Postdoc (30 months) in Natural Language Processing and Cultural Alignment of Large Language Models at the Centre for Language Technology, Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics, UCPH

Postdoc (30 months) in Natural Language Processing and Cultural Alignment of Large Language Models at the Centre for Language Technology, Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics, UCPH

The Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics, Faculty of Humanities, University of Copenhagen (UCPH), Denmark, invites applications for a 30-month postdoctoral fellowship in natural language processing, to be filled by the 1st of July 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

The Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics is home to 1600 students and 160 members of staff. It provides the setting for international research and education from BA to PhD studies within language, language technology, Natural Language Processing, literature, media, culture, and gender studies.

The successful candidate will be attached to the Centre for Language Technology (CST), which is one of the research centres of the department. CST conducts research in various areas of interest in language technology, including Natural Language Processing, construction of NLP resources, Computational Cognitive Modeling and Multimodality, NLP infrastructure and policy, Representation Learning for NLP and Digital Humanities, among others.  It has a strong international profile, at the same time as pursuing the development of language technology methods and resources for the Danish language. The Centre has considerable experience managing international research projects, frequently attracts visiting researchers, and has organised major conferences in the field. In collaboration with the Department of Computer Science at the University of Copenhagen, it offers an international MSc programme in IT and Cognition. The programme, which currently admits about 30 students a year, comprises a range of courses in Natural Language Processing and Cognitive Science. In addition, we teach at several BA programs and electives, such as the BA ‘Kognitions- and Datavidenskab’ hosted at the Department of Psychology, and an elective package on Language-Centric AI for students in the Humanities.

Job content
The successful candidate will contribute to the projects  CAALLM (Culture-Sensitive Assessment and Adjustment of Large Language Models), granted by NordForsk 2026-2029 in a collaborative team of Nordic and Baltic NLP partners; see https://www.nordforsk.org/projects/culture-sensitive-assessment-and-adjustment-large-language-models-adaptation-nordic-baltic and to the governmental AI initiative Danish Foundation Models, see https://www.foundationmodels.dk/index.html . The position focuses on linguistic and cultural alignment for Danish and on the interpretability of cultural biases in large language models. More specifically, the candidate will assist in dataset collection and development for assessing and adjusting proficiency of common ground and values in LLMs (with a particular focus on Danish) and in designing and applying explainable and interpretable AI methods to identify the sources of cultural bias and thereby to develop effective strategies for mitigating such biases in language models.

We expect the candidates to have a relevant research profile in computational linguistics and natural language processing (or other related areas) with a strong publication record in Computational Linguistics conferences (ACL, EMNLP, COLING, LREC, and so on).

Qualification requirements

Applicants will primarily be assessed on their research qualifications, including publications, the ability to conduct independent research and participate in research collaborations, and experience in research management. In addition, the applicant’s research plan and research potential will be assessed in relation to the project described above.

Since the candidate is not expected to teach, teaching qualifications are not a requirement; however, documented teaching experience can be included in the overall assessment. 

Some proficiency in the Danish language and knowledge of Nordic culture, social structure, and lifestyle is considered an advantage for the position.

Application
Applications must be submitted online in PDF or Word format. Click on the “Apply now” button at the bottom of this advertisement to apply.

Applications should be written English and must include the following attachments:  

Letter of motivation

CV

Documentation of qualifications (exam certificates and PhD diploma) 

Complete publication list (attached publications must be marked with an asterisk). The list must be structured systematically and divided into the following categories:

• Peer-reviewed publications:
  • Monographs and anthologies
  • Articles in journals
  • Book chapters/anthology contributions, etc.
• Non-peer-reviewed publications:
  • Publications disseminating research findings, etc.

Applicants can attach a maximum of 3 publications. The publication dates must be clearly marked on the list. The selected publications must be uploaded as attachments and numbered 1-3. 

Research plan.

(Optional) Documentation of teaching competencies/teaching portfolio (see the UCPH guidelines for teaching portfolios here ) and other work on the dissemination of research.

Only documentation in English will be assessed.  

Applicants are invited to familiarize themselves with the faculty’s strategic landmarks here: Strategic landmarks – University of Copenhagen (ku.dk)

The recruitment process
Once the deadline for applications has expired, the Head of Department will consider advice from the appointment committee and select applicants for assessment. All applicants will be notified whether they have been shortlisted. The Head of Department will then set up an expert assessment committee to consider the applications. The selected applicants will be informed who is serving on the committee. They will be offered the opportunity to comment on the committee’s assessment of their application before the appointment is announced.

Further information about the application procedure is available from HR South, e-mail: HR-SOENDRE@adm.ku.dk. Please refer to ID number 211-2469/26-2I #2. 

Salary and terms of employment
Terms of appointment and salary will be in accordance with an agreement between the Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC). The salary range starts at DKK 39,200 (approximately EUR 5,200) + an 18.07 % contribution to the pension scheme. It is possible to negotiate salary supplements on an annual basis.

The Danish Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC) have further agreed on a protocol that makes it possible for international researchers employed by the University to achieve a pension exemption, whereby the pension contribution will be paid out as salary. For more information about the different pension schemes, please read more here: https://ism.ku.dk/salary-tax-pension/pension/

If you consider applying from abroad, you may find useful information on how it is to work in Denmark and at UCPH here : http://ism.ku.dk , http://www.nyidanmark.dk/en-us/frontpage.htm and https://www.workindenmark.dk/
UCPH wishes to encourage everyone interested in this post to apply, regardless of personal background.

An Equal Opportunity Workplace
The University of Copenhagen is committed to its pursuit of academic excellence, equality of opportunity, and creating an inclusive working environment and therefore encourages all qualified candidates to apply, regardless of personal background, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, ethnicity, etc. For more on the diverse working place environment at the University and the University’s participation in the HRS4R HR Excellence in Research, see HR Excellence in Research – University of Copenhagen (ku.dk)

Contact information
Additional information about the position can be obtained from Bolette Sandford Pedersen, email: bspedersen@hum.ku.dk .

The deadline for applications is 23:59 [CET] on March 10th, 2026.  

Any applications or additional material submitted after the deadline will not be considered.