Postdoc in Marine Ecology

Applications are invited for a 2-year postdoc position in the field of marine ecology and environmental statistics at the Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark. We offer an exciting opportunity to join a new research project funded by the Danish Villum Foundation. This project will investigate links between seabird migration and the global distribution of seamounts. Some evidence suggests that long-ranging seabirds concentrate their foraging around open ocean seamounts, which are often described as oceanic oases of productivity. However, no systematic assessment of connections between seamounts and seabirds exists to date. Results of this project will shed light on the importance of oceanic seamounts for the global distribution and diversity of seabirds and will provide important information for identifying future candidate Marine Protected Areas.
 

Expected start date and duration of employment
This is a 2–year postdoc position starting at 1 March 2024 or as soon as possible thereafter.
 

Job description
In the project, you will become part of an international team of marine ecologists and oceanographers that investigates the factors driving seabird population dynamics in Greenland, the Arctic and the North Atlantic using population and movement ecology methods. As a postdoc your position is primarily research-based. You will develop and lead a data-driven assessment of factors and drivers identifying links between seabird movements and the location of productive seamounts in the global ocean. This research integrates existing seabird tracking, bathymetry and marine environmental data using multivariate environmental statistical methods to quantify correlations of seabird species with their marine environment. The successful candidate will work in the interdisciplinary sections of Arctic Ecosystem Ecology (Professor Morten Frederiksen) and Applied Marine Ecology and Modelling (Senior Researcher Christian Mohn), located within the Department of Ecoscience at Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark.

Additional tasks will consist of:

• Conducting and publishing independent research of high international quality.
• Writing scientific grant applications
• Analysing and interpreting large datasets and present findings at scientific conferences.

Who we are
The Department of Ecoscience conducts national and international research and advisory projects and activities that cover all major sub-disciplines in marine and terrestrial ecology.
Of the approximately 275 employees, around 200 are permanent staff, approximately 15 are Ph.D. students, 20 post docs and roughly 40 are fixed-term employees. Together, we create an exciting and inspiring work and student environment with a long-standing tradition for collaboration with Danish and international institutions. The position is based in the city of Roskilde, located 35 km west of the Danish capital of Copenhagen.  You can read more about the Department of Ecoscience here.

The working language is English, and we welcome applications from all genders of all backgrounds. Read about the Danish work-life balance, special opportunities for junior researchers, and the services available when relocating to Aarhus University here.

What we offer
The successful candidate is offered a 24-month postdoc position in a thriving and inspiring interdisciplinary research group. The group has access to a state-of-the-art science and laboratory infrastructure including compute servers and access to high performance computing. The research climate invites for lively, open and critical discussion within and across different fields of research and a working environment with teamwork, close working relations, and network activities among young scientists. The workplace is characterized by professionalism, equality and a healthy work-life balance. 

Place of work and area of employment
The place of work is the Interdisciplinary Department of Ecoscience at Aarhus University, Denmark. The Department is located in the city of Roskilde, approximately 35 km from the Danish capital Copenhagen: Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde. The area of employment is Aarhus University with related departments.

Contact information
For further information please contact:  Senior Researcher Christian Mohn, chmo@ecos.au.dk,
Tel: +45 8715 8564

Deadline
Applications must be received no later than 8 December 2023.
 

Application procedure
Shortlisting is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the appointment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. All applicants will be notified whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee, and each applicant is given the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that concerns him/her self. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.


Letter of reference
If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.


Formalities and salary range

Technical Sciences refers to the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.

The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities.

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

Research activities will be evaluated in relation to actual research time. Thus, we encourage applicants to specify periods of leave without research activities, in order to be able to subtract these periods from the span of the scientific career during the evaluation of scientific productivity.

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Read more here. Please find more information about entering and working in Denmark here.

Aarhus University also offers a Junior Researcher Development Programme targeted at career development for postdocs at AU. You can read more about it here.

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.
 

Aarhus University
Aarhus University is an academically diverse and research-intensive university with a strong commitment to high-quality research and education and the development of society nationally and globally. The university offers an inspiring research and teaching environment to its 38,000 students (FTEs) and 8,300 employees, and has an annual revenues of EUR 935 million. Learn more at www.international.au.dk/

1 job opening is available

Your profile
Applicants for the postdoc position should hold a PhD degree in marine ecology, marine biology, or oceanography with a successful and documented scientific record.  A PhD in equivalent disciplines may also be considered, if documentation for skills matching the position is provided.
We are looking for an excellent and highly motivated candidate with documented experience in marine ecology, environmental statistics and integrating large multi-parameter datasets. Additional experience in any of the following areas would be valued, but is not required: GAM/GLM models, hydrodynamic models, experience with Geographical Information Systems.