PhD fellowship in ancient environmental DNA at Globe Institute

We are offering a PhD fellowship in ancient environmental DNA commencing 1 June 2020 or as soon as possible hereafter.

Our group and research

The successful candidate will be part of the Environmental DNA Group in the Section for Evolutionary Genomics at the Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen. The group currently consists of one postdoc, three PhD students and two research assistants. We work on the use of environmental DNA and high-throughput sequencing to assess biodiversity and diet. This encompasses both technical and applied environmental DNA studies and the establishment of a national DNA reference database.

Project description

The successful candidate will be part of the Copenhagen group of the ERC Synergy project, Seachange, in which a cross-disciplinary approach is adopted to assess the impact of major cultural transitions on marine ecosystem functioning and biodiversity. Apart from ancient environmental DNA analyses, the overall project includes classical zooarchaeology, isotope analyses, dating methods, marine historical ecology and ecosystem modeling. The PhD candidate will take an active part in the overall Seachange project. In the Copenhagen group, the student will work alongside a Postdoctoral Fellow, specifically on metabarcoding and shotgun sequencing of environmental DNA time-series in midden, bulk-bone and/or marine sediment core samples from Australia, Antarctica and/or Iceland. The main focus will be on fieldwork and subsampling from already collected samples, development, optimization and validation of laboratory protocols, ecological analyses of the generated environmental DNA time series in relation to cultural transitions in one or more sites and on data integration across disciplines.

Principal supervisor is Associate Professor Kristine Bohmann, Section for Evolutionary Genomics, Globe Institute at University of Copenhagen, [email protected], Direct Phone: +45 40750521. Co-supervisors are Associate Professor Shyam Gopalakrishnan, Associate Professor Tobias Guldberg Frøslev, Assistant Professor Mikkel Winther Pedersen and Dr. Christian Carøe, all from Globe Institute and Dr Brit Asmussen, Queensland Museum.

Start: 1 June 2020 or as soon as possible thereafter
Duration: 3 years as a PhD student

Job description

Your key tasks as a PhD student at SUND are:

• Carry through an independent research project under supervision
• Complete PhD courses or other equivalent education corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS points
• Participate in active research environments including a stay at another research team
• Obtain experience with teaching or other types of dissemination related to your PhD project
• Teach and disseminate your knowledge
• Write a PhD thesis on the grounds of your project

Key criteria for the assessment of applicants

Applicants must have qualifications corresponding to a master’s degree related to the subject area of the project, for example Biology, Molecular Biology, Biochemistry or Bioarchaeology. The ideal candidate for this position has a strong biological background and experience in working with ancient and/or modern environmental DNA. In particular, experience with independent international field work, knowledge and experience in lab work and data analysis for metabarcoding (and potentially shotgun sequencing), basic programming skills and an understanding of environmental DNA research. Further, we put strong emphasis on interest in working in a project in which many disciplines are in play and for the candidate to take ownership of his/her project while having a collaborative mindset and ability to work as part of a team. Due to the Institute’s international profile, it is required that the applicant is fluent in written and spoken English.

Other important criteria are:

• The grade point average achieved
• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Previous publications
• Relevant work experience
• Other professional activities
• Proven ability to work independently
• Curious mindset with a strong interest in environmental DNA time-series

Place of employment

The place of employment is at Globe Institute, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in a dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include state-of-the-art ancient and environmental DNA laboratories, the associated National High-throughput DNA Sequencing Centre and computational servers to successfully complete the PhD tasks.

Terms of employment
The employment as PhD fellow is full time and for 3 years.

It is conditioned upon the applicant’s successful enrolment as a PhD student at the Graduate School at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant.

The PhD study must be completed in accordance with Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme at the Universities and Certain Higher Artistic Educational Institutions (PhD Order) and the Faculty’s rules on achieving the degree. Salary, pension and terms of employment are in accordance with the agree­ment between the Ministry of Finance and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. Depending on seniority, the monthly salary begins around 27,363 DKK /approx. 3,661 EUR (October 2019-level) plus pension.

Questions

For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact the principal supervisor.

General information about PhD study at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences is available at the Graduate School’s website: https://healthsciences.ku.dk/phd/guidelines/

Application procedure

Your application must be in English and submitted electronically by clicking ‘Apply now’ below. The application must include the following documents in PDF format:

1. Motivated letter of application (max. one page)

2. CV incl. education, experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position

3. Master of Science diploma and transcript of records. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor will do

4. Publication list (if applicable)

Application deadline: 18 March 2020, 23:59 pm CET.

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

The further process

After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the hiring committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an unbiased assessor.

The assessor makes a non-prioritized assessment of the academic qualifications and experience with respect to the above-mentioned area of research, techniques, skills and other requirements listed in the advertisement.

Once the assessment work has been completed each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant him/herself.

You can read about the recruitment process at http://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/

The applicant will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.

The Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences comprises approximately 7500 students, 1500 PhD students and 3200 employees. The Faculty advances the field of health sciences through its core activities: research, teaching, knowledge sharing and communication. With basic research fields ranging from molecular studies to studies of society, the Faculty contributes to a healthy future through its graduates, research findings and inventions benefitting patients and the community. The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the surrounding community and invites all regardless of personal background to apply for the position.

Kilde: Jobnet.dk