Funding is available for an early stage researcher (ESR) as part of a Marie Curie Initial Training Network. The researcher will be based in the Hoffman lab at Bielefeld University (www.thehoffmanlab.com) and will also go on secondment to the Harper Lab at Cambridge University (www.cai.cam.ac.uk/people/liz-harper). This position provides an excellent opportunity for the candidate to obtain experience of diverse methodologies, from next generation sequencing to geometric morphometrics and scanning electron microscopy.
This position forms part of a Marie Curie Initial Training Network entitled CACHE: Calcium in a Changing Environment, funded by the EU (ref: 605051) and co-ordinated by the British Antarctic Survey. The aim of this network is to take a coordinated multidisciplinary approach to understanding calcium regulation and shell production in four commercially important shellfish species, the king scallop (Pecten maximus), the Pacific oyster, (Crassostrea gigas), the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) and the soft shell clam (Mya arenaria). The network comprises 10 partners from 6 European countries, including research institutes, universities and commercial enterprises. Full details of the network can be found at www.cache-ITN.eu.
More information can be found here
To apply for the position, please provide: (i) a letter of motivation including a maximum 2-page statement of your research interests, relevant skills and experience; (ii) a CV including any publications; (iii) names and contact details of three referees willing to write confidential letters of recommendation; (iv) for monitoring purposes only, please clearly state your nationality, sex, and where you saw the advert. All materials should be emailed as a single PDF to:
The application deadline is February 26th 2016. Interviews will take place immediately afterwards. We would like the fellow to start by May 2016 at the latest. For further information, please contact Joe Hoffman (e-mail:
Eligibility: Please note that this is an EU funded Marie Curie post and therefore certain eligibility criteria apply:
- The applicant must be in the first four years (full time equivalent research experience) of their research careers and not yet have a doctoral degree. This is measured from the date when they obtained the degree which would formally entitle them to embark on a doctorate.
- At the time of recruitment by the host organisation, researchers must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies etc) in the country of their host organisation for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the reference date.
- The candidate can be from any nationality, including non-EU.
The University of Bielefeld is an equal opportunity employer. We particularly welcome applications from women. Given equal suitability, qualifications and professional achievement, women will be given preference, unless particular circumstances pertaining to a male applicant apply.
For relevant publications, please see: Hoffman et al. (2010) Marine Biology, 157: 765–778 and Hoffman et al. (2011) Marine Biology, 158: 287–296.