The Faculty of Science and Engineering has two vacancies for experimental PhD projects on Corona-virus dynamics in the labs of Dr Rifka Vlijm and Prof. Wouter Roos in the Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials. We offer these positions in a stimulating, diverse international research environment in a world-class academic institute with a multi-disciplinary research programme that encourages close collaborations between theoretical and experimental groups with different expertise.
We will investigate the coronavirus Achilles’ heel, namely how coronaviruses multiply their genetic material and how genetic material ends up in new viral particles. Together with an interdisciplinary team of biologists, experimental- and theoretical physicists you will uncover the dynamics of coronavirus infection. In particular, 1 PhD position is focused on super-resolution microscopy experiments using Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) microscopy (Vlijm lab) and the other position uses High Speed Atomic Force Microscopy (HS-AFM) experiments (Roos lab). With these molecular biophysics approaches coronavirus dynamics will be studied and you will compare the results to that of the other 7 PhD students in the programme who are based in labs all over the Netherlands, using different, complementary biophysics and molecular biology techniques.
Qualifications
The ideal candidates have:
• enthusiasm, excellence, commitment to research and team spirit
• an educational background preferably in (bio)physics, (bio)chemistry, nanoscience or a related area
• completed a European master’s degree or equivalent
• excellent communication skills in both oral and written English.
Organisation
Founded in 1614, the University of Groningen enjoys an international reputation as a dynamic and innovative centre of higher education offering high-quality teaching and research. Flexible study programmes and academic career opportunities in a wide variety of disciplines encourage the 36,000 students and researchers alike to develop their own individual talents. As one of the best research universities in Europe, the University of Groningen has joined forces with other top universities and networks worldwide to become a truly global center of knowledge.
Conditions of employment
We offer you in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities:
• a salary of € 2,541 gross per month in the first year to a maximum of € 3,247 gross per month in the final year (salary scale Dutch Universities), based on a fulltime position (1.0 FTE)
• excluding a 8% holiday allowance and a 8.3% end of the year bonus
• a position for four years. Each successful candidate will first be offered a temporary position of one year with the option of renewal for another three years. Prolongation of the contract is contingent on sufficient progress in the first year to indicate that a successful completion of the PhD thesis within the contract period is to be expected. A PhD training programme is part of the agreement and the successful candidate will be enrolled in the Graduate School of the Faculty.
The PhD positions are available immediately and will remain open until filled.
Application
Do you meet our qualification criteria? If yes, please write a motivation letter in which you clarify how you match with this PhD position, what attracts you in the work and/or what you envision to achieve. Your application thus should include:
• motivational letter
• cv.
You may apply for this position until 15 January 11:59pm / before 16 January 2023 Dutch local time (CET) by means of the application form (click on “Apply” below on the advertisement on the university website).
The University of Groningen strives to be a university in which students and staff are respected and feel at home, regardless of differences in background, experiences, perspectives, and identities. We believe that working on our core values of inclusion and equality are a joint responsibility and we are constructively working on creating a socially safe environment. Diversity among students and staff members enriches academic debate and contributes to the quality of our teaching and research. We therefore invite applicants from underrepresented groups in particular to apply. For more information, see also our diversity policy webpage: https://www.rug.nl/(…)rsity-and-inclusion/
Our selection procedure follows the guidelines of the Recruitment code (NVP): https://www.nvp-hrnetwerk.nl/nl/sollicitatiecode and European Commission’s European Code of Conduct for recruitment of researchers: https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/charter/code
Unsolicited marketing is not appreciated.
Information
For information you can contact:
- Dr R. Vlijm (for further questions/inquiries), r.vlijm@rug.nl
- Prof. W.H. Roos (in order to discuss the application), w.h.roos@rug.nl
Please do not use the e-mail address(es) above for applications.