of language skills
• copy of PhD degree certificate or documented equivalent academic expertise, or equivalent professional qualifications deemed relevant to the nature of the position and the duties included therein
• no more than 10 scientific publications and no more than 5 materials intended to convey knowledge, such as textbooks, computer programs for teaching, or popular science articles
• two references, at least one of which is a current or former supervisor/manager 

Attach all the documents and publications you wish to be considered to the electronic application (do not just provide links). Name each uploaded document to clearly indicate its content.  

Documents that cannot be submitted electronically, such as books or publications, should be sent in triplicate to the following address: 

Karlstads universitet  
Hanna Ljungdahl 
651 88 KARLSTAD 
Sweden 

Application deadline: 2026-05-27

State the reference no: REK2026/65 

We look forward to your application! 

This translation carries no legal weight.   

Karlstad University has chosen advertising channels for this recruitment and firmly declines any contact with advertising or recruitment agencies.