Guidelines for Admittance of a Docent - Faculty of Theology

Set by the Board of the Faculty of Theology on 15 December 2000.
Latest revision on 5 March 2024.

1. Docentur significance and implications

Those qualified to be accepted as docent1 will have completed a doctoral degree, or have an equivalent level of competence and will also display requisite levels of academic and pedagogic proficiency.

Local rules for skills evaluation have been set by the Vice Chancellor of Uppsala University on 2000-04-11, ref.no. 1794/98.

The Faculty Board accepts unremunerated docents within the research areas of the faculty. A docentur in a subject means that the holder of the title has documented independent research capacity and teaching skills as well as possessing a significantly higher level of academic competence than is required for a doctoral degree. A docentur is unremunerated and is not tied to nor does it entitle employment at the university.

The Faculty of Theology recognises applications for docentur in:

• History of Religions and World Christianity
• History of Religions
• World Christianity
• Social Sciences of Religion and Practical Theology
• Sociology of Religion
• Psychology of Religion
• Practical Theology
• Didactics of Religion
• Biblical Exegesis
• Hebrew Bible Exegesis
• New Testament Exegesis
• Church History and Mission History
• Church History
• Mission History
• Systematic Theology
• Studies in World Views and Christian Theology
• Islamic Theology
• Ethics
• Philosophy of Religion

2. Requirements for admittance

The faculty accepts docents only when they can be of use to the faculty’s research and teaching. A docent shall, at the time of admittance, be professionally active and is expected to be able to contribute with qualified supervision, be active within education at research level and act as faculty opponent. There is no unconditional right for an individual to be admitted as docent, even if competency requirements have been met.

In order to be accepted as a docent at the Faculty of Theology at Uppsala University the applicant must:

1 A title awarded to applicants who have proven an ability to perform independent research of a high quality, beyond the basic requirements for a doctoral degree, as well as pedagogical skills. The qualifications would correspond to those of an associate professor in the US and a reader in the British academic system.

1. have defended a doctoral thesis at the faculty
2. be employed at the faculty or
3. have enduring and ongoing research co-operation with the

Applicants who are accepted as docents are expected to take on tasks relevant to the work of the Faculty, such as being designated readers of texts as well as presenting their own research in the research seminar. A docent is expected to be an active mem- ber of the research seminar and participate in seminars at least once a year. Candidates applying for docentur need to write a brief plan, together with the Head of Subject, sketching how they can contribute to the research seminar.

3. Grounds for acceptance

The applicant’s competence is assessed with reference to both academic and teaching skills and accomplishments.

3.1. Academic accomplishments

The applicant shall have completed a doctoral degree in the subject, or obtained a doctoral degree in another subject and have her/his scholarly accomplishments mainly in a subject listed under 1. Docentur significance and implications, and over and above this have independently conducted research of a quality which shows that he or she has further developed his or her academic competence. A particularly meritorious thesis can reduce the demands on the extent of the further merits required and their heightened quality. The extent and quality of the collected merits should be equivalent to at least two doctoral theses. A repetition of the research results of the candidate’s doctoral thesis are not considered to be an additional qualification.

Further development of academic competence is shown through a particularly good ability

• to formulate academically interesting problems with theoretical awareness;
• to work through these problems with methodological clarity and awareness;
• to delimit and define the task;
• to undertake the chosen task with independence and originality;
• to take account of the state of the art in the research field and demonstrate this knowledge;
• to find and analyse relevant sources;
• to carry out the task in a well organised manner and within a reasonable time frame;
• to analyse and summarise results in a clear manner;
• to present research work and results in a publishable format with attention paid to academic accuracy, good citation technique, clear and unequivocal academic systems and observation of good research ethics.

Academic work conducted after the candidate’s doctorate should demonstrate breadth and innovation in relation to the doctoral exam. It shall for the most part exist in published form and shall in addition have been accepted for, or be in such form that it could be accepted for publication in an academic series or journal.

The applicant should be able to document participation in discussions in the academic community, for example, through publication in international or Swedish specialist journals or anthologies, and through participation with lectures/papers at academic conferences. For co-authored works, where it is not immediately obvious what the applicant has contributed, the applicant should, for each publication, include a letter from the main/co-author of the work which clarifies what each of the authors have contributed to the text, for example, authorship of certain passages, theoretical reasoning, development of method and so on.

3.2. Pedagogical skills and achievements

In order to be able to be admitted as a docent the following conditions must be met.

1. The applicant should have independently conducted teaching at university level corresponding to ca 100 hours or equivalent competence within other adult education. The teaching shall be verified as of acceptable quality by the director of studies (or equivalent) in a written Research supervision or research is not an alternative to these teaching hours;
2. The applicant shall over and above this document some of the following:
   1. completed teacher training course(s) for teaching at university or other adult education level, for example a teacher training course for university teachers or course for research supervisors;
   2. authorship of teaching aids of good quality intended for university or other adult education;
   3. authorship of popular scientific books of good quality;
   4. completed teaching and learning development work for university or other adult

The docentur committee can over and above this prescribe that a so called ‘teacher’s test’ should be taken. This consists of a lecture or some other form of educational presentation. The teachers test can take place within the frame of ordinary teaching at the faculty of theology or as a freestanding lecture. The completion of the teacher’s test shall be approved by the docentur committee. For this process, a teaching expert can be co-opted to the committee. Suggestions for a suitable member of the committee are provided by the university’s division for development of teaching and learning.

Teaching which complies with the above and was undertaken within the framework of employment as a PhD candidate can be considered. Teaching skills can also include the planning and execution of teaching, the creation of teaching resources and popular scientific activity that communicates research to a wider audience.

4. The processing of the application

Applications for docentur are assessed twice yearly. Deadline for applications are 2 May and 1 November (unless these dates are holidays, in which case deadlines are the following weekday).

The Faculty of Theology has established a docentur committee. This comprises of three members, of whom two are permanent members (appointed for a period of three years). The third member is the professor in the subject area within which the application falls. If there are several professors within the research subject the Dean of the Faculty decides which of these should be a member. If a professor in the research subject area in question is a permanent member of the docentur committee the Dean will appoint another professor to be the third member, firstly from within the research subject, secondly from within the broader subject area in question and thirdly from within an adjacent subject area.

For the evaluation of the teacher’s test and the candidate’s pedagogical skills in general a teaching expert shall be co-opted.

An individual who wishes to be accepted as docent is recommended to first infor- mally raise the issue with the professor in question. The professor shall consult other professors in the subject (if any). If following this, the candidate is advised not to apply, experience shows that it is appropriate to wait with an application. Dissuasion from applying is however not a formal hinder from proceeding with the application.

The recommendation is to send the application electronically. There should be an email sent to teolfak@teol.uu.se where it is stated which subject, among the subjects listed under 1. Docentur significance and implications, the application applies to. The application should be formed following the template approved by the Faculty Board (see below, page 8), and should contain a compilation of qualifications and the relevant documentation to support this, a numbered list of academic works referred to, short report of academic and educational activity as well as certification from the director of studies documenting the extent and quality of the teaching performed. In the case when the application is not submitted electronically, the applicant should send with the application one copy of each of the up to eight texts, which he or she wishes should be taken into particular account. The doctoral dissertation should be included among these.

When the application has been received by the Faculty Board it is processed by the faculty’s docentur committee, which suggests whether or not the application should be sent for review. If a testing of the application is proposed the docentur committee shall also suggest an academic expert advisor. The docentur committee shall also make a statement as to whether the requirements for affiliation (2a-c above), prerequisites for the teaching qualifications (3.2.1-2 above) and the requirements for academic qualifi- cations (3.1 above) have been filled. One of the committee’s members is responsible for presenting the case. If the application concerns a subject area which is represented by one of the permanent members, this member is given this responsibility, in other cases the third member takes this responsibility. This member shall, at the meeting of the docentur committee demonstrate how the applicant has both broadened and deepened academic skills and accomplishments since completing their doctorate. The member shall at the meeting of the committee at the latest, provide a written explanation of his or her position in this case. The member shall, at the meeting, make three suggestions as to expert advisers. The Faculty Board informs the applicant that the application is to be sent for review and who or whom has been chosen as expert advisor(s).

The individual appointed as academic advisor shall preferably be a professor and active at an academic institution other than Uppsala University. If circumstances require more than one expert advisor can be called upon. These guidelines shall be made available to the advisor by the Faculty Board.

An expert advisor’s statement shall review and judge the applicant’s academic skills and achievements. The statement shall clearly indicate whether an appointment as docent is recommended or dissuaded.

The docentur committee shall inform the Faculty Board when and where the teachers test is to be undertaken. An announcement of a teacher’s test is to be sent out by the office of the Faculty Board to the applicant, members of the Faculty Board, all teaching staff with a doctoral degree, expert advisors and is to be posted on the notice board of the department of theology.

Following inspection of the statement of expert advisor(s), submitted documents and evaluation of the teachers test the docentur committee shall provide a brief statement to the Faculty Board including a recommendation as whether the applicant should be accepted or declined.

A newly appointed docent shall, shortly after announcement of the fact, hold a faculty lecture on a subject of his or her choice. The subject area professor is responsible for organising the docent lecture. Any costs associated with the docent lecture are not ordinarily met by the department of theology.

It is the responsibility of any newly appointed docent who is employed by Uppsala University to contact their own head of department themselves with to apply for review of salary level. A copy of the docent certificate should accompany any application.

Appendix: Template for application

An application for docentur should follow the template below. Instructions on how to submit the application can be obtained from the faculty officer at teolfak@teol.uu.se.

____________________________________________________

To the Board of the Faculty of Theology, Uppsala University

Application for docentur

With reference to the academic curriculum vitae attached and with reference to documentation of my academic and pedagogical skills and achievements I hereby apply to be accepted as unremunerated docent in [subject area to be given here].

The academic texts I take to be of particular value for the evaluation are those which in the list attached have been given numbers… [1– max. 8 numbers to be given; see below, page 10]

Place and date
Signature
Print name
Personal id number
Postal address
Telephone, e-mail

Applicant’s name

Qualifications and Academic Curriculum Vitae

Qualifications

Chronological list of applicant’s academic qualifications. Name of the institution which awarded the qualification(s) to be given.

Employment

Chronological list of those employments and positions which the applicant wishes to be taken into account. Those who did not defend their doctoral degree at the faculty of theology at Uppsala University or are employed there shall note here in what form ongoing research cooperation with the faculty is taking place.

Academic Awards. Grants

Academic awards/prizes and post-doctoral grants to be listed here.

Research Activity

The list should give a structured overview of the research profile of the applicant. Forms of activity are given as headings. Here follows an example of how the infor- mation should be collated and listed under a number of headings:

Thesis topic:

History of religions with focus on the meetings between religions in Europe in the nineteenth century

Research profile has been broadened through publications on:

Scientific theory

Meetings between religions/criticism

The religious shift in the Nordic countries

The theory of religion of Nathan Söderblom

The iconography of the New Age movement

The contemporary renaissance of Sami religion Lectures at the following academic conferences:

Europäische Religionsgeschichte, Blaubeuren 1993 CHAOS-symposium: ”Magi och modernitet”, Bergen 1996 ”Canonization and Decanonization”, Leuven 1997

NORAD-symposium, ”Nordkalottens urfolksspørsmål”, Tromsø 1999

Guest lectures:

Lund University 1993, 1996

University of Birmingham 1995

Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven1996

Ongoing research projects:

Participant in research project ”Religion och religioner”, financed by the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation

Director of the research project ”Religionsmöte i Europa”, financed by the Nordic Council of Ministers

Research information

Present the dissemination of your research to the broader society, e.g. schools, government agencies, religious organisations.

Teaching skills and accomplishments

Teaching

The time (term) at which the teaching has taken place, how many hours it has encompassed and at what level it has taken place is to be given. A written statement as to the quality of the teaching from the director of studies (equivalent) should accompany the application.

Popular scientific activity

Extent and content of authorship, lecturing activity etc is to be given. Reference can be made to the list of publications.

Supervision

Nature and extent of supervisory responsibility (essay supervision at C and D level, undergraduate dissertations, doctoral theses including eventual doctoral candidate’s name) to be noted.

Teacher training

Details of courses completed to be given.

Authorship of teaching material

Detailed bibliographic information to be given.

Educational development activity

Detailed information to be given on the content, form etc of work with education or teaching development.

Membership of Academic Societies

Society name and year of election to be stated.

Additional information of relevancet

Under this heading, the applicant can state any other relevant information which should be taken into account.

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Bibliography

Note! Each text, which the applicant wishes to be taken into account, is to be given a unique number. In the letter of application, the applicant shall note the max. eight texts (see above) which are primarily to be taken into account. The doctoral dissertation should be included among the eight texts.

Academic monographs

Here, full bibliographic references are to be given for those books the applicant wishes to be taken into account: full title, academic series, place of publication and year as well as number of pages to be noted following the example below:

Sisters Rejoice. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians and Luke-Act as Recieved by First- century Philippian Women. (Coniectanea Biblica. New Testament series 20.) Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International 1988. 260 pages.

After every book title a list is to be given of reviews of the work in question published in academic journals. Reviewer’s name, title of the journal, year and the number of pages the review covers are to be given.

Academic articles

Here, full bibliographic references are to be given for those articles the applicant wishes to be taken into account. Title of journal or volume of collected works in which the article was published, as well as number of pages to be noted following the example below:

”The Swedish Archbishop and European Catholicism 1914-1931. Confrontation and CoExistence between Evangelical Catholicity and Roman Catholicism in Nathan Söderblom’s Theology.” Nathan Söderblom as a European. (Tro och tanke 1993:7), Uppsala 1993, pp. 103- 113.

Book chapters

Here, full bibliographic references are to be given for publications in scholarly anthologies the applicant wishes to be taken into account. Title of anthology as well as number of pages to be noted following the example below:

Lövheim, Mia & Marta Axner (2015) Mediatised Religion and Public Spheres: Current Approaches and New Questions. In Granholm Kennet, Marcus Moberg & Sofia Sjö (eds.) Religion, Media, and Social Change. London & New York: Routledge, pp. 38-53. 10

Reports

Here, bibliographic references are to be given for reports and papers written for e.g. government agencies and civil society organisations.

Academic Reviews

Here full bibliographic references are to be given for those academic reviews the app- licant wishes to be taken into account. Title of journal or volume of collected works in which the review was published as well as number of pages to be noted.

Popular scientific books and articles

Here, full bibliographic references are to be given for those books and articles the applicant wishes to be taken into account (see above).

After every book title a list is to be given of reviews of the work in question. Reviewer’s name, title of the journal, year and the number of pages the review covers are to be given.