Professorships MSO at VIVE

VIVE opens a number of MSO professorships within the child and education field

As an MSO Professor at VIVE you will play a central role in maintaining and further developing a research and analysis environment at a high international level in the field of children and education. The professorships must contribute to realising VIVE's strategy for the area by building strong professional competences and sustainable research and analysis environments.

Read more here about VIVE's strategy in the field of children and education here

Sub-strategy for the Child and Education Area 2026-2031

Who are we?

VIVE – The National Research and Analysis Centre for Welfare provides applied research and research-based analysis that contributes to scientifically grounded handling of the challenges of the Danish welfare society. This applies to both highly specialised knowledge in individual areas and knowledge that can support coherent and often cross-disciplinary solutions across sector areas and organisational levels.

VIVE has expert knowledge on living conditions and interventions for citizens within the central welfare areas across the entire governance chain and in a cross-sectoral perspective.

VIVE relates to municipal and regional practices in meeting the citizen; to national, municipal and regional priorities and to the authorities' implementation and the linking of governance levels both economically, academically, organisationally and politically.

VIVE has its headquarters in Copenhagen and a large branch in Aarhus, covering all professional areas.

The position

We are seeking one or more MSO Professors with solid, broad professional knowledge of topics and methods within one or more of the research fields: day care, primary school, upper secondary education and higher education.

The applicant must designate and describe a focus area for the special tasks. The focus area must lie within or be related to one or more of the professional areas prioritised in VIVE's strategy for the children and education area:

• Children and young people with special needs
• Day care, quality and early development
• Primary school, teaching and learning
• Upper secondary education, participation and completion
• Educational pathways and education economics

As an MSO Professor you are expected to have ongoing scientific production and an overview of your research field, actively contribute to public debate and ensure that VIVE's work is scientifically grounded and relevant for the development of policy and practice in the area of children and education. At the same time you are expected to play a central role in developing VIVE's strategic efforts in the area, including through long-term relationships and collaborations with ministries, agencies, municipalities, funds and Danish and foreign research and knowledge environments.

In addition to the concrete subject area, you will, together with VIVE's other professors, play an important cross-VIVE role, namely to help ensure high professional quality, strategic development and cross-cutting coherence in VIVE's research and commissioned analyses. The professors serve as research-professional role models, advisors to the management and drivers in the development of welfare research at a high scientific level.

Core tasks include

• Professional leadership and quality assurance. Ensure high scientific quality and relevance in VIVE's knowledge production and contribute to the development of the professional area and the building of a strong and sustainable research and analysis environment.
• Research production and publication. Initiate and lead research projects, publish in internationally recognised journals and contribute to doctoral training in collaboration with universities with ambition to publish in leading international journals.
• Applied orientation. Contribute to research and analyses addressing central knowledge needs among authorities and practice and translate into relevant and usable knowledge.
• External funding and portfolio development. Attract substantial external funding, including for PhD and postdoc programs, and develop a coherent and sustainable project portfolio within the professional area.
• Cross-cutting collaboration. Work across departments, initiate larger projects and contribute to a common professional environment in VIVE with an eye to interaction between VIVE's locations
• Integration of research and analysis. Ensure that research-based knowledge is applied in analysis projects, and that analysis results broadly inform research and thereby contribute to shaping research projects.
• Networks and external representation. Build and maintain national and international networks and represent VIVE externally with high professional authority.
• Talent development and supervision. Mentor and support younger staff, including acting as a supervisor for PhD students and contribute actively to the development of the next generation of researchers in VIVE.
• Strategic contribution. Serve as a strategic resource for the leadership and contribute to organisational development projects and professional priorities.

As an MSO Professor at VIVE you will, depending on your professional focus, be affiliated with either VIVE Education, Children and Young People or VIVE Governance and Economy. VIVE has a particular focus on building senior-level research competence in Aarhus, so at least one of the MSO professorships must be filled in Aarhus.

Who are we seeking?

We are seeking professorial researchers who, with an international outlook as well as solid knowledge of the Danish welfare society, can contribute significantly to social science research. VIVE's MSO Professors with special tasks are expected to cultivate topic-specific or cross-cutting expertise at a high level within strategically central thematic or methodological areas in VIVE, and for the positions announced here, within the field of children and education as described above.

We also emphasise that the professor can translate their research position into the development of a strong professional area with a sustainable portfolio of both research and commissioned analyses.

In assessing your academic qualifications, the following will be emphasised

• Strong research background within one of the social sciences
• Deep knowledge of the sector and a well-developed network
• Documented experience with obtaining substantial competitive research funding and with obtaining and developing commissioned analysis tasks.
• Strong qualifications in leading several parallel research and analysis projects
• Strong international publications
• Strong communication skills for the research community, stakeholders and the press
• Current and relevant project portfolio with research grants, as well as commissioned tasks
• Documentation of the ability to develop a professional area.
• Ability to collaborate and share knowledge with both younger and more experienced colleagues and across disciplines

What do we offer?

VIVE can offer one of Denmark's strongest welfare analysis and research environments with a focus on quality, relevance and independence and with strong traditions for interdisciplinary collaborations. We have many external collaborators at universities, in other research environments in public institutions and in the consulting sector. There are rich opportunities for sparring and collaboration with capable colleagues, ongoing professional development, supervision of younger researchers, etc.

In addition we offer

• a dynamic environment where we emphasise cross-disciplinary collaboration within individual projects
• an applied-oriented environment where we emphasise that our research and analyses can be used in the development and renewal of the public sector's services, quality and governance
• good opportunities for ongoing scientific merit
• a good working environment where you have significant influence on your own tasks

Salary and terms of employment

The appointment as MSO Professor is full-time in a fixed-term 5-year position with the possibility of a 3-year extension. The terms follow the state agreement for academics and the circular on the position structure for scientific staff with research tasks at sector research institutions. In addition to the base salary, a special salary supplement is provided, and there is a pathway to senior researcher employment after a 5- or 8-year period as MSO Professor There is the possibility of negotiating additional supplements based on qualifications.

Further information about the position

You can contact Research Director Torben Tranæs ([email protected]) regarding VIVE's general framework for professors and research.

For topic-specific information and the concrete work in the departments, the research and analysis heads in the two relevant departments can be contacted:

VIVE Children, Youth and Education: Carsten Strømbæk Pedersen ([email protected])

VIVE Governance and Economy: Ulrik Hvidman ([email protected])

Application should contain

• a motivated application outlining why you are applying for a professorship at VIVE and how you intend to contribute to VIVE's research and analysis
• a short description of the special tasks you are applying for MSO professorship for. The description can, for example, explain which of the prioritized professional areas you will contribute to developing, central knowledge needs in the area and your ambitions for developing research, analysis, external funding, collaborations and the use of knowledge in policy and practice.
• CV and documentation of formal qualifications
• complete publication list and a brief overview of received research grants and external funding for projects, etc.
• up to ten scientific works you wish to have included in the evaluation. The chosen publications are uploaded to the application as attached documents and numbered from 1-10. Co-authorship statements must also be attached if there are publications with several authors.

As stated, VIVE is present in both Copenhagen and Aarhus, where at least one MSO professorship will be established. You must indicate in your application which location would suit you best.

Subject-specific evaluation

There will be a subject-specific evaluation of all applicants corresponding to an evaluation at a university. If a large number of applicants, the evaluation committee will shortlist a number of applications for assessment.

After the deadline, a subject-specific evaluation committee will be formed and applicants will be informed of the composition of the committee. The evaluation committee will prepare a written assessment and decide which applicants are considered scientifically and professionally qualified. Each applicant will be sent the part of the assessment that concerns them, and there will also be an opportunity to comment on the assessment. It is VIVE's management that decides which applicant is offered employment.

The basis for the assessment includes this job advertisement and the MSO professor job description in VIVE's job structure. See additional information about the job structure on VIVE's website.

Application deadline

We must have received your application no later than 15 November 2026, at 23:59. Materials received after the deadline will not be considered .

You apply for the position electronically under "Search for a job" on this page or via the job advertisement on our website vive.dk.

VIVE wants a workforce composition that reflects the surrounding society. Therefore we encourage all qualified individuals regardless of personal background to apply.

Application deadline: 15 November 2026

Department: Herluf Trolles Gade 11 1052 København K

Location: Copenhagen (Herluf Trolles Gade 11) or Aarhus (Søren Frichs Vej 36G)