Ledig stilling ved UiT Norges arktiske universitet
PhD Fellow in Pharmaceutics
Deadline: 26.10.2020
UiT The Arctic University of Norway
The Faculty of Health Sciences at UiT The Arctic University of Norway represents a newly created entity gathering almost all possible health study programs. This facilitates an unique interdisciplinarity and innovation in health education and research. We work closely with the services in the North to solve tomorrow's challenges.
Faculty of Health Sciences / Department of Pharmacy
The position
UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacy, has a PhD position available for applicants who wish to obtain the degree of Philosophiae Doctor (PhD). The PhD position is in the area of Pharmaceutics and affiliated with the Drug Transport and Delivery Research Group (DTDRG), at the Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences. The successful applicant will be affiliated with the project “Combating Staphylococcus aureus local infections by enhancing the efficacy of antimicrobial peptides and peptidomimetics through rationally designed DNA cages”, part of the Centre for New Antibacterial Startegies (CANS) at UiT.
The position is available for commencement from January 2021 and for a period of 4 years. The nominal length of the PhD program is 3 years. The 4th year is distributed as 25 % each year, and will consist of teaching and other duties for the Faculty of Health Sciences.The objective of the position is to complete research training to the level of a doctoral degree. Admission to a PhD programme is a prerequisite for employment, and the programme period starts on commencement of the position. The PhD candidate shall participate in the faculty’s organized research training, and the PhD project shall be completed during the period of employment. Information about the application process for admission to the PhD programme, application form and regulations for the degree of Philosophiae Doctor(PhD) are available at the following address: https://uit.no/phd
The position's affiliation
The position is affiliated to the Department of Pharmacy, which consists of seven research groups: Drug Transport and Delivery (this PhD position affiliated to), Pharmacology, Natural Products and Medicinal Chemistry, Microbiology, Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacoepidemiology, Infection Biology, and Computational Pharmacology. The Department has 32 permanent positions. In addition, there is a variable number of PhD students, postdocs and part time positions. The Department is responsible for a bachelor’s and a master’s program in pharmacy. Teaching is given at both undergraduate and graduate levels. For more information, visit the Department’s web pages.
About the group
The Drug Transport and Delivery Research Group (DTDRG) focuses on pharmaceutical technology as scientific discipline, with particular interests in drug transport across biological membranes, and drug delivery systems as means for improved bioavailability. The group aims at gaining a deeper understanding of transport processes of drugs in the body and its inter-relationship with drug delivery systems. The aim is the optimization of various drug dosage forms and delivery systems (advanced formulations) destined for oral, parenteral and topical route of drug administration. Advanced drug dosage forms and delivery systems should promote the therapeutic effects of the drug and reduce its toxic effects by increasing the amount and persistence of drug in vicinity of target cells and reducing the drug exposure to non-targets cells. The group currently consist of two professors, two associate professors, two technicians as well as post doc and PhD students. The members of the research group are also responsible for courses in pharmaceutics and biopharmaceutics at bachelor, master and PhD level. You can learn more about the research group by visiting the Drug Transport and Delivery webpage.
About the research project
The research project is in the area of Drug Delivery with focus on innovative strategies to combat local infections. The project combines multidisciplinary research efforts in drug delivery, pharmaceutics, synthetic/cell/molecular biology, microbiology and chemistry to advance treatment modalities for infectious diseases by utilizing DNA nanotechnology for peptide/peptidomimetics therapy. The overarching goal of this project is to generate novel bacteria-targeted DNA cages to augment the selectivity and stability of antimicrobial peptides against Staphylococcus aureus local wound biofilms. The project aims to facilitate the development of advanced antimicrobial drug delivery systems against resistant pathogens and bacterial biofilms. The successful PhD candidate will design a series of nanostructured DNA cages, unveil the role of varying template designs on bacteria specificity alongside effect on peptide/peptidomimetics stability, selectivity and pharmacokinetics using in vitro/ ex vivo models of infections.
We strongly encourage career development not only limited to authorship of research manuscripts arising from this work, but also including travel, conferences and collaboration.
Contact
For further information about the position, please contact:
General questions concerning the organization of the working environment, such as the physical state of the place of employment, health services or regarding the PhD porgram, may be directed to the head of administration at the Department of Pharmacy, Morten Boland Jørgensen:
A good academic environment with dedicated colleagues
Flexible working hours and a state collective pay agreement
Pension scheme through the state pension fund
More practical information for working and living in Norway can be found here: Welcome to UiT!
Qualification requirements
The candidate should hold a Master’s Degree in pharmacy. A Master thesis within pharmaceutics, biopharmaceutics, DNA nanotechnology or related field with application in antimicrobial nanomedicine will be considered as an advantage.
Candidates should preferably have experience in working with advanced delivery systems, including their development and characterization, as well as antimicrobial and safety evaluations. The candidate must be able to work systematically, independently and have the ability to work in an interdisciplinary research team.
Emphasis will be placed on the communicative and collaborative skills, as well as personal suitability and the motivation and interest in the project.
The successful applicant must fulfil the requirements for admission to the faculty’s PhD program, cf. Regulation for the degree of Philosophiae Doctor at UiT - The Arctic University of Norway. The applicant must speak and write English fluently and he/she has to be able todocument proficiency in English equivalent to Norwegian Higher Education Entrance Qualification, refer to the website about PhD regulations at UiT.
Due to teaching duties, Scandinavian language speaking candidates will be preferred.
Application
Application and submitted documents (see below) should be sent electronically via the application form available on www.jobbnorge.no. Candidates that do not provide required documentation or cannot prove the equivalence to required degree will not be considered for the position.
Your application must include:
Cover letter explaining your motivation and research interests
CV containing an overview of education, supervised professional training and professional work
Copies of diplomas, diploma supplements and transcripts (all degrees, translated to English or a Scandinavian language; certified copies must be provided upon request)
Documentation of English proficiency. This website states how English proficiency shall be documented
2-3 reference letters with contact details of the referees
A copy of the Master thesis (the thesis will upon request be treated in confidence), and any other academic works
The documentation has to be in English or a Scandinavian language. Applications will only be considered if all requested application documents are received before the application deadline.
Assesment
The applicants will be assessed by an expert committee. During this assessment process, emphasis will be placed on the applicant’s potential for research as shown by:
Master thesis within the specified field
Other academic works
Experience and skills in laboratory work relevant for the project
Documented ability to work independently
Skills in scientific writing in English
Scandinavian language skills
Knowledge and interest of the project’s specific topic
Interest and motivation for this specific project
In addition, consideration may be given to work experience or other activities of significance for the implementation of the PhD studies. The applicants who are assessed as the best qualified will be invited to an interview. The interview serves, among other things, to clarify the applicant’s personal suitability for the position.
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.
As many 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.
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.
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.
Positions with workplace in Finnmark:
In Finnmark County there is an arrangement which allows you to have parts of your loan at the Norwegian State Educational Loan Fund remitted. A good work environment is characterized by diversity. We encourage qualified candidates to apply, regardless of their gender, functional capacity or cultural background. UiT will emphasize making the necessary adaptations to the working conditions for employees with reduced functional ability.
We process personal data given in an application or CV in accordance with the Personal Data Act (Offentleglova). According to Offentleglova 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.
