Karolinska Institutet, Institutionen för klinisk neurovetenskap

The Department of Clinical Neuroscience (CNS) conducts research and education in the field of neuroscience from the molecular level to the society level. The clinical research and education is conducted in collaboration with Region Stockholm as well as other research groups from Karolinska Institutet and other universities.
Please visit our website for more information: ki.se/en/cns

A doctoral student is admitted to third-cycle/doctoral education. A doctoral education consists of supervised research, combined with courses and other educational activities. An individual study plan is established for each doctoral student. For a doctoral degree, the equivalent of four years of full-time doctoral education is required.

Research group
The successful candidate will work in the Epigenetic group headed by Associate Professor M. Jagodic (https://ki.se/en/people/majjag). The group is a part of the Karolinska Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis (KNIMS) centre that gathers around ~50 researchers working on different aspects of pathogenesis of Multiple Sclerosis (MS), including genetics, epidemiology, immunology and epigenetics, with excellent clinical cohorts and experimental models. The Epigenetics group is physically located at the Center for Molecular Medicine (www.cmm.ki.se), which gathers ~500 researchers working on complex diseases, with extensive national and international collaborations and state-of-the-art facilities. The Epigenetic group studies epigenetic mechanisms underlying neuroinflammation and neuronal loss in MS using both large-scale omics approaches and molecular in vivo and in vitro functional studies.

The doctoral student project and the duties of the doctoral student
We are recruiting a doctoral student who will work on the project entitled “Epigenetic characteristic of rare pathogenic immune cells in patients with Multiple Sclerosis” supported by a prestigious European Research Council (ERC-CoG).

For this project, we are looking for a PhD student who shares our passion for translational epigenomics, is ready to join our very collaborative team, and is highly motivated to perform comprehensive bioinformatics analyses as well as wet-lab work.

As a PhD student in our team, you will:

  • be actively involved in all stages of the project including experimental design, sample collection, carrying out immunological, molecular and cell biology techniques as well as performing bioinformatics and statistical analysis, data interpretation and dissemination
  • use different approaches to capture pathogenic immune cells from MS patients, characterize them and perform epigenome and transcriptome analysis (next-generation sequencing-based approaches)
  • develop strong bioinformatics skills in writing and testing analysis pipelines, performing analysis, validations, data integration and interpretation
  • develop comprehensive knowledge in the fields of epigenetics, neuroimmunology and autoimmunity
  • work in close collaboration with scientists and physicians in the fields of epigenetics, computational biology, immunology and neurology who will provide constant support and training
  • develop strong communication and collaborative skills

Eligibility requirements for doctoral education
In order to participate in the selection for a doctoral position, you must meet the following general (A) and specific (B) eligibility requirements at latest by the application deadline.

It is your responsibility to certify eligibility by following the instructions on the web page Entry requirements (eligibility) for doctoral education.

A) General eligibility requirement
You meet the general eligibility requirement for doctoral/third-cycle/PhD education if you:

  1. have been awarded a second-cycle/advanced/master qualification (i.e. master degree) or
  2. have satisfied the requirements for courses comprising at least 240 credits of which at least 60 credits were awarded in the advanced/second-cycle/master level, or
  3. have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way in Sweden or abroad.*

Follow the instructions on the web page Entry requirements (eligibility) for doctoral education.

*If you claim equivalent knowledge, follow the instructions on the web page Assessing equivalent knowledge for general eligibility for doctoral education.

B) Specific eligibility requirement
You meet the specific eligibility requirement for doctoral/third-cycle/PhD education if you:

  • Show proficiency in English equivalent to the course English B/English 6 at Swedish upper secondary school.

Follow the instructions on the web page English language requirements for doctoral education.

Verification of your documents
Karolinska Institutet checks the authenticity of your documents. Karolinska Institutet reserves the right to revoke admission if supporting documents are discovered to be fraudulent. Submission of false documents is a violation of Swedish law and is considered grounds for legal action.

Skills and personal qualities
The successful candidate should have:

  • Good understanding of cell/molecular biology (Bachelor level)
  • Documented (i.e. course or project work) experience in bioinformatics
  • Experience with HPC and R (or other programming languages)
  • Good understanding of statistics
  • Solid lab work experience
  • Strong interest in Epigenetics, Neuroimmunology and Bioinformatics
  • Excellent communication skills in English and good ability to translate and communicate results
  • Good interpersonal skills and ability to work both independently but also as part of a team

Terms and conditions
The doctoral student will be employed on a doctoral studentship maximum 4 years full-time.

Application process
Submit your application and supporting documents through the Varbi recruitment system. Use the button in the top right corner and follow the instructions.

Your application should contain the following documents:

  • A personal letter and a curriculum vitae (Swedish or English)
  • Degree projects and previous publications, if any (Swedish or English)
  • Any other documentation showing the desirable skills and personal qualities described above (Swedish or English)
  • Documents certifying your general eligibility (see A above)
  • Documents certifying your specific eligibility (see B above)

Selection
A selection will be made among eligible applicants on the basis of the ability to benefit from doctoral education. The qualifications of the applicants will be evaluated on an overall basis.

KI uses the following bases of assessment:

  • Documented subject knowledge of relevance to the area of research
  • Analytical skill
  • Other documented knowledge or experience that may be relevant to doctoral studies in the subject.

 All applicants will be informed when the recruitment is completed.

Type of employment PhD placement
Contract type Full time
First day of employment According to agreement
Reference number 2-2370/2019
Contact
  • Elin Hammergård, HR-administrator, elin.hammergard@ki.se
  • Maja Jagodic, Professor, maja.jagodic@ki.se
Union representative
  • Henry Wölling, SEKO, 08-524 840 80
  • Venus Azhary, OFR, 0707-124 127
  • Arsalan Amir, SACO, 08 - 517 733 37
Published 16.Apr.2019
Last application date 22.May.2019 11:59 PM CEST

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