Professorship (W2) of Physical Geography with a Focus on Oceanography

As one of Europe’s leading research universities, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) in Munich is committed to the highest international standards of excellence in research and teaching. Building on its more than 500-year-long tradition, it offers a broad spectrum that covers all areas of knowledge within its 18 Faculties, ranging from the humanities, law, economics and social sciences, to medicine and the natural sciences.

The Faculty of Geosciences of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) in Munich and the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) invite applications for a

Professorship (W2) (5 years/tenure track) of Physical Geography
with a Focus on Oceanography combined with the Lead of a Research Group on South Ocean-Climate Interactions of the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) at LMU Munich

The professorship is based at the Department of Geography at LMU Munich, which represents the field of Geography of Sustainability in research and teaching. To complement its scientific strengths in global change research, climate research, land use dynamics, remote sensing, human-environment relations, economic geography, and water-energy-food-ecosystem nexus, the Department seeks a scientific personality in the field of ocean-climate interactions under global change with an excellent research and publication record in this area that matches their career stage. The professorship is associated with the lead of a research group on ocean-climate interactions of the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) at LMU Munich. The focus of the professorship is to address the role of the ocean in climate change mitigation and to reduce uncertainties in our understanding of CO₂ and heat exchange between the ocean and the rest of the climate system, such as those arising from lack of representation of vertical transport processes or the impact of melting ice in climate models. The methodological focus lies on numerical modeling, in which high-resolution scales, via the derivation of appropriate parameterizations, will be linked to global Earth system modeling, and integrated with existing and newly collected observational data. This will include the integration of measurement campaigns that can contribute to process understanding, model evaluation, and the development of parameterizations. The successful candidate will find a stimulating environment for collaboration at the AWI as well as at the departmental, faculty, and university levels, especially within LMU's "Earth and Environment" profile area.

LMU Munich and the AWI seek to appoint a highly qualified junior academic to this professorship and, therefore, especially encourage early-career scholars to apply. Prerequisites for this position are a university degree and a doctoral degree or a comparable specific qualification. With an excellent record in research and teaching to date, prospective candidates will have demonstrated the potential for an outstanding academic career.

The future holder of this position will be appointed to LMU Munich as a university professor (pay grade W2) under the terms of a private-law contract and will be granted leave of absence in order to be employed as head of a research group on South Ocean-Climate Interactions at the AWI.

The initial appointment will be for five years. After a minimum of three years, it can be converted into a permanent position pending a positive evaluation of the candidate’s performance in research and teaching as well as his or her personal aptitude and if all legal conditions are met.

LMU Munich and the AWI strive to increase the proportion of women in research and teaching and therefore strongly encourage female scientists to apply.

Disabled persons with essentially equal qualification will be given preference.

LMU Munich and the AWI offer support for dual-career couples.

Applications with the usual documents (including curriculum vitae, certificates, diplomas, list of publications) should be submitted by 05.10.2023 to Prof. Dr. Claudia Trepmann, Dean of the Faculty of Geosciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Luisenstr. 37, 80333 Munich, Germany, online via https://www.efv.verwaltung.uni-muenchen.de/w2phygeo, and in parallel in electronic form only to Prof. Dr. Claudia Trepmann, Director, Alfred-Wegener-Institut, Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung (AWI) to director@awi.de.