Associate Professor in Oral Biology (Research and Education) - Department of Dentistry - 104918 - Grade 9

Position Details Department of Dentistry, School of Health Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK Full time starting salary is normally in the range £58,225 to £67,468 with potential progression once in post to £87,974 Grade: 9 Full Time, Permanent Closing date: 29th January 2026 Background The Department of Dentistry, School of Health Sciences, College of Medicine and Health at The University of Birmingham invites applications from exceptional and ambitious biological scientists for the role of Associate Professor in Oral Biology. The successful applicant will join a highly motivated, collaborative and successful interdisciplinary team of internationally recognised academics who focus on unravelling the biological basis of oral and associated systemic diseases and on the development of innovative solutions that bring impactful change for effective clinical care. Dentistry offers a vibrant and inclusive environment for outstanding study and research and was ranked highly in REF2021, with 4* outputs being in the top 12% of 90 submissions. There is ample opportunity to contribute to high profile research and scholarship and to work with world leading researchers that bring expertise from across the University and beyond. Role Summary You will contribute at an Associate Professor level to research, teaching and administration. In addition you will be expected to contribute to academic citizenship, likely to be demonstrated through generous, mutually respectful and supportive working relationships with all staff and students. Teaching will include: (a) development and leadership of the BDS degree and MSc and other post-graduate courses; and (b) enhancement of the student experience or employability. Research will involve an established national and international reputation through significant original research work and a clear record of impact. Management and administration will include Departmental/School leadership and management activity with University wide involvement – for example through sustained high value research, knowledge transfer, enterprise, business engagement, and public engagement or similar activities. Main Duties Education You will contribute across the range of teaching and learning activities: making a significant contribution to the pedagogical knowledge base of the subject that advances teaching through the enhancement of practice, the development of teaching resources and/or through practice-based research; leading on the management and the development of approaches to teaching and learning, including designing innovative approaches to digital resources/environments and supporting colleagues to use them that are innovative to the subject area or institution; leading on curriculum design at module and programme level to ensure it is contemporary, inclusive, engaging and academically challenging; actively engaging students in curriculum design and sharing evidence of “what works”; making an impactful, high quality contribution to debates about education policy, methods and practices through internal and external publications, subject societies and conference activity; developing an external profile evidenced through engaging in external quality assurance activities related to teaching, e.g. external examining and engaging with/supporting education in other institutions; playing an important and sustained role in the recruitment and admission of students; co-supervising doctoral students to completion; leading the development of teaching, learning and assessment policies and strategies; acting as an education mentor to colleagues in the Department/School/College or more widely; leading the development of new and appropriate approaches to learning and teaching. This may be underpinned by research and evaluation of teaching methods and systems; leading sustained high value impact in knowledge transfer and enterprise (including business engagement, public engagement) that enhances the student experience and/or or employability, and is of manifest benefit to learning and teaching in the College and the University; undertaking own teaching, which will include teaching and examining courses at a range of levels, planning and reviewing own teaching approaches, developing programme proposals, supervision, marking and examining. You will ensure that your teaching practice is informed by discipline based research, through participating in the research culture of the School. Research To pursue sustained research activity through original research and scholarship, including other research-related contributions through conference papers and presentations and/or consultancy projects and advice, including (as appropriate): contributing to the management of research activities and/or supervising other research staff; leading successful funding bids; consistently publishing internationally excellent research, with some research regarded as world leading, that results in a sustained, highly respected reputation of international quality; supervising and examining PhD students, both within the institution and externally; providing expert advice internally and externally; peer reviewing articles for peer reviewed academic journals and grant applications by research councils and/or other major funding bodies; leading sustained impact activity including public engagement and makes a significant contribution to policy development at a national and international level;. supervising and examine PhD students, both within the institution and externally; as appropriate, managing research activities and/or supervising other research staff; developing novel methodologies and techniques appropriate to the type of research being pursued. The ideal candidate would have a demonstrably successful track record (in terms of grant funding, publications and postgraduate supervision) in subjects related to oral hard tissues biology (dentine, enamel, cement, bone) their development, healing and potential regeneration. Expertise in molecular biology techniques, tissue culture and stem cell research are essential. The candidate is expected to develop their own area of research as well as forging new collaborations in clinical- and lab-related research areas (such as cariology, implantology and materials) at our institution and externally involving with other academic institutions and industry. Management/administration Lead activities in the Department/ School and represent the School on College/ University committees or working groups. Where appropriate to the discipline, this is likely to include some but not all of the responsibilities listed below: making an important contribution to the development and running of the Department or School, for example, leading activity on research and/or teaching assessment leading a successful international engagement at School or College level; developing and managing staff and resources in support of major research and/or teaching activities making important contributions to the development of the Department’s research and/or learning and teaching strategy contributing significantly to the development and delivery of knowledge transfer, enterprise, business engagement and public engagement activities with sustained high value impact of manifest benefit to the College and the University; promoting a culture (including policies and procedures) that embeds equality and values diversity and inclusion leading, serving on and assisting the work of committees and task and finish groups beyond School/ Research Institute, e.g., Senate, Council, University Education or Research Committee etc.; leading external committees, e.g., those associated with public/professional bodies or delivery of activities for an external body at an appropriate level, e.g., chairing sub committees associated with large elements of work; leading/project managing a team to devise and implement a new and/or revised process (e.g. a new research initiative, or a recruitment drive); making a sustained contribution to widening participation, schools outreach and/or public understanding of the discipline;. contributing to administrative activities within the University (e.g. appeals panels, working groups). Citizenship identifying wellbeing issues within the School/College/University and developing appropriate solutions to address these; taking collective ownership of challenges faced by the School or College and working with colleagues to develop solutions; mentoring and coaching of colleagues, particularly those in the early stages of their career. Person Specification Normally, a higher degree relevant to the research/teaching area (usually PhD) or equivalent qualifications. Demonstrated excellence in Research, with competence in Learning and Teaching and Management and Administration. Learning and teaching requirements An excellent teaching profile and performance in terms of both impact and quality. The teaching quality demonstrated to be informed by an appropriate level of scholarship. Where appropriate, evidence of success under the following headings: High national reputation for the development of teaching and learning excellence within the discipline Successful and sustained use of a range of appropriate teaching methods, and assessment strategies that promote high quality learning, including learning that is flexible, distinctive and current and stimulates learners’ natural curiosity Significant and sustained contribution to one or more of the following: strategic development of new programmes; approaches to learning; the development of learning resources High quality and sustained contributions to fostering excellence in teaching activities more widely, i.e. in the Department/School or College and/or externally Track record of substantial and sustained high value impact on the enhancement of the student experience, and/or employability Mentoring and expert advice which develops the skills of colleagues in teaching and in fostering learning Research requirements An excellent national reputation and a developing international profile through significant original research work and a clear record of impact. Evidence of success under the following headings, as appropriate to the discipline: High level peer esteem as evidenced by Excellent reputation in the UK and internationally, reflected in sustained high quality output, level of innovation, impact on subject and recognition An excellent and sustained record of peer reviewed research publications in high impact journals Successful and sustained supervision of doctoral students to completion Substantial and sustained research income generation, e.g. through research grants, contracts, research consultancy or other external funding Sustained high value impact knowledge transfer and enterprise that is of manifest benefit to the College and University Management and administration-related requirements Demonstrated significant achievement in management and administration-related activities, which may include leadership of activities/initiatives. Evidence of success under the following headings Successful and sustained performance in significant administrative/managerial role(s) (e.g. exams officer) Significant and sustained high quality innovative contributions to the management/administration of the Department/School/College or University Successful and sustained contribution to the corporate life of the School/College/University, displaying willingness to contribute actively to committees, collaborative teaching and administrative tasks Actively promotes equality and diversity to internal and external stakeholders Able to use data to identify equality and diversity issues Experience of developing interventions to address equality and diversity issues Further particulars can be found here Informal enquiries to Professor Josette Camilleri, Head of Dentistry, email: j.camilleri@bham.ac.uk Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview. We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.