PhD student in evolutionary genomics - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The Department of Cell and Molecular Biology is organized into seven research programmes which all focus on different areas of cell and molecular biology: Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Microbiology and Immunology, Molecular Biology, Molecular Biophysics, Molecular Evolution, Molecular Systems Biology and Structural Biology. The scientific basis of what we do lies in biology, but our research overlaps with other areas such as medicine, computer science, mathematics, chemistry, engineering sciences and physics. In total, we are over 200 staff and ~60 Ph.D. students. Please read more about the department’s work at https://icm.uu.se.

This PhD position will be placed in Jan Andersson’s research group in the Molecular Evolution program. https://www.icm.uu.se/molecular-evolution/ 

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Project description
The project aims to study evolutionary genomics in microbial eukaryotes (protists) using large-scale sequencing, comparative genomics and phylogenetics. The group diplomonads, and their close relatives, will be studied. Some members of the group are pathogens of humans and other animals, whereas some are free-living. We are interested in how this diversity have originated and more generally how protists adapt to their environment.

Duties 
The work will mostly consist of bioinformatic analyses of sequence data generated within the project as well as available data, mainly from protists. Such work can include, for example, de novo assembly of sequence data, genome annotation, phylogenetic analyses and comparative genomics. To a lesser extent, the work might also include microbiological laboratory work.

The Ph.D. student shall primarily focus on postgraduate studies, but other duties related to teaching and administrative work may be involved, up to a maximum of 20 % of the time. Information about doctoral education, eligibility requirements and admission rules can be found on the faculty website, http://www. teknat.uu.se/utbildning/utbildning-pa-forskarniva/.

Requirements
To meet the entry requirements for doctoral studies, you must 

• hold a Master’s (second-cycle) degree in bioinformatics, evolutionary biology, molecular biology, or another subject that the employer considers to be equivalent, or
• have completed at least 240 credits in higher education, with at least 60 credits at Master’s level including an independent project worth at least 15 credits, or 
• have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way.

The applicant must have a good ability to work independently as well as in a group. A prerequisite is good written and oral skills in English, as the work takes place in an international environment. To work creatively, goal-oriented and structured are central abilities during a doctoral education and will therefore be given special consideration.

Additional qualifications 
Previous experience working with sequence data and bioinformatic analyses is a plus, familiarity with work in a Linux/Unix environment and a scripting language such as Python, R or Perl is highly desirable. Previous experience working with standard microbiological and molecular biology techniques and working with protists is also meriting, but not a requirement.

Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1-7 and in Uppsala University's rules and guidelines.

About the employment
The employment is a temporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7. Scope of employment 100 %. Starting date as soon as possible or as agreed. Placement: Uppsala

For further information about the position, please contact: Jan Andersson, tel. 0701-679598, jan.andersson@icm.uu.se

Please submit your application by 14 augusti 2023, UFV-PA 2023/2375.

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