30 PhD student and 2 post-doctoral positions at the Collaborative Research Center CRC 1644 “Phenotypic plasticity in plants - mechanisms, constraints and evolution”

4 Jan 2024
Job Information

Organisation/Company

University of Potsdam, Department of Human Resources

Department

Department of Human Resources

Research Field

Biological sciences

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)
Recognised Researcher (R2)

Country

Germany

Application Deadline

31 Jan 2024 - 23:59 (Europe/Berlin)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Part-time

Offer Starting Date

1 Apr 2024

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by an EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

Yes

Offer Description

The DFG-funded Collaborative Research Center CRC 1644 “Phenotypic plasticity in plants - mechanisms, constraints and evolution”, hosted at the University of Potsdam jointly with its partner institutions MPI for Molecular Plant Physiology in Potsdam, Hasso Plattner Institute Potsdam, IGZ Großbeeren, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin and University of Cologne, invites applications for

30 PhD student and 2 post-doctoral positions

in the field of plant phenotypic plasticity, with a focus on quantitative genetics, cell, developmental and molecular biology, physiology, plant ecology, metabolomics, and computational modelling.
The approved first funding period for CRC 1644 is from 1 April 2024 to 31 December 2027. Employment is thus possible for up to 45 months. The positions will be located at the University of Potsdam or one of the partner institutions named above.

Plants have colonised almost every habitat on Earth. A major feature that has enabled this success is the remarkable ability of plants to adjust their growth and development to variable environments. The ability of a given genotype to generate different phenotypes in different environments is termed phenotypic plasticity. Such plasticity is a universal feature of life, and understanding its molecular basis and evolution is a fundamental goal in biology that forms the focus of CRC 1644. To achieve this goal, our consortium integrates genetics, cell and developmental biology, physiology, evolutionary biology, functional ecology, computational biology and mathematical modeling. We strive for a step-change in our understanding of plant phenotypic plasticity as an evolving trait of critical importance for crop breeding and to the fate of plant populations under environmental change.

CRC 1644 provides an outstanding research infrastructure including a large interdisciplinary network of researchers, state-of-the-art facilities, and funding opportunities for conference visits, summer schools, hosting international experts, and acquistion of soft skills. CRC 1644 strives to increase the proportion of women in STEM research.

 

The website www.uni-potsdam.de/en/ppp/ provides more information on
• the scientific framework of this call
• individual projects, respective open positions and terms of employment,
• candidate responsibilities and required qualifications
• online application procedure

The PhD student positions are available in projects A1 to B7, as indicated on the website. The post-doctoral positions are in computational biology in project Z2.

Your Application
Your application should include a CV, a letter of motivation stating the positions (with IDs) you are applying for and explaining why you wish to pursue a PhD and why you have chosen the respective projects to apply for, relevant certificates, names and addresses for two academic referees, and the completed form that you can find here for download: https://www.uni-potsdam.de/en/ppp/job-portal/jobs .

Please apply by the deadline of 31.01.2024 via email to [email protected] .

Requirements

Research Field

Biological sciences

Education Level

Master Degree or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

To be eligible to apply you need to fulfil the following mandatory requirements:

• hold, or expect to hold, a Masters (or Diplom) degree in Biology, Bioinformatics, Computer Science, Mathematics, or (Bio)physics. All prior degree work must be finished before the PhD start date.
• demonstrate scholarly curiosity and an outstanding academic record.
• be able to show that your interests, skills and knowledge match well with your proposed area of doctoral research (see information on motivation letter below). 
• be able to demonstrate a high level of written and spoken English. See our full eligibility requirements for details below.

If you obtained your degree(s) OUTSIDE the European Higher Education Area  we welcome if your application includes scores from the GRE General Test . In general, successful applicants have scored above 152 on the verbal test and above 155 on the quantitative test.
Applicants with an Indian GATE score can also supply this instead of, or as well as, the GRE.

Required language skills

Successful candidates need to be fluent in written and spoken English and, unless native speakers, should document their proficiency in English. Ideally, this can be achieved with a TOEFL report, an IELTS report or a Cambridge ESOL certificate (equivalent language tests are also accepted). For applicants with a German Abitur, this is considered sufficient to demonstrate English proficiency.

Minimal scores:
We expect language proficiency test scores that are at or above the listed minimal scores in all subsections

TOEFL iBT
Minimal score overall: 80
Reading: 20, Listening: 20, Speaking: 20, Writing: 20

IELTS
Minimal band score overall: 6.5
Reading: 6.5, Listening: 6.5, Speaking: 6.5, Writing: 6.5

CEFR levels (Cambridge ESOL) (details see here )
Minimal score overall: upper B2 (175-179) or higher (C1 or C2)

German language skills are not required.

Languages

ENGLISH

Level

Excellent

Additional Information
Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

32

Company/Institute

University of Potsdam, MPI for Molecular Plant Physiology in Potsdam, Hasso Plattner Institute Potsdam, IGZ Großbeeren, Humboldt University Berlin, OR University of Cologne (depending on the project/position chosen)

Country

Germany

Geofield

Where to apply

Website

https://www.uni-potsdam.de/en/ppp/job-portal/jobs

Contact

City

Potsdam

Website

http://www.uni-potsdam.de/

Street

Am Neuen Palais 10

E-Mail

[email protected]

STATUS: EXPIRED