Associate Professor of Cultural and Creative Industries

The School of Communication and Culture at Aarhus University invites applications for the position of associate professor of cultural and creative industries, based in the dramaturgy section within the Department of Dramaturgy and Musicology. The associate professorship is a permanent, full-time position. The appointment will commence on 1 December 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter. The School of Communication and Culture is committed to diversity and encourages all qualified applicants to apply regardless of their personal background. The position Studies of cultural and creative industries (CCI) are central to several departments within the School of Communication and Culture, including the interdisciplinary environment behind the supplementary BA subject in CCI, currently anchored in the Department of Dramaturgy and Musicology. By CCI, we understand the cultural and creative industries as interconnected sectors involved in the production, circulation and use of culture, media and creativity, including their social, economic, political, technological and aesthetic conditions, infrastructures and transformations. To strengthen research and teaching in this area, we seek applicants with a strong profile in CCI studies. While applicants may have particular expertise in selected CCI sectors, we also expect an interest in and engagement with the broader CCI field, including how current social, cultural, political, financial, legal and media conditions shape the cultural and creative industries across sectors. Applicants should demonstrate competence in qualitative research methods. Experience with quantitative and mixed-methods approaches will also be considered relevant, alongside knowledge of comparative perspectives across different parts of the cultural and creative industries (e.g. screen industries, publishing, podcasting, gaming, music, performing arts, and the gallery and visual arts sector). Experience with interdisciplinary and/or collaborative research approaches will be considered an advantage. We particularly welcome applicants with documented research and teaching experience in one or more of the following areas: Digital transformation in CCI: Research on how digitalisation, platformisation, datafication and AI are reshaping cultural production, distribution, circulation and creative labour, including critical perspectives on technological infrastructures, governance and power relations. User, audience and participation studies: Research on audiences, users and cultural participation across digital and non-digital contexts, including questions of engagement, communities, consumption practices, inequality and inclusion. Organisation, policy and labour in CCI: Research on the organisational, economic and political dimensions of CCI, including cultural policy, entrepreneurship, labour conditions, precarity, sustainability and changing business models. Media, formats and innovation in CCI: Research on emerging media forms and formats, such as podcasts, streaming formats, immersive and interactive media, transmedia storytelling, creator-driven content, virtual production and AI-generated cultural content, including innovative, collaborative and/or practice-based approaches to cultural production and cross-sector development. The successful applicant is expected to contribute to the department’s research and teaching at an international level and to Aarhus University’s core activities in research, education, supervision and knowledge exchange. Research The successful applicant will have a strong publication record in the subject areas outlined above and will, through future research activities, contribute to the development of the research profile and academic environment associated with the supplementary subject in CCI, as well as to existing research agendas within the relevant departments and sections (Dramaturgy and Musicology, Aesthetics and Culture, and Media Studies). Applicants are expected to outline in their application how current and planned research projects will contribute to fulfilling these expectations. The successful applicant will be expected to publish original peer-reviewed research internationally and to make scholarly contributions to developments within the field. The successful applicant will also be expected to contribute to research initiatives within both CCI and the wider research community at the school through the development of new collaborative research projects with internal and external partners and through securing external research funding. Teaching and supervision We are looking for applicants with teaching and supervision experience in the field of CCI at university level. The successful applicant will be expected to teach and supervise within the supplementary BA subject in CCI (see disciplines and academic regulations here) and to engage in other teaching and supervision activities related to this subject area. The successful applicant will also be expected to teach interdisciplinary courses, such as internationalisation electives, and to apply innovative teaching methods. As the successful applicant will be expected to contribute to the ongoing development of curricula, including the supplementary subject in CCI and related disciplines in other degree programmes, experience in degree programme and curriculum development at universities or similar institutions will be considered an advantage. Given the international focus of the degree programmes, the successful applicant will be expected to teach in both English and Danish. Talent development We are looking for applicants with experience in supervising students at both BA and MA levels. The successful applicant will be expected to supervise students at both levels and to support the career development of early-career researchers. The successful applicant will also be expected to recruit and supervise PhD students and to participate in the development and implementation of PhD courses within the field. Knowledge exchange The successful applicant will have excellent opportunities to engage in relevant collaborative initiatives with partners both within and beyond Aarhus University, including interdisciplinary research environments and international collaborators. The successful applicant will also be expected to engage actively in knowledge exchange and to demonstrate experience with relevant knowledge exchange activities within the CCI field. Such activities may include developing and maintaining research collaborations with CCI enterprises, contributing to government consultancy and policy-related work, collaborating with civil society organisations and stakeholders, and participating in the public dissemination of research-based knowledge. Applicants may also document experience in building productive partnerships across sectors and translating research insights into societal, cultural and industry-relevant contexts. Qualifications Applicants must hold a PhD degree or be able to document equivalent qualifications in CCI studies, as well as teaching and research experience commensurate with that attained through an assistant professorship. Applicants must be able to document the following, relevant to the position: an internationally oriented research profile, as documented by a strong international peer-reviewed research publication record within CCI participation in international research projects as well as in national and international research networks experience in knowledge exchange teaching and supervision competences and experience at BA and MA levels, including curriculum development, documented through a teaching portfolio. The portfolio must include a teaching statement describing the applicant’s approach to teaching, supported by practical examples illustrating their teaching philosophy completion of a teacher-training programme designed for university teaching or an equivalent qualification. Furthermore, it will be considered an