PhD-position in in vivo neuroscience - molecular and behavioral consequences of insufficient sleep during adolescence

We are offering a PhD fellowship in sleep neurophysiology commencing October 2021.

Our group and research
The Kornum Lab explores sleep biology in health and disease. Our focus is to understand sleep-wake neurophysiology and how the immune system affects the sleep regulating networks of the brain. We are particularly interested in the hypocretin/orexin neurons, their signaling, and their involvement in the sleep disorder narcolepsy and in sleep-wake regulation during sickness in general. More information about the group can be found at our lab site (www.molecularsleeplab.dk ) and at the department webpage (https://in.ku.dk/ ).

Project description
Insufficient sleep during adolescence is a growing problem worldwide. Sleep deprivation increases the risk of psychiatric disorders, including depression, later in life, but the biological mechanisms behind these associations are poorly understood.
The aim of this project is to map the neuronal consequences of sleep deprivation during adolescence and to determine whether the loss of sleep causes increased sensitivity to triggers of depressive symptoms later in life. We are in a unique position to study this given our expertise in sleep regulation and our powerful in-house methodology including electroencephalography, animal behavior, and single cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq).

Principal supervisor is Associate Professor Birgitte Rahbek Kornum, Department of Neuroscience, E-mail: [email protected] .

Start:             1Oct 2021

Duration:       3 years as a PhD student

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

• Carry through an independent research project under supervision
• Take part in the daily life of the research group
• Complete PhD courses or other equivalent education corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS points
• Participate in active research environments including a stay at another research team
• Obtain experience with teaching or other types of dissemination related to your PhD project
• Teaching at bachelor- and master courses at SUND to a minor extend
• Write 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. In addition the applicant must have practical experience from working with mice, and be certified to work with animals in a research setting.

Other important criteria are:

• The grade point average achieved
• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Previous publications
• Relevant work experience
• Other professional activities
• Curious mind-set with a strong interest in systems neuroscience
• Language skills

Place of employment
The place of employment is at Department of Neuroscience, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include fully equipped modern laboratories for both in vitro and in vivo neuroscience.

Terms of employment
The employment as PhD-fellow is full time and for 3 years.
It 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.

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.

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 begins around 27.780 DKK /approx. 3.730 EUR (April 2021-level) plus pension.

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

General information about PhD study 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

4. Publication list (if possible)

Application deadline:  1 Aug 2021, 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 read about the recruitment process at https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/

The applicant 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.