PhD Research Fellow in Marine Geomicrobiology

UiB - Knowledge that shapes society

UiB shall be among Europe's leading universities, internationally recognized for high quality in research and education. As a societal institution, we shall contribute to sustainable and democratic development and be an attractive and inclusive place to study and work.

PhD position

There is a vacancy for a PhD Research Fellow in marine geomicrobiology at the Department of Earth Science. The position is for a fixed-term period of 3 years with the possibility of a 4th year with career-promoting work (e.g. teaching at the Department). The position is funded by the University of Bergen.

About the project/work tasks:

Due to global warming the Arctic Ocean is undergoing major changes, changes that will inevitably affect the carbon flux between the surface water and the underlying seafloor. This, in turn, will impact the activity of the microorganisms that live in the sediments. The microbial activity regulates the geochemical fluxes in and out of the seafloor and is thus an important factor in the global partitioning of elements. However, the magnitude of these changes and their short- and long-term consequences remain unknown.

Your goal as a PhD candidate will be to help constrain the short- and long-term effects of variable organic carbon supply on microbial activity and diversity in Arctic sediments. You will develop in situ experimental set-ups and combine geochemical measurements with molecular microbiology methods and bioinformatics to achieve this goal.

The PhD position is part of the Arctic Ocean 2050 program, a large scale 10-year, interdisciplinary Norwegian Research program established in 2026. The program brings together 18 Norwegian research institutions with the aim to understand the present and future of the Arctic Ocean. As a PhD Candidate at the Department of Earth Science, University of Bergen, you will also be affiliated with the Centre for Deep Sea Research and the research group Geochemistry and Geobiology.

It is expected that the candidate will participate in one or several research cruises during the project period.

Qualifications and personal qualities:

• Applicants must hold a master's degree or equivalent education in geomicrobiology or associated field. Master’s students can apply provided they complete their final master’s exam before 01.01.2027. It is a condition of employment that the master's degree has been awarded.
• Experience with molecular microbiology methods e.g. DNA/RNA extraction, sequencing and/or bioinformatics is a requirement.
• Experience with microbial processes in sediments is an advantage.
• Experience with geochemical modeling is an advantage.
• Experience with sea going research cruises is an advantage.
• Applicants must be able to work independently and in a structured manner and demonstrate good collaborative skills.
• Applicants must have a motivation for mobility and must be able to relocate to Norway by the time of employment.
• Applicants must have good written and oral English skills.

Personal and relational qualities will be emphasized. Research experience, ambitions and potential will also count when evaluating the candidates.

Special requirements for the position

The University of Bergen is subjected to the regulation for export control system. The regulation will be applied in the processing of the applications.

About the PhD position:

About the PhD Research Fellow position

The fellowship will be for a period of 3 years, with the possibility for a 4th year contingent on the qualifications of the candidate and the teaching needs of the department and will be decided by the head of department upon appointment. If a 4th year is granted, one year of career-promoting work associated with teaching, dissemination or research infrastructure/services, will be distributed over the full employment period and thus corresponding to 25 per cent of the time each year.

The employment period may be reduced if you have previously been employed in a qualifying post (e.g. research fellow, research assistant).

About the research training

As a PhD Research Fellow, you must participate in an approved educational programme for a PhD degree within a period of 3 years. The deadline for applying for admission to the PhD programme at The Faculty of Science and Technology is 2 months after you start your position or after the start of the research project that will lead to the PhD degree. It is a condition that you satisfy the enrolment requirements for the PhD programme at the University of Bergen.

We can offer:

• A good and professionally stimulating working environment
• Salary as PhD research fellow (code 1017) in the state salary scale. This constitutes a gross annual salary of NOK 593 700. Further increases in salary are made according to length of service in the position.
• Enrolment in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
• Good welfare benefits

Your application must include:

• a brief account of the applicant's research interests and motivation for applying for the position.
• a detailed justification of your qualifications in relation to the listed requirements, explaining how you meet each criterion. Additionally, you should address the "advantages" mentioned above, as these will be taken into account when ranking the candidates.
• the names and contact information for two referees. One of these should be the main advisor for the master's thesis or equivalent thesis.
• CV.
• transcripts and diplomas showing completion of the bachelor's and master's degrees. If you have not yet completed your master's degree, please submit a statement from your institution confirming the expected date of award of your master's degree. Your master's degree must be documented with transcripts and/or diploma before starting in the position.
• relevant certificates/references.
• approved documentation of proficiency in English (if required, cf. Admission requirements for the PhD programme at the Faculty of Science and Technology | UiB).
• a list of any works of a scientific nature (publication list with links).

The application and appendices with certified translations into English or a Scandinavian language must be uploaded at Jobbnorge.

Life as a PhD candidate at UiB

Marion Claireaux tells about life and work as a PhD candidate at UiB.