Friedrich Schiller University is a traditional university with a strong research profile rooted in the heart of Germany. As a university covering all disciplines, it offers a wide range of subjects. Its research is focused on the areas Light—Life—Liberty. It is closely networked with non-research institutions, research companies and renowned cultural institutions. With around 18,000 students and more than 8,600 employees, the university plays a major role in shaping Jena’s character as a cosmopolitan and future-oriented city.
The Cluster of Excellence “Balance of the Microverse” at the Friedrich Schiller University Jena combines expertise in life, material, optical and computational sciences to elevate microbiome studies from descriptive to hypothesis-driven and functional analyses. Our core mission is to elucidate fundamental principles of the interactions and functions in microbial communities in diverse habitats ranging from oceans and groundwater to plant and human hosts. We aim to identify the shared characteristics of disturbed or polluted ecosystems as well as infectious diseases on the microbiome level, and develop strategies for their remediation by means of targeted interventions. Our full spectrum of expertise in the physical and life sciences will be leveraged to address these important issues in natural habitats as well as synthetic arenas in a collaborative manner. The affiliated early career program of the Jena School for Microbial Communication (JSMC) offers a fascinating, ambitious, structured and interdisciplinary post-graduate training based on top-level fundamental research.
The research group of Humboldt Prof. Dr. Bas Dutilh
at the Cluster of Excellence Balance of the Microverse invites applications for a
Postdoctoral Position (m/f/d)
to conduct research on the project
Metabolomics Data Mining
commencing on 1 August 2022. A later start may be possible if desired. The position is initially limited to 2 years.
Within the Viral Ecology and Omics group (VEO) we have previously developed data-driven tools to assess metabolic dependencies of environmental microbes based on their genome sequence. We now aim to use these tools to assess how metabolic dependencies shape the environmental distribution of microbial taxa, focusing on differences between generalists and specialists. It remains an open question which factors are the most relevant to predict the global patterns of species abundance distribution (SAD) and abundance fluctuation distribution (AFD) (Grilli, 2020). Within the research on this interaction between microbial communities and their metabolic environment, we will therefore be focusing on the microbial functions in different biomes, identifying the interactions between community members and predicting the interactions with the abiotic environment.
Your responsibilities:
• Actively contribute to the development of the project.
• Produce high-quality written manuscripts.
• Present your results at national and international conferences.
• Assist with training other researchers, including Masters’ and undergraduate project students, where required.
• Contribute to maintaining the friendly, welcoming and collaborative environment within the group.
Your profile:
• A PhD in bioinformatics, chemoinformatics or computer science. Candidates in the final stages of obtaining their degree are also eligible to apply.
• Required methodological skills: computational analysis of metabolomics data
• Desired methodological skills: experience with high-performance computing
• You are a highly motivated individual with a strong interest in microbiology and
• internalize the ability to work creatively and independently towards developing your own research project.
• An integrative and cooperative personality with enthusiasm for actively participating will fit best into our team of cheerful scientists and biome-fanciers.
• We expect English communication skills, both written and spoken (B2 or higher)
We offer:
• A highly communicative atmosphere within an energetic scientific network
• A comprehensive mentoring program and soft skill courses for early career researchers
• Jena – City of Science: a young and lively town with a vibrant local cultural agenda
• A family-friendly working environment with a variety of offers for families: University Family Office ‘JUniFamilie’ and flexible childcare (‘JUniKinder);
• University health promotion and a wide range of university sports activities;
• Attractive fringe benefits, e.g. capital formation benefits (VL), Job Ticket (benefits for public transport), and an occupational pension (VBL)
The two-year full-time postdoctoral researcher position (100% TV-L E13) will be funded through the Excellence Strategy of the German federal and state governments. The Friedrich Schiller University Jena is an equal opportunity employer and part-time contracts can be discussed.
To promote gender equality in science, applications by woman are especially welcome. Candidates with severe disabilities will be given preference in the case of equal qualifications and suitability.
Applications in English should comprise a cover letter, a detailed curriculum vitae and copies of academic certificates. Please familiarize yourself with the currently available postdoctoral projects (
www.microverse-cluster.de) and the application process as described in the Online Application Portal. Please submit your application via the JSMC Online Application Portal, under the vacancy ID xy/2022 by 20 June 2022:
https://apply.jsmc.uni-jena.de/Since all application documents will be duly destroyed after the recruitment process, we ask you to submit only copies of your documents.
For further information, please also refer to
www.uni-jena.de/Job portal (in German).
Please also note the information on the collection of personal data at
https://www4.uni-jena.de/en/jobs_information_collecting_personal_data-path-18,27.html.
