Professor of Dental Medicine (Karolinska Institute)

About the Position Are you a medical doctor or a dentist and would like to contribute to groundbreaking research, development, and knowledge exchange at the interface between dentistry and healthcare? Oral health and disease should be a natural part of general health. Today this is not the case. According to WHO, oral diseases are the most common non-communicable diseases with an estimated global disease burden of 3.5 billion people. An increasing number of studies indicate a clear connection between oral health and general health, and there is a great need to develop this research area. Despite this, knowledge and communication between odontology and medicine is often insufficient, with the potential consequence of suboptimal or delayed care. Karolinska Institutet wishes to appoint a Professor in Integrative Odontology at the Department of Dental Medicine, to bridge this knowledge gap and develop this subject area. About the Department The Department of Dental Medicine is world-renowned for its research and education in odontology and has three times been ranked first in the world's universities on the QS Subject ranking for dentistry. At the Department of Dental Medicine, translational odontological research with the goal to improve oral health, prevent and treat oral diseases, and to understand connections with systemic oral health is conducted. Based at Campus Flemingsberg, the University Dental Clinic and our research laboratories are located in the collaborative environment of ANA Futura, supporting the latest technological innovations. We train dental hygienists, dentists, specialist dentists, and researchers and provide complementary education for dentists trained outside the EU. Description of the Subject Area This donation professorship is directed towards the integration of oral health as an essential part of general health and shall contribute to increased knowledge about the connection between oral diseases and diseases of other body organs. There is a generous funding package with the position of 30 million SEK over a 7-year period to cover salary, rent, project-related costs, and for establishing a research group. An increasing amount of evidence supports the connection between oral disease and different general disorders such as some types of cancer, dementia, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Serious general health conditions can be misinterpreted as isolated oral conditions despite a significant impact on general health. The reverse may also occur where the impact of different oral infections, mucosal lesions, and chronic maxillofacial pain on total health is not always understood and provided for. Insufficient interaction between medicine and odontology can cause inadequate or delayed care for patients. Furthermore, poor integration and communication may prevent necessary research, development, and knowledge exchange at the interface between dentistry and other health professions. Both individuals and society would benefit from a close collaboration between dentistry and other healthcare specialties. To increase knowledge and develop individualized preventive and therapeutic possibilities, collaborating research that integrates the oral cavity as an organ in the body is required. Your Mission We are seeking a candidate with strong engagement for driving long-term development where oral health is integrated with general health. You have good cooperation skills and an interest for multidisciplinary approaches to build a new cross-boundary research environment. You will lead your own research group with supervision of research students at undergraduate, master, and doctoral level to a high international standard at the interface of odontology and medicine. An important part of the mission is that through information and educational efforts you will contribute to the spread of knowledge regarding oral health and its correlation to general health among different healthcare professions, decision makers, and society. Therefore, you are creative, with strong communication skills and an ability to inspire, collaborate, and drive change. You are expected to take an active part in educational activities by leading, planning, and developing both theoretical and clinical undergraduate education, as well as educational assignments at advanced and research level. You are also expected to contribute to the formation of an academic multidisciplinary structure for the investigation and treatment of non-solved oral conditions in the collaboration between dentistry and healthcare. Therefore, you are visionary and strategically oriented. The mission is to bridge the traditional division of dentistry and medicine; therefore, your basic training can be either as a medical doctor (MD) or a dentist (DDS), and a significant part of the mission will be outreach with interplay within academia, healthcare, and the surrounding society. The mission can also contain a leadership role, and you should be interested in trust- and dialogue-based leadership. The possibility of a combined employment (academia and clinic) can be discussed in the long term, if relevant for the applicant and the needs of the organization. Eligibility Requirements To be eligible for an employment as Professor with focus on education and research, the applicant must have demonstrated: Excellent pedagogical skills Very good scientific skills Clinical skills Further eligibility requirements: Registered medical doctor (MD) or dentist (DDS) It is a requirement that you have completed 10 weeks of courses on teaching in higher education, as indicated in the recommendations of the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institution. If you lack such education at the time of employment, you must undergo such education during the first two years of employment. Assessment Criteria The Professorship has a focus on education and research. The assessment will weight qualifications as follows: Scientific skills (3) Pedagogical skills (3) Leadership and collaboration skills (2) Clinical skills (2) In addition to the assessment criteria specified in the guidelines for the appointment procedure, it is particularly meritorious if you have demonstrated: Research with clear connection to oral-systemic correlations with translational or interdisciplinary emphasis Very good communicative and collaborative skills both scientifically and within popular science with experience of the interplay within the healthcare system, authorities, society, and media Engagement for, and experience of, knowledge dissemination, interprofessional teaching and collaboration, policy work, and implementation of research results in recommendations and guidelines Familiarity with the Swedish dental and healthcare systems, their organization and steering After an overall assessment of the expertise and merits of the applicants in relation to the subject area, Karolinska Institutet will determine which of them has the best potential to contribute to a positive development of the activities at KI. What Do We Offer? A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Here, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations that have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement. Location: Flemingsberg Application Your application must contain the following documents in English: A cover letter A resumé A qualifications portfolio including a description of your research plan, both presented in accordance with Karolinska Institutet’s template You may change or add to your application at any time up to and including the application deadline date. After the deadline, the process closes, and no amendment or addition can be made to your application. The applications will be reviewed by external reviewers, most often both national and international. For that reason, all the submitted documents should be written in English. The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system. We look forward to receiving your application! Employment Details Type of employment: Permanent position Contract type: Full time First day of employment: Upon agreement Salary: Monthly salary Number of positions: 1 Full-time equivalent: 100% City: Flemingsberg County: Stockholms län Country: Sweden Reference number: STÖD 2-2681/2025 Published: 22 August 2025 Last application date: 20 October 2025 Contact Bodil Lund: bodil.lund@ki.se Union Representatives: Tatiana Tourova, SACO – tatiana.tourova@ki.se If you apply for this position please say you saw it on Academicoxy

About the Position

Are you a medical doctor or a dentist and would like to contribute to groundbreaking research, development, and knowledge exchange at the interface between dentistry and healthcare?

Oral health and disease should be a natural part of general health. Today this is not the case. According to WHO, oral diseases are the most common non-communicable diseases with an estimated global disease burden of 3.5 billion people. An increasing number of studies indicate a clear connection between oral health and general health, and there is a great need to develop this research area. Despite this, knowledge and communication between odontology and medicine is often insufficient, with the potential consequence of suboptimal or delayed care.

Karolinska Institutet wishes to appoint a Professor in Integrative Odontology at the Department of Dental Medicine, to bridge this knowledge gap and develop this subject area.

About the Department

The Department of Dental Medicine is world-renowned for its research and education in odontology and has three times been ranked first in the world's universities on the QS Subject ranking for dentistry.

At the Department of Dental Medicine, translational odontological research with the goal to improve oral health, prevent and treat oral diseases, and to understand connections with systemic oral health is conducted. Based at Campus Flemingsberg, the University Dental Clinic and our research laboratories are located in the collaborative environment of ANA Futura, supporting the latest technological innovations.

We train dental hygienists, dentists, specialist dentists, and researchers and provide complementary education for dentists trained outside the EU.

Description of the Subject Area

This donation professorship is directed towards the integration of oral health as an essential part of general health and shall contribute to increased knowledge about the connection between oral diseases and diseases of other body organs.

There is a generous funding package with the position of 30 million SEK over a 7-year period to cover salary, rent, project-related costs, and for establishing a research group.

An increasing amount of evidence supports the connection between oral disease and different general disorders such as some types of cancer, dementia, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Serious general health conditions can be misinterpreted as isolated oral conditions despite a significant impact on general health. The reverse may also occur where the impact of different oral infections, mucosal lesions, and chronic maxillofacial pain on total health is not always understood and provided for.

Insufficient interaction between medicine and odontology can cause inadequate or delayed care for patients. Furthermore, poor integration and communication may prevent necessary research, development, and knowledge exchange at the interface between dentistry and other health professions. Both individuals and society would benefit from a close collaboration between dentistry and other healthcare specialties.

To increase knowledge and develop individualized preventive and therapeutic possibilities, collaborating research that integrates the oral cavity as an organ in the body is required.

Your Mission

We are seeking a candidate with strong engagement for driving long-term development where oral health is integrated with general health. You have good cooperation skills and an interest for multidisciplinary approaches to build a new cross-boundary research environment.

You will lead your own research group with supervision of research students at undergraduate, master, and doctoral level to a high international standard at the interface of odontology and medicine.

An important part of the mission is that through information and educational efforts you will contribute to the spread of knowledge regarding oral health and its correlation to general health among different healthcare professions, decision makers, and society. Therefore, you are creative, with strong communication skills and an ability to inspire, collaborate, and drive change.

You are expected to take an active part in educational activities by leading, planning, and developing both theoretical and clinical undergraduate education, as well as educational assignments at advanced and research level. You are also expected to contribute to the formation of an academic multidisciplinary structure for the investigation and treatment of non-solved oral conditions in the collaboration between dentistry and healthcare. Therefore, you are visionary and strategically oriented.

The mission is to bridge the traditional division of dentistry and medicine; therefore, your basic training can be either as a medical doctor (MD) or a dentist (DDS), and a significant part of the mission will be outreach with interplay within academia, healthcare, and the surrounding society.

The mission can also contain a leadership role, and you should be interested in trust- and dialogue-based leadership.

The possibility of a combined employment (academia and clinic) can be discussed in the long term, if relevant for the applicant and the needs of the organization.

Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for an employment as Professor with focus on education and research, the applicant must have demonstrated:

Excellent pedagogical skills
Very good scientific skills
Clinical skills

Further eligibility requirements:

Registered medical doctor (MD) or dentist (DDS)

It is a requirement that you have completed 10 weeks of courses on teaching in higher education, as indicated in the recommendations of the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institution. If you lack such education at the time of employment, you must undergo such education during the first two years of employment.

Assessment Criteria

The Professorship has a focus on education and research. The assessment will weight qualifications as follows:

Scientific skills (3)
Pedagogical skills (3)
Leadership and collaboration skills (2)
Clinical skills (2)

In addition to the assessment criteria specified in the guidelines for the appointment procedure, it is particularly meritorious if you have demonstrated:

Research with clear connection to oral-systemic correlations with translational or interdisciplinary emphasis
Very good communicative and collaborative skills both scientifically and within popular science with experience of the interplay within the healthcare system, authorities, society, and media
Engagement for, and experience of, knowledge dissemination, interprofessional teaching and collaboration, policy work, and implementation of research results in recommendations and guidelines
Familiarity with the Swedish dental and healthcare systems, their organization and steering

After an overall assessment of the expertise and merits of the applicants in relation to the subject area, Karolinska Institutet will determine which of them has the best potential to contribute to a positive development of the activities at KI.

What Do We Offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Here, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden.

At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations that have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research.

Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement.

Location: Flemingsberg

Application

Your application must contain the following documents in English:

A cover letter
A resumé
A qualifications portfolio including a description of your research plan, both presented in accordance with Karolinska Institutet’s template

You may change or add to your application at any time up to and including the application deadline date. After the deadline, the process closes, and no amendment or addition can be made to your application.

The applications will be reviewed by external reviewers, most often both national and international. For that reason, all the submitted documents should be written in English.

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

We look forward to receiving your application!