University Assistant Postdoctoral, Earth Sciences, Geography and Astronomy

53 Faculty of Earth Sciences, Geography and Astronomy
Startdate: 01.03.2024 | Working hours: 40 | Collective bargaining agreement: §48 VwGr. B1 lit. b (postdoc)
Limited until: permanent
Reference no.: 1804

Among the many reasons to do research and to teach at the University of Vienna there is one in particular that has convinced around 7,500 academic staff members so far. They see themselves as personalities who need space for continuous striving for international scientific excellence. At the same time, they enjoy support and freedom that are not a given at other institutions. Does that sound like something for you? 

Your working place:

The Department of Astrophysics with currently around 90 members is part of the Faculty of Earth Sciences, Geography and Astronomy at the University of Vienna.

The “Dynamics of Stellar Systems” research group of Prof. Glenn van de Ven (https://dynamics.univie.ac.at/) is looking for a highly motivated and talented postdoctoral researcher. The position is for 3 years with possible extension for up to one more year (starting date as early as 1 March 2024 and no later than end 2024).

Your future tasks:

We seek an outstanding candidate for our Vienna core team in charge of our pioneering code for orbital modelling of stellar systems, which is publicly released under the name DYNAMITE (https://www.univie.ac.at/dynamics/dynamite_docs/index.html ). With this code we construct advanced dynamical models to infer the luminous and dark matter distribution in galaxies and star clusters, as well as to uncover the 'fossil record' of their formation history.

You will actively participate in research, teaching & administration, which means:

• You are involved in and leading research projects in Astrophysics.
• You publish in international renowned journals and present at international meetings.
• You (co-)supervise Bachelor, Master and PhD students in Astronomy.
• You hold courses independently within the scope of the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement.
• You take on administrative tasks in research and teaching.
• You become an engaged team member of the “Dynamics of Stellar Systems” research group at the Department of Astrophysics.
• You become a core member of the DYNAMITE team in Vienna.

Within the DYNAMITE code, the combination of computationally intensive dynamical models and stellar population models applied to state-of-the-art spectroscopy will require novel optimisation algorithms and efficient programming.

Your profile:

• Doctoral/PhD degree in astronomy/astrophysics with affinity for programming, or in computer science/applied mathematics with affinity for astronomy/astrophysics
• Main-author publications in renowned subject-relevant media
• Excellent command of written and spoken English 
• Excellent abilities to work in a team and excellent communication skills
• Very good programming skills
• Readiness to actively contribute to our team's DYNAMITE code 

Additionally:

• Very good organizational skills are highly desirable
• Supervision and teaching experience are desirable
• Expertise in dynamical modelling and stellar spectroscopy are assets
• Presentation experience in an international setting is a benefit

What we offer:

Inspiring working atmosphere: You will have the opportunity to work within a dedicated team on forefront science, while profiting from the international environment in the Department of Astrophysics (https://astro.univie.ac.at/en/ ). We have privileged access to the Vienna Scientific Cluster (VSC; https://vsc.ac.at/ ) super-computing facility. As a member state of ESO (https://www.eso.org/ ) and ESA (https://www.esa.int/), Austria has access to their first-class observing facilities.

Good public transport connections: Your working place, the University Observatory, is located in the middle of the natural monument Observatory Park in the lively city of Vienna with outstanding public transport. 

Work-life balance: Our employees enjoy flexible working hours, remote/hybrid and/or part-time work, upon agreement.

Internal further training & coaching: Opportunity to deepen your skills on an ongoing basis. There are over 600 courses to choose from – free of charge.

Fair salary: A basic gross salary of EUR 4,351.90 per month and 14 times a year.

Equal opportunities for everyone: We look forward to diverse personalities in the team!

Are you interested?

Please prepare your application as a single PDF file that includes a motivation letter, a curriculum vitae (with a list of publications and presentations), a statement of research interests (maximum of 3 pages), and contact details of 3 persons who can provide a letter of recommendation.

If you have any questions, please contact:

Petrus Martinus van de Ven

[email protected]

We look forward to new personalities in our team!
The University of Vienna has an anti-discriminatory employment policy and attaches great importance to equal opportunities, the advancement of women  and diversity . We lay special emphasis on increasing the number of women in senior and in academic positions among the academic and general university staff and therefore expressly encourage qualified women to apply. Given equal qualifications, preference will be given to female candidates.

University of Vienna. Space for personalities. Since 1365.

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​Application deadline: 01/24/2024 

Post Doc