Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Psychology, Section for Cognitive and Clinical neuroscience

Job description

Applications are invited for a fully funded PhD fellowship to be based at the Department of Psychology, University of Oslo. The position is linked to the project Deciphering the role of the oxytocin system in mental traits and physical health, which is funded by a Young Research Talent grant from the Research Council of Norway to Dr Daniel S. Quintana. The fellowship is for a period of 3 years. A 4th year can be considered with the addition of 25 % teaching duties, depending on the competence of the applicant and the needs of the Department. The research fellow must take part in the Department’s PhD program and is expected to complete the project within the set fellowship period.

More about the position

The neuropeptide oxytocin has been associated with social behavior; however, recent research suggests that that the oxytocin system has a much broader role in health and wellbeing. This project aims to increase our understanding of oxytocin system in mental health traits and physical health. This will be achieved by adopting a novel big-data approach that will integrate mechanistic, developmental, phylogenetic, and evolutionary perspectives using behavioural, health, genetic and multimodal brain imaging data. In collaboration with other members of the team, the fellow will be directly involved in data analysis and the write up of results for submission to peer-reviewed scientific journals.

The candidate will be affiliated with the NORMENT Multimodal Imaging group (PI: Lars T. Westlye, https://www.med.uio.no/norment/english/research/groups/multimodal-imaging).

NORMENT (http://www.norment.no) is a highly interdisciplinary Norwegian Centre of Excellence aiming to disentangle the neurobiological, genetic, psychological and environmental factors contributing to the development of mental illness.

Qualification requirements and personal skills

• The candidate must be qualified for admission to the ph.d. program at the Faculty of Social Science, University of Oslo (https://www.uio.no/english/research/phd/).
• Applicants must have submitted their master’s or equivalent thesis in relevant fields such as psychology, medicine, cognitive neuroscience, biomedical/computational biology, or other relevant fields. The diploma must be forwarded as soon as it is received.
• Previous experience with the analysis of large datasets containing health information (e.g., health registries) is an advantage.
• Previous experience with the analysis of psychiatric genetic data is an advantage.
• Previous experience with the analysis of multimodal brain imaging data is an advantage.
• Previous experience with statistical analysis and programming (R, Matlab, python or similar) is an advantage. Interest in acquiring the necessary computational skills is required.
• Previous experience with neuropeptide research (e.g., oxytocin) is an advantage.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English is required.
• Fluent oral and written communication in Norwegian is an advantage.
• Excellent communication and collaborative skills (team player) is required

We offer

• Salary (NOK 479 600 - 523 200 per year), - depending on experience and qualifications.
• An ambitious and exciting research environment with a strong multidisciplinary profile and excellent opportunities for academic development.
• Attractive welfare benefits including excellent benefits for families (kindergarten, paid paternal/maternal leave etc) and a generous pension agreement. In addition, Oslo offers a family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities in its immediate surroundings.
• Starting date: Negotiable

How to apply

The application must include

• Cover letter (brief summary of motivation and research interests, career plan).
• CV (summarizing education, positions, relevant experience).
• Relevant educational certificates and transcripts of records
• List of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and phone number)
• List of publications, if any (including preprints with valid links). Publications should not be submitted along with the initial application.

In assessing the applications, special emphasis will be placed on academic qualifications, the candidate’s motivation, and personal suitability. The assessment of the applicants will be done according to the DORA initiative, emphasizing quality and content rather than quantity, and considering a range of scientific outputs beyond traditional journal publications (e.g. open access sharing of data and code, dissemination, etc). Academic achievements will be assessed in relation to experience, seniority, and career breaks (e.g. parental leave)

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, please follow the link “Apply for this job”. Foreign applicants are advised to attach an explanation of their University's grading system.

Please note that all documents should be in English (or a Scandinavian language).

Formal regulations

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Research Fellowships at the University of Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo.

According to the Norwegian Freedom of Information Act (Offentleglova) information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.

The appointment may be shortened/given a more limited scope within the framework of the applicable guidelines on account of any previous employment in academic positions.

The University of Oslo has an agreement for all employees, aiming to secure rights to research results etc.

Contact information

• Dr. Daniel S. Quintana, e-mail: daniel.quintana@medisin.uio.no

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