PhD fellowship in the Ochs Group at the Biotech Research & Innovation Centre (BRIC)

A 3-year PhD position is available at the Biotech Research & Innovation Centre (BRIC) (https://www.bric.ku.dk) in the group headed by Associate Professor Dr. Fena Ochs. The post is available from the 1st of September 2025. Highly motivated and committed candidates with an interest in genome stability maintenance, 3D chromatin organisation and super-resolution microscopy technology are encouraged to apply. The post is fully funded.

The Biotech Research & Innovation Centre (BRIC)

BRIC was established in 2003 by the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation to form an elite centre in biomedical research. BRIC’s mission is devoted to biomedical research, primarily within cancer and neurological diseases. Our goal is to contribute to a basic understanding of how and why disease occurs, to discover new disease-related genes, potential targets and biomarkers, in order to provide more efficient treatments for patients. BRIC is embedded into the Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen. The working language at BRIC is English.

Our group and research

The Ochs group (https://www.bric.ku.dk/research-groups/Research/ochs-group/) aims to decipher the molecular interplay of DNA repair and 3D chromatin organization, and to understand how dysregulation of 3D chromatin organization leads to genome instability and cancer. We develop and apply cutting-edge super-resolution microscopy technology for single molecule imaging in intact cell and tissue samples, with the ambition that our findings may contribute to the development of new clinical treatment strategies. The research in the Ochs group is generously supported by the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Danish Cancer Society and Independent Research Fund Denmark.

Job description

The successful candidate will work on one of two projects a) the spatiotemporal characterisation of DNA damage response pathways in human cells, or b) the role of the cohesin complex in DNA repair. The projects will benefit from access to cutting-edge microscopy equipment, mass spectrometry, screening and computational biology infrastructure at BRIC and the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences.

The key tasks as a PhD student at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences will be:

• Carrying out an independent research project under supervision
• Completing PhD courses or other equivalent education corresponding to approximately 30 ECTS points
• Participating in active research environments including a stay at another research team
• Obtaining experience with teaching or other types of dissemination related to your PhD project
• Teaching and disseminating your knowledge
• Writing a PhD thesis on the grounds of your project

Start date: 1st of October 2025

Duration: 3 years

Weekly working hours: 37

Key criteria for the assessment of applicants

Applicants must have qualifications corresponding to a master’s degree related to the subject area of the project, e.g. biology, biochemistry or biomedicine. Please note that your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (two years).

Other essential criteria are:

• Expertise in general mammalian tissue culture
•  Documented CRISPR experience
• Advanced molecular biology skills, including RT-PCR, cloning and Western Blotting
• Advanced microscopy expertise, for example high-content or confocal imaging
• A high degree of motivation, enthusiasm, and attention to detail.
• Excellent time-management, self-organisation and teamwork skills

Place of employment

The place of employment is the Biotech Research and Innovation Centre (BRIC), Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in a dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include modern laboratories and access to state-of-the-art equipment.

Terms of employment

The average weekly working hours are 37 hours per week. The position is a fixed-term position limited to 3 years. The start date is the 1st of September 2025. The employment is conditional on the applicant’s successful enrolment as a PhD student at the Graduate School at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant [during the initial employment as a research assistant.] The PhD study must be completed in accordance with The Ministerial Order on the PhD programme (2013) and the Faculty’s rules on achieving the degree.

Salary, pension and terms of employment are in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Taxation and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. Depending on seniority, the monthly salary starts at approximately 30,800 DKK/roughly 4,100 EUR (April 2025-level) plus pension.

Questions

For further information please contact Associate Professor Dr Fena Ochs (fena.ochs@bric.ku.dk).

General information about PhD studies at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences is available at the Graduate School’s website: https://healthsciences.ku.dk/phd/guidelines/

Foreign applicants may find this link useful: www.ism.ku.dk (International Staff Mobility).

Application procedure

Your application must be submitted electronically by clicking ‘Apply now’ below. The application must include the following documents in PDF format:

1. Letter of motivation (max. one page)
2. CV incl. education, experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position
3. Certified copy of original Master of Science diploma and transcript of records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in other language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted. As a prerequisite for a PhD fellowship employment, your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree. We encourage you to read more in the assessment database: https://ufm.dk/en/education/recognition-and-transparency/find-assessments/assessmentdatabase. Please note that we might ask you to obtain an assessment of your education performed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science
4. Publication list (if available)

Deadline for applications: 18th of June 2025, 23.59pm CET.

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

The further process

After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the hiring committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an unbiased assessor.

The assessor makes a non-prioritized assessment of the academic qualifications and experience with respect to the above-mentioned area of research, techniques, skills and other requirements listed in the advertisement.

Once the assessment work has been completed each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant him/herself. You find information about the recruitment process at: https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/

The applicants will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.

The University of Copenhagen wish to reflect the diversity of society and encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.