PhD fellowship in Legume and Perennial Crop Root Phenotyping

Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science at University of Copenhagen invites applicants for one (potentially two) PhD fellowship in “Legume Crops’ Root Development and Carbon Storage”. The project is part of the research project “KlimaProtein”, which is financed by Promilleafgiftsfonden.

Start date is January 1st, 2023 or as soon as possible thereafter.

The project
Legume crops are important for protein production. However, their root systems are typically less extensive than that of other crops, reducing their resilience as they are sensitive to drought conditions. Perennial crops are of renewed interest due to their known ability to sequester high amounts of C into the soil, through their permanent root growth and activity. In both cases this lead to an interest in breeding for improved root systems, and thus for root phenotyping.

Within the PhD project, root phenotyping of faba bean and white clover genotypes will be made, quantifying the root growth itself, as well as differences in drought stress and deep water uptake. Root growth will be phenotyped using rhizoton techniques, including minirhizotrons in the RadiMax semi-field root phenotyping facility at University of Copenhagen. Root data will be obtained using the AI based image analysis software RootPainter. The RadiMax facility will also be used to do phenotyping for water stress and deep water uptake, using stable isotope labelling techiques. White clover will be studied growing in pure stand, and in mixture with grasses, as the crop is normally grown.

For soil C sequestration of perennial crops, there is a lack of relevant phenotyping methods, allowing estimates of genotypic differences in soil C contribution at a rate relevant for plant breeding purposes. We want to develop new phenotyping methods for the soil C deposition of perennial ley crop species, to allow breeding for this trait, and to study differences in root C contribution among ley crop species, commonly used species as well as relevant alternatives.

Our group and research
The research group Crop Physiology and Production Systems aims to do research focusing on plant growth and quality at the crop, crop rotation, and cropping system level. We work with the development of plants for food, feed, and biomass production. Optimization of crop production and quality include improvement of plant potential through breeding, based on studies of genetic diversity including new crop species. More information about the research group is available at: https://plen.ku.dk/english/research/crop_sciences/crop_physiol_prod/

The group is a part of the Crop Science Section, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of SCIENCE, University of Copenhagen. We are located in on the experimental farm inTaastrup, Denmark. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in a dynamic and international research environment.

Principal supervisor is Professor Kristian Thorup-Kristensen, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, [email protected] .  

Who are we looking for?
We are looking for candidates within the field(s) of biology, agronomy, plant science and crop physiology or the equivalent.

The PhD programme
A three year full-time study within the framework of the regular PhD programme (5+3 scheme). To be eligible for the regular PhD programme, you must have completed a degree programme, equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (180 ECTS/3 FTE BSc + 120 ECTS/2 FTE MSc) related to the subject area of the project, e.g. biology, agronomy, plant science or crop physiology. For information of eligibility of completed programmes, see General assessments for specific countries and Assessment database .

Terms of employment in the regular programme
Employment as PhD fellow is full time and for maximum 3 years.

Employment is conditional upon your successful enrolment as a PhD student at the PhD School at the Faculty of SCIENCE, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant.

The terms of employment and salary are in accordance to the agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State (AC). The position is covered by the Protocol on Job Structure.

Responsibilities and tasks

• Carry through an independent research project under supervision
• Complete PhD courses corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS / ½ FTE
• Participate in active research environments, including a stay at another research institution, preferably abroad
• Teaching and knowledge dissemination activities
• Write scientific papers aimed at high-impact journals
• Write and defend a PhD thesis on the basis of your project

We are looking for the following qualifications:

• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Relevant publications
• Relevant work experience
• Other relevant professional activities
• Curious mind-set with a strong interest in crop physiology
• Good language skills

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Application and Assessment Procedure

 Your application including all attachments must be in English and submitted electronically by clicking APPLY NOW below.

Please include: 

Application deadline:
The deadline for applications is 15 September 2022, 23:59 GMT +2.

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 deadline, a number of applicants will be selected for academic assessment by an unbiased expert assessor. You are notified, whether you will be passed for assessment.

The assessor will assess the qualifications and experience of the shortlisted applicants with respect to the above mentioned research area, techniques, skills and other requirements. The assessor will conclude whether each applicant is qualified and, if so, for which of the two models. The assessed applicants will have the opportunity to comment on their assessment. You can read about the recruitment process at https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/ .

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

General information about PhD study at the Faculty of SCIENCE is available at the PhD School’s website: https://www.science.ku.dk/phd/ .

The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the surrounding community and invites all regardless of personal background to apply for the position. 

Part of the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU), and among Europe’s top-ranking universities, the University of Copenhagen promotes research and teaching of the highest international standard. Rich in tradition and modern in outlook, the University gives students and staff the opportunity to cultivate their talent in an ambitious and informal environment. An effective organisation – with good working conditions and a collaborative work culture – creates the ideal framework for a successful academic career.