Postdoctoral Fellow on Arctic zooplankton species and their environmental tolerance limits

UiT The Arctic University of Norway

The Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics (BFE) consists of Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Norwegian College of Fishery Science (NFH) and School of Business and Economics. The main task of BFE is to conduct teaching and research dissemination at a high national and international level within all relevant fields. Prioritized research areas are aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, climate, life in the arctic, marine bioprospecting, fish health, seafood products, business and macroeconomics, resources and environment, markets and management of marine resources.

The interdisciplinary profile of the faculty provides good opportunity to develop research projects involving several research groups at the faculty according to its strategy.

Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics

The position

A position as Postdoctoral Fellow on Arctic zooplankton species and their environmental tolerance limits is available at The Department of Arctic an Marin Biology (AMB), affiliated with the Arctic Marine System Ecology research group and Horizon 2020 research project ECOTIP.

AMB includes 5 research groups. Research and teaching at AMB has a broad span, from molecular mechanisms at cellular/subcellular levels via studies of adaptations at the organismal level, to ecological interactions in aquatic and terrestrial environments. The institute is an exciting and cutting-edge academic and research unit in biology that addresses professional challenges in basic research, industrial and administrative-oriented research with a strong focus on North. The Institute has extensive national and international research collaboration including regional institutions like Framsenteret, IMR and NIBIO.

The staff counts 56 permanent scientists, 25 technicians, 12 administrative positions and 50 temporary employees (researchers, postdocs, PhD research fellows, technicians).

The position is a fixed term position for a duration of 2 years from early 2022. Appointment to the position of Postdoctoral Fellow is mainly intended to provide qualification for work in top academic positions. It is a prerequisite that the applicant is able to carry out the project over the full course of the employment period. No person may hold more than one fixed-term position as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the same institution.

The appointed Postdoctoral Fellow must have its daily workplace at UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, and be able to commence no longer than within 6 months after receiving the offer of appointment.

ECOTIP - Ecological tipping cascades in the Arctic Seas

The Postdoctoral Fellow position is affiliated in the flagship Horizon 2020 research project ECOTIP - Ecological tipping cascades in the Arctic Seas. ECOTIP focuses on understanding and predicting changes in Arctic marine biodiversity and brings together leading scientists from 15 institutes across Europe and Japan. The project combines state-of-the-art field and laboratory studies, analysis of historical and paleo-oceanographic data and trait-based modeling to predict the potential tipping points of key biological ecosystem functions in Arctic seas in the face of climate change and other pressures.

The position´s field of research

The person to be hired will work specifically with ecological and physiological aspects related to high-latitude zooplankton species (WP1 in ECOTIP). More specifically, the candidate will investigate physiological tolerance limits of selected native and potentially new invasive zooplankton species. One research goal is to evaluate the potential for selected zooplankton species to establish in new areas.

Zooplankton organisms of interest for ECOTIP includes (but is not limited to) copepods, cladocera and meroplankton and their tolerance for a combination of environmental parameters (e.g. temperature, salinity and pollutants). Both experimental work and field sampling will be part of the position.

We are looking for a motivated person who can work independently yet function well within a team. Soft skills are therefore also of importance. The candidate will work with team members from UiT and other European institutions in the ECOTIP project.

Contact

For further information about the position, please contact

Professor Camilla Svensen,

• Phone: +47 776 44532/+47 99162269
• E-mail: [email protected]

Research group leader Sophie Bourgeon,

• Phone: +47 776 46033/
• E-mail: [email protected]

Qualifications

Required qualifications:

• A successfully completed Norwegian doctoral degree in the field of marine biology, biological oceanography, or similar or related field, or a corresponding foreign doctoral degree recognized as equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree
• Experience with zooplankton sampling and data analyses
• Experience with experimental work on plankton, including handling live organisms
• Documented good oral and written communication skills in English
• Documentet capability of developing scientific publications targeted to high quality international journals
• Willingness to get involved in the ongoing development of their department and the university as a whole
• Creativity and high motivation with strong interest towards Plant Biotechnology and Bioenergy research
• Ability to work independently as well as team-oriented

Additional desirable qualifications, knowledge/experience with the following topics:

• Invasive species
• Multiple stressor experiments
• Functional traits approach to study biodiversity
• Quantitative data analyses
• Copepods, cladocerans and/or meroplankton
• Cruises and field work at sea
• Working knowledge of Norwegian or a Scandinavian language

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

In the assessment, emphasis will be placed on the research track record of the applicant, assessed through the scientific quality of written publications and the doctoral thesis, and upon the quality of the research proposal submitted by the applicant.

During the assessment emphasis will be put on the candidate´s potential for research, motivation and personal suitability for the position.

UiT we put emphasis on the quality, relevance and significance of the research work and not on where the work is published, in accordance with the principles of The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA).

Application

The position will be part of international research community where the working language is English and the application should therefore be written in English.

The application must be submitted electronically via www.jobbnorge.no and shall include:

• Cover letter explaining your motivation and research interests
• CV containing a complete overview of education, professional training and professional work
• Diplomas and transcripts (all degrees)
• Written references
• Contact information to 2-3 references
• Documentation of profiency in the English language
• Project proposal
• A list of your academic production
• Description of your academic production, stating which works you consider most important
• Academic works, up to ten. The doctoral thesis is regarded as one work.

You must submit a project proposal that describe how you scientifically can contribute to (the project/described field of research). The proposal must include a progress plan.

The documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language. We can only accept applications sent via www.jobbnorge.no.

Inclusion and diversity

UiT The Arctic University i 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 is 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 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
• A good academic environment with dedicated colleagues
• Good welfare arrangements for employees
• Good arrangements for pension, insurance and loans in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund

The appointment is for a period of 2 years.

Remuneration of Postdoctoral Fellow positions are in State salary code 1352. In addition to taxes, a further 2% is deducted for the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund.

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. A good work environment is characterized by diversity. We encourage qualified candidates to apply, regardless of their gender, functional capacity or cultural background. UiT and will emphasize making the necessary adaptations to the working conditions for employees with reduced functional ability.

According to the Norwegian Freedom and 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.

More practical information for working and living in Norway can be found here: Welcome to UiT!

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