PRR Project

Summary

The University of Aveiro (UA) seeks to appoint a motivated candidate to join the Department of Education and Psychology (DEP) as an assistant professor in social sciences, with a specialization in psychogerontology. The tasks assigned to the assistant professor concern teaching and research activities aligned with the areas covered by DEP, specifically psychology and gerontology. The successful applicant will join the teaching staff and is expected to collaborate in duties related to teaching, research, and outreach activities. In addition, the candidate will integrate RISE – Health Research Network Associate Laboratory (AL) that merges and integrates the CINTESIS (Center for Health Technology and Services Research) and the UnIC (Cardiovascular Research Center) – two R&D Units hosted by the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto (FMUP) with one of them (CINTESIS) having a hub at UA, the CCUL (Cardiovascular Center at the University of Lisbon) at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon (FMUL), and the CI-IPOP (Research Center of the Portuguese Oncology Institute of Porto) at the Portuguese Oncology Institute of Porto (IPO Porto). RISE will provide the candidate with wide-ranging opportunities for developing research in a collaborative and interdisciplinary environment.More specifically, the position will reinforce the currently available teaching staff at DEP to address its formative offer, which includes various study cycles in psychology (degree in psychology; master’s in health psychology and neuropsychology; PhD in psychology) and in gerontology (master’s in applied gerontology and PhD in gerontology and geriatrics). Furthermore, the prospective assistant professor is expected to enroll in teaching initiatives that foster the proximity between psychogerontology and other available training offers at the department, namely in the educational field. Additional tasks to be assigned include: (i) mentoring and supervising students while promoting a dynamic environment that encourages collaboration, creativity, and supportive learning; (ii) lead independent and collaborative research initiatives, both within and outside the area of knowledge; (iii) share research outcomes through publications in peer-reviewed journals, conferences, workshops, and seminars; (iv) disseminate scientific knowledge to diverse audiences outside academia through the participation in outreach activities promoted by the UA, RISE and others; (v) obtain external funding through competitive research calls to support research activities.A track of teaching experience in psychogerontology is expected, as well as in conducting multidisciplinary research in the field of ageing and in the scientific assessment of community level interventions with older adults and their caregivers. Experience in international projects (e.g., research consortiums and networks) funded by national and international organizations should also be present in the selected candidate’s scientific curriculum. Along with a good track of publications in reference journals in the scientific area and subarea of interest for the position, a relevant track record of science dissemination activities to the broader public is also an important requirement. The candidate is estimated to fulfill the following requisites: (i) hold a PhD degree in psychology or gerontology and geriatrics; (ii) present teaching experience in psychogerontology; (iii) have mentoring experience across all levels of training (supervision of internships, supervision of master dissertations and of PhD theses); (iv) show evidence of a good track record of high-quality research publications in peer-reviewed journals; (v) show evidence of a good track-record of participation in science-dissemination activities with diverse audiences beyond academia; (vi) and have experience in developing collaborative work with colleagues from other disciplines, particularly from the health sector, at both national and international levels.The proposed profile aligns both with the teaching spirit of the formative programs available at DEP, which fosters interdisciplinarity, solid theoretical training, and fieldwork. As UA holds a long tradition in the field of gerontology, the position will strength the teaching workforce on this field and keep the high level and pioneer training in the Portuguese scenario (e.g., Doctoral Program on gerontology and geriatrics). Furthermore, the described profile closely aligns with the multidisciplinary research group at UA that focus on Social and Behavioral Gerontology (e.g., ageing process) and on Clinical Gerontology and Geriatrics (e.g., mental health, dementia), as well as with RISE’s thematic line of Community Health and Societal Challenges (TL5).