PhD fellowship in Nanogeobio for investigation the origin of life, Globe Institute

We are offering a three-year PhD fellowship in Nanogeobio commencing on 1 April 2022 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Our group and research
The Globe Institute’s main purpose is to address basic scientific questions through interdisciplinary approaches. The institute operates at the intersection of natural and medical sciences and the humanities. The Institute is an international node of scientific excellence, composed of multidisciplinary centres of research excellence. The centres’ scientific foci concern:

• The origins and evolution of stars and planets 
• The origins and evolution of life and Earth’s ecosystems 
• The origins and evolution of human diversity
• The origins, evolution, and treatment of disease

In the group we have chosen two approaches to the origin of life question:

Project description
The PhD project is about investigating the origin of life from a nanometer perspective. The student will be using AFM combined with Infrared spectroscopy and maybe Raman, SEM, Tof-SIMS and other tools to characterize both old geological samples and products from experimental tests to verify origin of life theories.
The project will require interactions with several collaborative groups from University of Copenhagen (Denmark), Groups from University of California Santa Cruz with expertise spanning from, Biochemistry to Geology.

Principal supervisor is Associate Prof. Tue Hassenkam, Geobiology section, The GlobeInstitute, [email protected] , Direct Phone: +45 2655 2030

Job description
Your key tasks as a PhD student at SUND are:

• Carrying through an independent research project under supervision.
• Completing PhD courses or other equivalent education corresponding to approximately 30 ECTS points.
• Participating in active research environments including a stay at another research team.
• Obtaining experience with teaching or other types of dissemination related to your PhD project
• Teaching and disseminating your knowledge.
• Writing 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, e.g. Nanoscience, Physics, Biophysics, Chemistry, Biochemistry or Geochemistry. Please note that your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (two years).

Other important criteria are:

• The grade point average achieved
• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Previous publications
• Relevant work experience
• Other professional activities
• A curious mind-set with a strong interest in origin of life
• Language skills

In the assessment of your qualifications, we will also consider your publications (if any) and relevant work experience, like experimental work.

Place of employment
The place of employment is at the Geobiology section at the Globe Institute, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in dynamic and international research environment.

Terms of employment
The employment as PhD fellow is full time and for 3 years.
The employment 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 The Ministerial Order on the PhD programme (2013) 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 starts at DKK 27,871.38 / approximately EUR 3,747 (October 2021 level) plus pension.

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

General information about PhD studies 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 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. Certified copy of original Master of Science diploma and transcript of records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in other language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted. As a prerequisite for a PhD fellowship employment, your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree. We encourage you to read more in the assessment database: https://ufm.dk/en/education/recognition-and-transparency/find-assessments/assessment-database . Please note that we might ask you to obtain an assessment of your education performed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science

4. Publication list (if possible)

Application deadline:  3 January 2022, 23.59pm 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 find information about the recruitment process at: https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/ .

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

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.