Aalto University is a new university with over a century of experience. Created from a high-profile merger between three existing leading universities in Finland – the Helsinki School of Economics, Helsinki University of Technology and the University of Art and Design Helsinki – Aalto University opens up new possibilities for strong multidisciplinary education and research. The university has 20 000 students and a staff of 5 000 including 370 professors.

Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture is one of the most prestigious international universities of art, design and architecture in the world. The school is a strong source of social influence. Key areas of its research are design, digital media, audiovisual representation, art, visual culture, well-being architecture and emerging technologies, and urban planning and design. The school’s history dates back to 1871.

Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Department of Design invites applications for

Doctoral Candidate position on the adoption of design in SME:s

The Department of Design is looking for a doctoral student whose research and teaching interests addressthe adoption of design and design-based work practices in small- and medium-sized companies. The student will be working in the SDIM research group and the D.Inc. research project which is done in collaboration with Design Centre MUOVA, Vaasa University of Applied Sciences.

The Department of Design is an internationally acknowledged design education and research unit. The department has a team of 40 researchers and about 750 students most of which study on postgraduate level (http://design.aalto.fi/en/). The Strategic Design Integration and Management (SDIM) research group organizes researchers with an interest in design management and the organizational adoption, implementation and leadership of design and design-based development practices. With the D.Inc. project, we are together with our project partners hoping to generate new understanding about the possibilities for design to transform the culture for innovation within small- and medium-sized companies.

Qualified candidates for the doctoral position hold a master’s degree in design, engineering or business and have a strong interest in design and the real world challenges of companies. An educational and/or professional background in product, service or business development is a major plus. In working with the project, language skills in Finnish and/or Swedish are beneficial but not a prerequisite.

The position is fixed-term and will be filled for two years. The starting date is preferably as soon as possible but negotiable. Salary will be determined upon competence and experience of the chosen person following the salary system of Finnish universities. The person to be appointed must already be a doctoral student in a university or his/her application for doctoral studies should be accepted during the trial period of 4 months. For more information on doctoral studies at Aalto University, please visit http://www.aalto.fi/en/studies/admissions/postgraduate_studies/.

How to apply

The applications for the doctoral candidate position are to be submitted through the eRecruitment system (link ‘Apply for this job’ below) no later than on February 15th, 2015.

The application for the position should contain (in pdf format):

• Cover letter stating the motivation for the work
• CV
• Portfolio of artistic and/or professional achievements
• Doctoral research plan

All material should be submitted in English. The application materials will not be returned.

The evaluation is based on the total assessment of the candidate in respect to the fit for the call. Short listed candidates will be invited for an interview.

Aalto University reserves the right to leave the position open, to extend the application period and to consider candidates who have not submitted applications during the application period.

For additional information, please contact Dr. Oscar Person (or in recruitment process related questions HR-coordinator Jussi Hartikainen). E-mails: firstname.lastname@aalto.fi.