PhD Fellow in Biological Characterization of New Anti-Cancer Natural Products

The position

A PhD position is available at The Norwegian College of Fishery Science (NCFS), Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics (BFE) within the research group Marbio. Marbio is a high-capacity analysis platform for the identification, isolation, and characterization of bioactive compounds from plants, marine macro and microorganisms. The screening platform at Marbio includes anti-bacterial-, anti-cancer-, anti-diabetic-, anti-inflammatory-, antioxidant- and immunostimulant assays.

The position is for a period of four years. The nominal length of the PhD programme is three years. The fourth year is distributed as 25 % each year and will consist of teaching duties to NCFS. The objective of the position is to complete research training to the level of a doctoral degree. Admission to the PhD program is a prerequisite for employment, and the program period starts on commencement of the position.

The workplace is at UiT in Tromsø. You must be able to start in the position within a reasonable time after receiving the offer.

The position’s field of research

The PhD position will focus on various in vitro ADMET (administration, distribution, metabolism, elimination and toxicological) profiling and bioassays of novel molecules from marine organisms or synthetic derivatives. This includes development and execution of new bioassays (cell signalling and proliferation, kinase signalling pathways investigation etc) to determine and characterise the mode of action of these compounds The project will be an integrated part of the ongoing work at Marbio of finding new bioactive natural products that can be developed as drug lead candidates focusing on cancer.

Bioprofiling of marine natural compounds or synthetic derivatives Identify their molecular targets and study their mode-of-action Analyze their in vitro pharmacokinetic (ADMET) properties.

The applicants must present a description outlining the academic basis of the PhD project. The project description shall not exceed 3 pages, literature references included. It must include a description of the topic, research question(s) and a reasoning of the choices. It should also indicate the methodologies to be used. The final project description will be developed in cooperation with the supervisor.

Contact

For further information about the position, please contact

Professor Jeanette Hammer Andersen:

• phone: +47 77649261
• email: jeanette.andersen@uit.no

Qualifications

The position requires a master’s degree in microbiology, biology, cell biology, pharmaceutical sciences, biotechnology, or related topics.

If you are near completion of your master’s degree, you may still apply.

The candidate must have:

• master’s degree in microbiology, biology, cell biology, pharmaceutical sciences, biotechnology, or related topics
• experience with phenotypic- and biochemical bioassays, in particular anticancer assays.
• experience with generation and evaluation of preclinical ADME data using in vitro assays.
• experience with sterile technique and maintaining cells in culture.
• Documented fluency in Norwegian or other Scandinavian language, and English. Nordic applicants can document their English capabilities by attaching their high school diploma.

The candidate would benefit from having some of the advantages listed below:

• Experience with generation and evaluation of cytotoxicity using cell models.
• Experience in cell biology and target deconvolution
• Background in statistical methods to evaluate and interpret results

Personal qualifications and suitability will be emphasized; the candidate’s personal qualifications should include excellent interpersonal and communication skills and an enthusiasm to work as a member of a collaborative interdisciplinary and international research team.

We will also emphasize motivation and personal suitability for the position. We are looking for candidates who:

• Have ability to work as part of a team and organisational skills
• Are meticulous and careful work approach
• Have ability to work independently and take initiative
• Have good collaboration skills
• Have good communication and interaction with colleagues and students
• Wants to contribute to a good working environment

Applicants must document fluency in English and be able to work in an international environment. Nordic applicants can document their English capabilities by attaching their high school diploma.

Applicants must document fluency in Norwegian or a Scandinavian language.

In the assessment, the emphasis is on the applicant's potential to complete a research education based on the master's thesis or equivalent, and any other scientific work. The project description will also be considered. In addition, other experience of significance for the completion of the doctoral programme may be given consideration.

Emphasis will be attached to the applicant’s potential for research and independent work, as shown by:

1. master thesis,

2. any other academic or professional works,

3. experience from bioprospecting or similar activities, and

4. research plan description

As many people as possible should have the opportunity to undertake organized research training. If you already hold a PhD or have equivalent competence, we will not appoint you to this position.

Admission to the PhD programme

For employment in the PhD position, you must be qualified for admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics and participate in organized doctoral studies within the employment period.

Admission normally requires:

• A bachelor's degree of 180 ECTS and a master's degree of 120 ECTS, or an integrated master's degree of 300 ECTS.
• A master's thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 30 ECTS for a master's degree of 120 ECTS.
• A master's thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 20 ECTS for an integrated master's degree of 300 ECTS.

UiT normally accepts higher education from countries that are part of the Lisbon Recognition Convention.

Grade requirements applies both to the master thesis as well as courses part of the master’s degree. The minimum requirements are grade C or better on the master’s degree, and grade C or better on courses that are part of the master’s degree. A grade lower than C in one course may be compensated by a higher grade than C in another course. If the applicant has two subjects with the grade D or lower, the applicant is not qualified for admission. A more detailed description of admission requirements can be found here.

Applicants with a foreign education will be subjected to an evaluation of whether the educational background is equal to Norwegian higher education, following national guidelines from NOKUT. Depending on which country the education is from, one or two additional years of university education may be required to fulfil admission requirements, e.g. a 4-year bachelor's degree and a 2-year master's degree.

If you are employed in the position, you will be provisionally admitted to the PhD programme. Application for final admission must be submitted no later than six weeks after taking up the position.

Inclusion and diversity

UiT The Arctic University of Norway is working actively to promote equality, gender balance and diversity among employees and students, and to create an inclusive and safe working environment. We believe that inclusion and diversity are a strength, and we want employees with different competencies, professional experience, life experience and perspectives.

If you have a disability, a gap in your CV or immigrant background, we encourage you to tick the box for this in your application. If there are qualified applicants, we invite at least one in each group for an interview. If you get the job, we will adapt the working conditions if you need it. Apart from selecting the right candidates, we will only use the information for anonymous statistics.

We offer

• Involvement in an interesting research project
• Good career opportunities
• A good academic environment with dedicated colleagues
• Flexible working hours and a state collective pay agreement
• Pension scheme through the state pension fund
• PhD Fellows are normally given a salary of 532 200 NOK/year with a 3% yearly increase

Norwegian health policy aims to ensure that everyone, irrespective of their personal finances and where they live, has access to good health and care services of equal standard. As an employee you will become member of the National Insurance Scheme which also include health care services.

More practical information about working and living in Norway can be found here: https://uit.no/staffmobility

Application

Your application must include:

• Cover letter explaining your motivation and research interests
• CV
• Diploma for bachelor's and master's degree
• Transcript of grades/academic record for bachelor's and master's degree
• Explanation of the grading system for foreign education (Diploma Supplement if available)
• Documentation of English proficiency
• Documentation of proficiency in Norwegian (or a Scandinavian language)
• References with contact information
• Master’s thesis, and any other academic works
• Project description (max 3 pages)

Qualification with a master’s degree is required before commencement in the position. If you are near completion of your master’s degree, you may still apply and submit a draft version of the thesis and a statement from your supervisor or institution indicating when the degree will be obtained. You must still submit your transcript of grades for the master’s degree with your application.

All documentation to be considered must be in a Scandinavian language or English. Diplomas and transcripts must also be submitted in the original language, if not in English or Scandinavian. If English proficiency is not documented in the application, it must be documented before starting in the position. We only accept applications and documentation sent via Jobbnorge within the application deadline.

General information

The appointment is made in accordance with State regulations and guidelines at UiT. At our website, you will find more information for applicants.

Remuneration for the position of PhD Fellow is in accordance with the State salary scale code 1017. A compulsory contribution of 2 % to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund will be deducted. You will become a member of the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund, which gives you many benefits in addition to a lifelong pension: You may be entitled to financial support if you become ill or disabled, your family may be entitled to financial support when you die, you become insured against occupational injury or occupational disease, and you can get good terms on a mortgage. Read more about your employee benefits at: spk.no.

A shorter period of appointment may be decided when the PhD Fellow has already completed parts of their research training programme or when the appointment is based on a previous qualifying position PhD Fellow, research assistant, or the like in such a way that the total time used for research training amounts to three years.

We process personal data given in an application or CV in accordance with the Personal Data Act (Offentleglova). According to the Personal Data Act information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure. You will receive advance notification in the event of such publication, if you have requested non-disclosure.