Job description

Applicants are invited for a 3 year position as Postdoctoral Fellow in brain atlasing and neuroinformatics to be based in the Neural Systems laboratory at the Department of Molecular Medicine, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Oslo.

More about the position

The appointment is a fulltime position and is made for a period of up to three years, devoted to carrying out research and development in the field of brain atlasing and neuroinformatics, specifically brain-wide characterization of animal models of neurodegenerative diseases and related development and testing of tools and pipelines for large-scale data analysis.

More about the project and the research group

The project is part of the research and development performed within the Data and Knowledge and Brain Atlases areas of the European digital distributed infrastructure for brain and brain-inspired research (EBRAINS). A key goal of the project will be to contribute to the understanding of the organization of the brain in health and disease through integration and analysis of large amounts of heterogeneous research data in a common spatial brain atlas framework. Existing and new collections of rodent brain research data shared though EBRAINS will serve as starting points for the research, which will include emphasis on reproducibility and replicability through systematic sharing of research outputs and extensive documentation of analytical approaches and pipelines.

The Neural Systems Laboratory has experience with computational methods, neuroimaging, digital brain atlasing, and neuroinformatics, including development and implementation of new technologies for analysis of brain architecture, connectivity, and gene and molecular distributions at the level of regions and whole brain. The group is comprised of students and scientists with a background in medicine, biology, physics, and software engineering. Interdisciplinary collaboration within the group and with a broad range of users of our tools and data systems is key to our mission.

For general information about the field of research and developments carried out in the group, see:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-FwWfdDR_8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atCdA2H45iU

https://ebrains.eu/service/quint

https://ebrains.eu/service/quicknii-and-visualign

Qualification requirements

• Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree in Neuroscience or a field directly relevant to the project. Doctoral dissertation must be submitted for evaluation by the closing date. Appointment is dependent on the public defence of the doctoral thesis being approved.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English and a Scandinavian language.

The following qualifications will count in the assessment of the applicants:

• Experience with rodent brain anatomy
• Experience with the complete research process from planning through experiments and analysis of brain histology data in rodent models
• Experience with developing community-driven software
• Competency with the Python programming language
• Experience with Git for version control and Github for collaborative development
• Experience developing online user documentation (e.g., Read the Docs)
• Knowledge of neuroinformatics, bioinformatics, neuroscience, or similar areas of science

Personal skills

• Strong motivation to implement and complete a 3-year postdoctoral research project
• Dedication and drive to conduct high quality research
• Creativity, intellectual rigor, and ability to push a project to completion
• Proven ability to communicate with large communities of users of the tools and pipelines used in the project
• Proven ability to contribute to specifications, building, and testing of tools/software in an academic environment
• Good team player and fluent English in speech and writing
• Ability to independently write and publish scientific articles 

We offer

• Salary NOK 575 400 – 635 400 per annum depending on qualifications in position as Postdoctoral Research Fellow (position code 1352)
• A professionally stimulating working environment
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement, in addition to Oslo’s family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities

How to apply

The application must include

• Cover letter including statement of motivation, summarizing scientific work and research interest
• CV (summarizing education, prior positions, research, administrative experience and other qualifying activity)
• Copies of educational certificates (academic transcripts only)
• Complete list of publications
• List of reference persons: 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and phone number)

The application with attachments must be submitted using our electronic recruiting system. Please follow the link: “Apply for this job”. Foreign applicants should attach an explanation of their University's grading system. All documents should be in (or translated to) English or a Scandinavian language.

Evaluation will emphasize the applicant’s statement of motivation, experience relevant to the project aims, academic and personal qualifications relevant to carrying out a postdoctoral research project, and recommendations from references. The highest ranking applicants will be invited to an interview.

Formal regulations

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Fellow 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.

Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. Furthermore, we want employees with diverse professional expertise, life experience and perspectives.

If there are qualified applicants with disabilities, employment gaps or immigrant background, we will invite at least one applicant from each of these categories to an interview.

Contact information

• Professor Jan Bjaalie, phone number: +47 917 87 901, e-mail: j.g.bjaalie@medisin.uio.no

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