Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Marine Plankton Biology

About the position

We invite applications for a Postdoctoral Research Fellow position in Marine Plankton Biology available at the Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo.

Starting date is as soon as possible and no later than 15.01.2027.

The appointment is a full-time position and is for a period of three years of which 10% is devoted to career-promoting work, usually in the form of teaching activities and student supervision.

No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Oslo.

Place of work is at the Department of Biosciences, Section for Environmental and Marine Biology at Blindern, Oslo.

Project description

The postdoctoral position is affiliated with the ToxANoWa II project (Toxic microalgae in Norwegian waters — Providing knowledge and methods necessary for monitoring of algal toxins and algae harmful to fish), which is funded by FHF (the Norwegian Seafood Research Fund). The project aims to generate knowledge on algal toxins harmful to fish, their production and toxic effects in Norwegian coastal waters. Another aim is to develop fast and improved methods to monitor toxins and algae causing mortality to farmed fish. ToxANoWa II is structured into five scientific work packages:

1) Characterizing microalgal communities, algal toxins, and metabolomes in field samples from HAB-affected areas;

2) Toxicity, toxins, and metabolomes in cultures of potentially fish-toxic algae from Norwegian waters;

3) Potential screening methods for monitoring algae and their toxins in relation to fish mortality;

4) Toxicity of C. leadbeateri cultures and leadbeaterins in fish and gill cells; and

5) Producing toxin reference materials.

UiO and the candidate will take part in all work packages except the last. The project is a collaborative effort involving partners from Norway (Veterinary institute and University of Oslo), Denmark (DTU), Canada (NRC), and New Zealand (Cawthron). The candidate will collaborate with all partners in the project. A research stay abroad will be encouraged. Some of the work will take place at the UiO owned Biological station in Drøbak, and some at the Veterinary institute at Ås.

The candidate will take part in laboratory work with the microalgae (isolation, cultivation and growth experiments), toxicity to fish in experimental studies, molecular biodiversity (eDNA) and detection (qPCR) of microalgae, analysing data with biostatistics and bioinformatics as well as writing papers. Some field work will also be required. Participation in and presentations at project meetings, seminars and conferences are also expected.

The section for Environmental and Marine Biology has presently 18 permanent staff, 25 researchers, postdoctoral research fellows and PhD-students, and about 35 master students. Our research is within marine and freshwater biology and ecology, ecotoxicology, population ecology and biogeochemistry. Within Marine biology we focus on plankton ecology, microalgal biology and ecotoxicology.

The main purpose of a postdoctoral fellowship is to provide the candidates with enhanced skills to pursue a scientific top position within or beyond academia. To promote a strategic career path, all postdoctoral research fellows are required to submit a professional development plan no later than one month after commencement of the postdoctoral period.

What skills are important in this role?

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has a strategic ambition to be among Europe’s leading communities for research, education and innovation. 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.

Required qualifications:

• Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree in biology or marine biology. Doctoral dissertation must be submitted for evaluation by the closing date. Only applicants with an approved doctoral thesis and public defence are eligible for appointment.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English is required.
• A background in marine biology and ecology, algal biology and biostatistics
• Experience with biological experiments, microscopy, molecular biological laboratory work, and statistical analyses and bioinformatics with the use of R

Desired qualifications:

• Background in protist/microalgal systematics
• Background in experimental work with fish
• Experience with algal cultivation
• Experience with metabarcoding
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in a Scandinavian language is desired.

We can offer you

• Exciting and meaningful tasks in an organization with an important societal mission, contributing to knowledge development, education, and enlightenment that promote sustainable, fair, and knowledge-based societal development
• Committed colleagues in a good working environment
• Good welfare schemes.
• Opportunity of up to 1.5 hours a week of exercise during working hours.
• A workplace with good development and career opportunities
• Postdoctoral development programmes.
• Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes
• Salary in position as Postdoctoral Fellow, position code 1352 in salary range NOK595 000 - 690 000, depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund

We need different perspectives in our work

UiO is an open and internationally oriented comprehensive university that strives to be an inclusive and diverse workplace and academic environment. You can read more about UiO’s work on equality, inclusion, and diversity at uio.no.

We fulfill our mission most effectively when we draw upon our variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives. We are looking for great colleagues, could you be the next one?

We will do our best to accommodate your needs. Relevant adjustments may include modifications to working hours, task adaptations, digital, technical, or physical adjustments, or other practical measures.

If you have an immigrant background, a disability, or CV gaps (Norwegian residents), we encourage you to indicate this in the job application portal. We always invite at least one qualified candidate from each group for an interview. In this context, disability is defined as an applicant who identifies as having a disability that requires workplace or employment-related accommodations. For more details about the requirements, please refer to the Employer portal (Norwegian residents).

The selections made in the job application portal are used for anonymized statistics that all state employers include in their annual reports. More information about gender equality initiatives at UiO can be found here.

We hope you will apply for the position with us.

How to apply

The application must include:

• Cover letter (statement of motivation, summarizing scientific work and research interest)
• CV (summarizing education, positions, pedagogical experience, administrative experience and other qualifying activity)
• Copies of educational certificates, academic transcript of records
• A complete list of publications and up to 5 academic works 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)

Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for this job".

When applying for the position, we ask you to retrieve your education results from Vitnemålsportalen.no. If your education results are not available through Vitnemålsportalen, we ask you to upload copies of your transcripts or grades. Please note that all documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

General information

The best qualified candidates will be invited for interviews.

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Oslo.

If an applicant has applied for and been granted funding for a fulltime research stay abroad while being employed as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, the employment will be prolonged with the equivalent time as the research stay, but for no longer than of twelve months ( thus extending the employment to a maximum of four years)

Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we can't, you will hear from us.

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

About the University of Oslo

The University of Oslo is Norway’s oldest and highest rated institution of research and education with 26 500 students and 7 200 employees. Its broad range of academic disciplines and internationally esteemed research communities make UiO an important contributor to society.

Department of Biosciences (IBV) is one of nine departments at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Research in the department is organised in five sections covering topics within biochemistry, molecular biology, physiology, cell biology, genetics, aquatic biology, toxicology, ecology, and evolutionary biology. The Department also operates Finse research station, the Biological research station in Drøbak and UiO's research vessel. Education across these topics is offered for around 300 bachelor, 170 master, and 75 PhD students. With 48 permanent professors/associate professors, post-docs, researchers, technical, and administrative personnel, the Department has a total staff of 260 from more than 30 different countries. The Department aims to maintain high international standards within both research and teaching. The new bachelor program in bioscience is the first of its kind to include programming and computational modelling as core elements.