Kiel is seeking to fill a position within the research project "Evolution of antibiotic resistance" for a PhD student

The Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics at the Zoological 
Institute of the University of Kiel is seeking to fill a position within 
the research project "Evolution of antibiotic resistance" for a
PhD student (m/f)

Deadline for applications: 15 August 2014. Start of position: September 
2014 or soon afterwards.

The position will be for three years, with possible extension. The 
regular weekly working hours amount to 65% of a full time position. The 
salary will be according to the German TV-L-13 pay scale.

Description

Although antibiotics have only been discovered about seventy years ago, 
they have saved thousands of lives and have become an almost trivial but 
indispensable cure for bacterial infections. However, the alarming 
spread of resistant bacteria is complicating even the most routine 
clinical interventions. Case in point are highly resistant Pseudomonas 
aeruginosa, which cause almost untreatable respiratory and wound 
infections in the hospital, and play a driving role in cystic fibrosis. 
The discovery of new antibiotics may offer temporary relief from 
resistance, but it is slow and costly, and does not address the heart of 
the matter: resistance is an evolutionary response to the use of 
antibiotics. Our research program is aimed at investigating ways in 
which existing antibiotics can be intelligently used to prevent or at 
least slow down the evolution of resistance. The project will involve in 
vitro experimental evolution using Pseudomonas aeruginosa and subsequent 
phenotypic, genomic and functional-genetic analyses of resistant strains.

The project is funded by the German Science Foundation (DFG)
and will be based in the Department of Evolutionary Ecology and
Genetics at the University of Kiel, Northern Germany, under the
supervision of Dr.  Gunther Jansen and Prof. Hinrich Schulenburg
(www.uni-kiel.de/zoologie/evoecogen). The department provides an
international and interactive atmosphere, while Kiel University and
connected institutes (e.g., Max Planck Institute in Ploen) offer a
stimulating research environment with a particular focus on evolutionary
biology. The city of Kiel is a medium-sized pleasant town located at the
coast of the Baltic Sea. It is the capital of the most Northern state
of Germany, Schleswig-Holstein. It offers many opportunities for leisure
activities, including theatres, an opera, the Schleswig-Holstein classical
music festival, the world's largest metal festival in Wacken, sailing,
surfing, cycling, and the famous festivities of the "Kieler Woche" ---
one of the major sailing events in Europe.

Requirements for the position:

Master in biology, genetics, microbiology, biochemistry or related 
topic; excellent background in evolution, genetics, statistics and 
microbiology; knowledge of basic molecular techniques; experience with 
complex experimental designs; high motivation; a collaborative spirit; 
fluency in English.

The University of Kiel strives to increase the proportion of women in 
research and education. It therefore encourages qualified women to 
apply. Women will be preferred in cases of comparable qualifications. It 
also explicitly welcomes applications from people with a migratory 
background. The University further makes an effort to employ disabled 
people and will prefer such candidates in case of equal qualification.

Please send applications with CV, one-page statement of research 
interests, and two references, as a pdf-file by email to 
gjansen@zoologie.uni-kiel.de. For 
further details and questions, you are welcome to contact me by email



Dr. Gunther Jansen
Fellow at Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin
Wallotstra�e 19
14193 Berlin
Germany
Tel.: +49 30 89001 192
gunther.jansen@wiko-berlin.de

and

Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics
Zoological Institute
Christian-Albrechts-Universitaet zu Kiel
Am Botanischen Garten 1-9
24118 Kiel
Germany
Tel.: +49 431 880 4148
Fax:  +49 431 880 2403
Email: gjansen@zoologie.uni-kiel.de
URL: http://www.uni-kiel.de/zoologie/evoecogen/jansen/
       http://www.uni-kiel.de/zoologie/evoecogen/evolreservoirs/

gjansen@zoologie.uni-kiel.de