Ledig stilling ved Norsk institutt for naturforskning
PhD Research Fellowship in Terrestrial Vegetation Observations and Modelling
Deadline: 25.05.2019
About the position
Position as PhD Research Fellowship in Terrestrial Vegetation Observations and Modelling is available at the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA) in collaboration with the University of Oslo (UiO), Department of Geosciences. The fellowship period is three years.
Tentative starting date 1 September 2019.
Application deadline: 25 May 2019.
Job description
EMERALD is a national Norwegian research project funded by the Research Council of Norway with a main objective to improve representation of high latitude ecosystems and their climate interactions in the Norwegian Earth System model (NorESM). This will be achieved by integrating data and knowledge from empirical ecosystem research in model parameterization, development and testing. The full project title is “Terrestrial ecosystem-climate interactions of our EMERALD planet”. The project engages global and regional-scale climate modellers, land surface process experts and ecologists in a joint effort to assess ecosystem states and dynamics in response to climate variability and change. The focus is on high latitudes with boreal and Arctic vegetation.
The successful candidate will work in the EMERALD project. She or he will be employed at NINA in Tromsø and spend part of the three years of employment at UiO. The PhD thesis work will be planned and supervised in close collaboration between the EMERALD groups in NINA and UiO. The fellowship requires admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences in UiO, where training courses will be taken.
NINA is Norway’s leading institution in applied ecological research and has approximately 270 employees. The PhD candidate will be based at NINA’s Department of Arctic Ecology at the Fram Centre in Tromsø. Under the auspices of the Norwegian Government, the Fram Centre is a nucleus for international polar science, policies and management. The Department of Arctic Ecology has a broad arctic research portfolio and consists of an international group of ca. 30 research scientists, postdocs, PhD students and research assistants.
At UiO the PhD candidate will be associated with the LATICE (“Land-ATmosphere Interactions in Cold Environments”) research group with scientists holding expertise within various disciplines related to observing, analyzing and parameterization of the land surface. The PhD candidate will be part of a motivated research team with a high number of early career scientists working together in a highly interdisciplinary environment.
The successful candidate will focus her/his research on the links between observed vegetation damage in sub-Arctic regions of Norway and extreme weather events, where the latter will be linked to ongoing climate change. She or he will actively take part in field work, analyze existing data from previous field work and remote sensing analyses and contribute to the development of routines for integrating results of the knowledge gained into the Community Land Model (CLM) – the land surface model employed in the Norwegian Earth System Model (NorESM).
Field work will be undertaken in close collaboration with other field work campaigns led by NINA in subarctic Norway. The field work will primarily focus on relevant traits from subarctic vegetation types with poor representation in current land surface models. This includes cryptogam-dominated vegetation and vegetation damaged by extreme climatic events.
Model platforms used within the EMERALD group includes, but is not limited to, the land surface model CLM. The candidate will interact with model developers within LATICE and contribute to model testing and improvements with a special focus on validation and upscaling issues. Details of the research plan will be developed based on the successful candidate’s own expertise and research ideas in close collaboration with key EMERALD researchers at NINA and UiO. The PhD will be supervised by an interdisciplinary team of experts and supported by technical staff at NINA and UiO.
About the University of Oslo
The University of Oslo is Norway’s oldest and highest rated institution of research and education with 28 000 students and 7000 employees. The Department of Geosciences is Norway’s widest ranging academic geoscience research environment, encompassing four sections (Meteorology and Oceanography, Geography and Hydrology, Geology and Geophysics, Physics of Geological Processes) and one Centre of Excellence (Centre of Earth Evolution and Dynamics). In addition, we participate in other centres and hold several ERC grants. The staff consists of 40 professors and associate professors, in addition to postdoctoral fellows, PhD students, researchers, technical staff and administrative personnel, to a total number of 240.
Qualification requirements
Required qualifications:
• Applicants must hold a Master’s degree or equivalent in environmental plant biology/ecology, earth system sciences, meteorology, hydrology or a related discipline (e.g. in physics or mathematics with experience in the earth sciences);
• Foreign completed degree (M.Sc.-level) should correspond to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system;
• Candidates without a master’s degree have until 30 June 2019 to complete the final exam.
Desired qualifications:
• Relevant (topic of the announcement) hydrologic or land-surface modelling experience preferably from high-latitude environments;
• Field observations, instrumentation or campaign experience;
• Knowledge of large data handling and analysis;
• Background in mathematics/physics;
• Background in scripting (e.g. Python, R) or programming (e.g. C++, FORTRAN);
• Knowledge of a Scandinavian language.
Grade requirements:
The norm is as follows:
• The average grade point for courses included in the Bachelor’s degree must be C or better in the Norwegian educational system.
• The average grade point for courses included in the Master’s degree must be B or better in the Norwegian educational system.
• The Master’s thesis must have the grade B or better in the Norwegian educational system.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English.
We offer
• Salary NOK 464 800 – 515 200 per annum depending on qualifications and seniority as PhD Research Fellow
• Good welfare, pension and insurance arrangements.
• Vibrant international academic environment.
• Tromsø’ and Oslo’s family-friendly surroundings with their rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities.
How to apply
The application must include:
• Cover letter - statement of motivation and research interests
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work - scientific publications)
• Copies of the original Master’s degree diploma, transcripts of records and letters of recommendation
• Documentation of English proficiency
• List of publications and academic work that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)
The application with attachments must be sent by e-mail to Siri Svendsen at NINA: siri.svendsen@nina.no. 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. Selected candidates will be invited for interview. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply, irrespective of gender, physical ability or cultural background.
Formal regulations
The fellowship requires admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. The application to the PhD programme must be submitted to the Department of Geosciences at UiO no later than two months after taking up the position.
Contact information
- Senior researcher Jarle W. Bjerke, phone: +47 91 86 41 55, e-mail: jarle.bjerke@nina.no;
- Senior researcher Hans Tømmervik, phone: +47 40 49 30 67, e-mail: hans.tommervik@nina.no;
- Prof. Lena M. Tallaksen, phone: +47 22 85 72 14, e-mail: lena.tallaksen@geo.uio.no; or
- Prof. Frode Stordal, phone: +47 22 85 52 04, e-mail: frode.stordal@geo.uio.no