Professorship "Digital Methods in Educational Research on Teaching and Learning" (salary scale W2)

Location: Oldenburg

Application deadline: 2026-11-01

First day of work: as soon as possible

Limited: permanent

Notes: Funded by zukunft.niedersachsen, the joint science funding program of the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture and the Volkswagen Foundation

About us

The Department of Educational Sciences occupies a central place in the research and promotion of education, socialisation, and professional practice. Guided by pressing concerns of our time – digitalisation, sustainability, participation, inclusive professionalism, and futures across formal and nonformal learning settings alike – the Department pursues a holistic and integrative approach. Research and teaching are closely intertwined, combining critical, systematic, theoretical, historical, and empirical analysis with the goal of transforming institutionalised education. The Department bears significant responsibility for teacher training at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, as well as for educational programmes in the non-school sector. It is actively involved in continuing education programmes. The Department also serves a key role in the joint activities of Faculties I, III, and IV, which are establishing an innovative, interdisciplinary research landscape at the University of Oldenburg in the fields of Digital Social Sciences and Digital Humanities. Through the focus on 'Culture, Society and Literacy', this collaboration weaves together research, teaching, and social responsibility into a coherent and dynamic whole.

Your responsibilities

• The focus areas of your new position are the development and refinement of digital and data-intensive research methods, e.g., exploratory, qualitative-reconstructive, quantitative or combined approaches, and their application in empirical research on learning and teaching. You strengthen the institute team-oriented in research and teaching.
• You establish an independent research profile, supported by third-party funding, in the field of educational research using digital and data-intensive methods (including AI techniques).
• You play an active role in joint interdisciplinary and cross-faculty research and practice. This includes active involvement in the newly established Centre for Digital Social Sciences and Digital Humanities (DSSH) and the Centre for Teacher Education – Didactic Centre (DiZ), including its specific structures for professional development and research funding.
• You mentor and promote the academic career development of students and employees.
• You represent educational research as a key to professionalisation in preservice teacher training programmes. You also contribute to the development of the academic profile in the field of Digital Social Sciences and Digital Humanities (DSSH). You develop and lead innovative teaching programmes at the nexus of digital research methods and critical research perspectives.
• You primarily teach in German.
• As the universities of Oldenburg and Bremen are connected by a cooperation agreement, active participation in the cooperation is expected.
• You participate in academic self-governance.
• You promote a university culture that is diverse and equitable.

Your profile

Required:

• You meet the appointment requirements specified in section 25 of the Lower Saxony Higher Education Act (NHG).
• You provide evidence of a minimum of three years' teaching experience at a school or equivalent pedagogical experience or relevant empirical research experience corresponding to these duties.
• You have a PhD in educational research or a comparable subject area.
• Your teaching profile demonstrates expertise in (digital) research methods and experience in teacher training programmes.
• In your research, you have demonstrable expertise in the application and (further) development of digital and data-intensive research methods (e.g., with approaches from computational social science, digital social science or digital humanities). This expertise relates to exploratory, interpretive, qualitative, quantitative or combined methods. Your research has a proven focus on teaching and learning in schools.
• Your research achievements are demonstrated by relevant contributions to journals and books.
• You have successfully acquired competitive third-party funding.
• You have a cooperative working style that promotes a diverse and equitable working environment.
• You have experience in mentoring and promoting academic career development.
• You demonstrate your ability to connect to the described research and teaching areas in a proposal of max. 3 pages each. Please also outline how you plan to contribute to the focus on Digital Social Sciences and Digital Humanities.
• You have very good German language skills. If you do not have these skills, you are willing to acquire sufficient language skills within two years after appointment.

We offer

• A creative, international and inspiring working environment. We promote interdisciplinary cooperation within the university, with universities and research institutions around the world, as well as renowned university institutes and external research institutions.
• A wide service and advisory offers, e.g. for international researchers, for reconciling family and work or for applying for national, European and international research funding.
• A diverse range of further education offered for all career levels, as well as services for occupational health promotion.
• A certified family-friendly university on a lively and sustainable campus with good infrastructure.
• Affiliation with a dynamic department, alongside colleagues who are working together to reimagine inclusive and diverse forms of education, to develop critical and reflexive modes of researching digital technologies in education, and to innovate professional and organisational development.

Our standards

The university is committed to transparent and quality-assured procedures. We aspire to increase the proportion of female professors and encourage women to apply. Women will be given preference in the selection process in case of equal qualifications. Applications from people with disabilities or those with equal status will be given preference in the selection process in case of equal suitability, qualifications and performance. To protect your interests, please indicate in your application letter whether you have a disability or equal status.

Contact

For inquiries about the job posting, feel free to reach out to Prof Felicitas Macgilchrist.

Apply now

Please apply by 01.11.2026 only via the application web portal https://l.uol.de/berufungen.