Postdoc positions for up to 3 years at Center for Electromicrobiology (CEM)

For the second phase of our Center of Excellence, the

Center for Electromicrobiology (CEM) ,

starting

from October 15, 2023

,

we offer

4 postdoc positions (f/m/d)

for scientists with a keen interest in cable bacteria and a relevant background for research in one of the following areas:

• Molecular structure, mechanism, or catalytic properties of conductive biopolymers
• Functional genomics, physiology, or structural biology of electron-conducting microbes

• Interactions and biogeochemical controls in (electric) aquatic microbial communities

Expected start date and duration of employment

All 4 positions are for up to 3 years, available from October 15, 2023, or as soon as possible thereafter.

Job description

You will be part of the CEM research team with a focus on cable bacteria; depending on your background and research interest, you will be working on (but not limited to) topics such as

• Conduction characterization
• Catalytic capability of the cable bacteria skeleton
• Cellular use and control of oxygen production
• Metabolic and behavioral adaptations
• Structuring of cells
• Microbial interactions
• Nutrient cycling in benthic systems
• Controls of populations and activity

In addition, you will have the opportunity to get involved in the supervision and teaching of undergraduate students, outreach activities, or the planning and organization of workshops, retreats and social events.

Your profile

Applicants should have a PhD in microbiology, molecular biology, biochemistry, (bio)physics, electrochemistry, ecology, biogeochemistry, or other relevant fields.

Furthermore, we expect applicants to have a collaborative mindset, an interest to work in teams in an interdisciplinary, international research center, and good communication skills in English.

Who we are

The

Center for Electromicrobiology (CEM)

is a Center of Excellence at Aarhus University supported by the

Danish National Research Foundation

for a 10-year period (2017-2027).

We are a team of about 30 PIs, postdocs, PhD students, technicians, and undergraduates with the joint ambition to understand cable bacteria, which conduct electrons over centimeter distances as an adaptation to gradient environments where the electron donors and acceptors for their energy metabolism are separated. Our research addresses three overarching questions: how are the electrons transported in cable bacteria, how are they exploited by the cells’ metabolism, and how do they shape electric ecosystems and interact with other organisms?

We apply a combination of microbiological, biogeochemical, molecular biological, nanoscience, and electrochemical approaches, including microsensors, next generation sequencing, Cryo-EM, and computational biology.

What we offer

The

Center for Electromicrobiology (CEM)

offers:

• state-of-the-art facilities for molecular and ecological microbiology, next generation sequencing, electrochemistry, scanning probe methods, and electron microscopy.
• an international and interdisciplinary research environment with an extensive network of national, international, and industrial collaborators
• a work environment with flat hierarchies, good team spirit, and many social activities, encouraging open and critical discussions within and across different fields of research.
• mentoring and career advice for early career scientists

Place of work and area of employment

The place of work is the main campus of Aarhus University in 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark. All CEM positions are based at the Faculty of Natural Sciences in an interdisciplinary setting. Depending on the topic and scope of the individual postdoc project, the area of employment will be either the Section for Microbiology, Department of Biology, the Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), or The Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics.

Contact information

For further information, please contact: Professor Lars Peter Nielsen, Head of CEM, phone: +45 60202654; email:

[email protected]

; or Professor Andreas Schramm, Vice-head of CEM, phone: +45 60202659; email:

[email protected]

.

Deadline

Applications must be received no later than June 1, 2023.

Selected candidates will be invited after shortlisting to join a Recruitment Workshop at CEM on June 19-20, 2023, to present their background and to get to know the CEM Team, facilities, and research approaches.

Application procedure

Shortlisting is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the appointment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. All applicants will be notified whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee, and each applicant is given the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that concerns him/her self. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.

Letter of reference

If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline. Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.

Formalities and salary range

Natural Sciences refers to the

Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation

.

The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities .

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

Research activities will be evaluated in relation to actual research time. Thus, we encourage applicants to specify periods of leave without research activities, in order to be able to subtract these periods from the span of the scientific career during the evaluation of scientific productivity.

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Read more here . Please find more information about entering and working in Denmark here .

Aarhus University also offers a Junior Researcher Development Programme targeted at career development for postdocs at AU. You can read more about it here .

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.