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  • Writer's pictureOmran Aburayya

Fully Funded PhD position in Molecular Biology at KU Leuven university - Belgium


KU Leuven University in Belgium has a fully-funded, full-time position as PhD student (4 years) to fill and seeking highly motivated and talented PhD student with an MSc degree in biological engineering, molecular biology, genetics and/or microbiology (or equivalent). You will join a young and motivated international team of scientists working on regulatory genomics, within the framework of the European Research Council (ERC)-funded Synergy Grant EPIC. This exciting project aims to understand how cells control gene activity and protein expression, which is crucial to understanding how cells function.

 

Position Details:

Your work will consist of a variable mix of experiments and analyses, including basic microbiology, transformation, high-throughput phenotyping using robots, state-of-the-art DNA and RNA sequencing and analysis, synthetic biology approaches. You will be based in Leuven, but will also collaborate with the two other groups involved in this project with complementary expertise (Vicente Pelechano, Karolinska Institute, development of high-throughput omics assays and Julien Gagneur, Technical University of Munich, AI and bioinformatics) via regular online meetings and short research stays. In this way, your data will contribute to building a model of the regulatory code. You will perform experimental validation by using this model to design genes and cells for biotechnological applications

 

Your Profile:


Essentials:

  • You have an MSc degree in biotechnology, biology, biochemistry, bio-engineering or equivalent. Preference will be given to candidates with an excellent academic record.

  • You have a keen interest and at least basic laboratory experience in molecular biology and microbiology

  • You are fluent in English, for both written and oral communication

  • You are an enthused team player who is open and respectful to other cultures, opinions and ways of life

  • You are accurate and critical of your work and its implementation

  • You are expected to write a doctoral thesis after 4 years


Desirable but not required

  • Experience with yeast molecular biology (PCR, transformation, large-scale assays)

  • Knowledge of statistics packages and/or data analysis using R

 

Application Documents and procedure:

Motivated candidates are asked to apply online via the online application procedure.


A complete application file (English) should contain the following documents:


  • Your cover/motivation letter stating career goals, experience, and how these relate to the current position

  • Your CV including a detailed description of your study trajectory, grades and positioning

  • Contact information of at least 2 references


Preferred starting date: July 1st, 2024 (start date can be delayed by a few months if necessary).

 

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