Job description

Position as PhD Research Fellow in Structural Biology available at Department of Chemistry, University of Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo. Starting date preferably on 01.06.2019, and no later than 15.08.2019.

The fellowship period is 3 years, with 2 additional months devoted to research education.

More about the position

The PhD project will be in the field of structural biology on a project entitled "Shikimate pathway enzymes – Mechanism, function and drug discovery". The project is concerned with functional investigations, directed evolution and drug design, and further aims to answer fundamental mechanistic questions about enzyme catalysis. Important methods to be applied are protein crystallography, molecular modeling, and quantitative binding studies.

The project will be in close collaboration with Peter Kast’s research group at the ETH Zurich, Switzerland, that has a strong expertise in protein biochemistry and enzyme kinetics, directed evolution and microbiology. It is anticipated that the project will include a research stay of 1-3 months at the ETH Zurich.

The successful candidate will recombinantly produce and purify shikimate pathway enzymes and subject them to crystallization experiments. Candidates will further be trained in computational structural chemistry by Michele Cascella (Department of Chemistry, University of Oslo) and use state-of-the-art computational techniques to investigate at the atomistic level the molecular mechanisms driving the enzymatic activity.

Since this project is clearly interdisciplinary, it will be suited for candidates from various disciplines, who are motivated to learn new skills. It is important that the candidate is qualified for experimental work in the laboratory, but also interested in theoretical questions. Additional experience in organic synthesis would be beneficial. The candidate should further be confident working on her/his own, and in addition be a good team player.

This work is financed by the Swiss National Science Foundation and builds on previous research described e.g. in Sasso et al. 2009, EMBO J 28, 2128-42, Munack et al. 2016, J. Mol. Biol. 428, 1237-55 and Burschowsky et al. 2018, Biochemistry 57, 557-73. Our laboratories are state-of-the-art.

The position will be associated to the National Norwegian PhD School in Biocatalysis, BioCat.

Qualification requirements

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences is a leading research faculty. Candidates for these fellowships will be selected in accordance with this, and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

• Master’s degree or equivalent in chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology, or other relevant disciplines and include a thesis of at least 30 ECTS
• Foreign completed degree (M.Sc.-level) corresponding to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system
• Candidates without a Master’s degree have until 31 May, 2019 to complete the final exam

Grade requirement

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 evt. and a Scandinavian language

http://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/application/application.html

We offer

• Salary NOK 449 400 – 505 800 per annum depending on qualifications and seniority as PhD Research Fellow (position code 1017).
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement
• Vibrant international academic environment
• 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 educational certificates, transcript 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 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.

Applicants may be called in for an interview.

Formal regulations

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

The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree.

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 no later than two months after taking up the position. For more information see:

https://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/

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.

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

The University of Oslo aims to achieve a balanced gender composition in the workforce and to recruit people with ethnic minority backgrounds.

Contact information

For further information, please contact: Professor Ute Krengel, phone: +4722855461, e-mail: ute.krengel@kjemi.uio.no

For technical question regarding the recruitment system, please contact HR Officer; Ørjan Pretorius, orjan.pretorius@mn.uio.no

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