MSCA-DN PhD in quality of life & resilience in leukodystrophy (Tübingen, GE)

About your role

You will independently contribute to the design and implementation of a multi-site, international research project. Your work will include qualitative and quantitative research, development and validation of quality-of-life measures, analysis of risk and resilience factors, and longitudinal research into patient and family outcomes.

You will collaborate with clinicians, psychologists, methodologists, patient representatives and researchers across the POLARIS consortium. Through the planned secondments, you will gain experience in digital quality-of-life assessment, psychosocial research and patient engagement.
About you

We deliberately welcome candidates from a range of academic backgrounds. You have:

• a Master's degree or equivalent qualifying degree, including a medical degree, in psychology, medicine, health or nursing sciences, public health, rehabilitation sciences, epidemiology, or a related field in the social, behavioural or biomedical sciences;
• a solid foundation in empirical research methods and applied statistics;
• an interest in measuring subjective and patient-reported outcomes;
• good analytical, organisational and academic writing skills;
• the ability to work independently while collaborating effectively with people from different professional and academic backgrounds;
• proficiency in English, both written and spoken. Depending on your chosen research focus, experience with questionnaire or instrument development, psychometrics, longitudinal or multilevel modelling, qualitative or mixed-methods research, or consensus methods such as Delphi would be an advantage. Working knowledge of R, SPSS or Stata is expected. Experience working with children, families or people with chronic or rare diseases is also an advantage.The project involves contact with patients and families who may be in vulnerable or emotionally demanding situations. Empathy, sensitivity, discretion and a reflective approach are therefore important.We value different academic backgrounds, perspectives and experiences. If you meet the essential requirements and are motivated to develop your expertise in this field, we encourage you to apply.Eligibility criteriaImportant, strict eligibility criteria according to MARIE SKLODOWSKA CURIE programs apply to applicants:
• You must not already hold a doctoral degree.
• At the time of the application deadline, you must have a Master's degree and must not have resided or carried out your main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Germany for more than 12 months in the three years prior to the contract start date.
• You will participate in the network-wide training programme of POLARIS, which includes (international) training activities and planned secondments with POLARIS partner organizations throughout the EU.
  Our offer
  
• A full-time, 3-year employment contract with the University Hospital Tübingen;
• Salary, mobility allowance and benefits according to the applicable MSCA Doctoral Network and host-organisation rules;
• Embedding in the international POLARIS doctoral training network;
• Access to network-wide training activities, secondments and transferable-skills development;
• A challenging and translational research project at the interface of patient-centred outcomes research, rare disease and clinical translation, with a direct route from methodological work to clinical and regulatory relevance;
• A collaborative and entrepreneurial working environment;
• An open and supportive team culture with opportunities for scientific and professional development.