PhD Research Fellow in Soft Matter

About the position

Position as PhD Research Fellow in chemistry/physical chemistry available at Department of Chemistry.

The fellowship period is three years. 
A fourth year may be considered, and it will involve 25% of other career-promoting work. Other career-promoting work may consist of teaching, supervision, and/or research assistance. This is dependent upon the qualification of the applicant and the current needs of the department.

Starting date: as soon as possible, no later than January 1st, 2027.

No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo.

Place of work is Department of Chemistry in the Life Science Building at the University of Oslo, Gaustad, Oslo.

Job description

This position is part of the convergence environment PERMEATE – Peptides for Membrane Targeting and Synergistic Drug Delivery. Convergence environments are interdisciplinary research initiatives that aim to address major challenges in health and the environment. They are funded by UiO’s interdisciplinary strategic area UiO:Life Science.
PERMEATE focuses on overcoming cell membrane barriers using peptides to enable targeted delivery of therapeutic molecules. The project adopts a multidisciplinary approach, integrating expertise from computational sciences, chemistry, pharmacy, biology, and medicine. The convergence environment comprises three PhD positions and one postdoctoral position.

PhD Position within PERMEATE
We are seeking a highly motivated candidate to work on peptide-membrane interactions and the development of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) for applications in both cancer therapy and the treatment of bacterial infections. The work will be situated at the interface of (bio)physical chemistry, soft matter, and organic chemistry. The candidate should have a strong interest in multidisciplinary research and a clear motivation for interdisciplinary collaboration.

The PhD project will focus on:

• Characterizing and understanding the dynamical and structural effects of different peptides on a range of membrane systems
• Developing strategies to formulate and prepare building blocks for stable LNPs through organic synthesis and click chemistry.
• Use broad advanced instrumentation for X-ray/neutron scattering studies, surface studies (QCM-D, AFM), analytics (SEC-MALS/A4F) as well as spectroscopy (NMR/fluorescence/UV/vis) – all supported by quantitative data analysis.

The PhD candidate will contribute to bridging research activities across groups based in:
Pharmacy, Theoretical chemistry, Medicine, Microbiology and Biophysics and will play an active role in fostering collaboration within the PERMEATE convergence environment.

What skills are important in this role?

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has a strategic ambition to be among Europe’s leading communities for research, education and innovation. Candidates for these fellowships will be selected in accordance with this, and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

Required qualifications:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in chemistry, physical chemistry, biophysics or physics or related fields  
• Documented practical wet lab experience and basic skills in organic chemistry 
• Documented basic knowledge and some practical experience in programming and numerical methods.
• Foreign completed degree (M.Sc.-level) corresponding to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English

Desired qualifications:

• Demonstrated ability in developing, executing and analysing data from experimental lab work
• Documented experience within quantitative data analysis and interpretation
• Documented experience within soft matter and (bio)polymer science 
• Documented experience in organic synthesis and characterization
• Previous expertise in nanostructural characterization tools, in particular scattering techniques will be given weight
• Earlier experience in soft matter, synthesis, conjugation chemistry and click chemistry will be considered positively

Language requirement:

• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English
• English requirements for applicants from outside of EU/ EEA countries and exemptions from the requirements:
  https://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/regulations/regulations.html#toc8

Grade requirements:
The norm is as follows:

• The average grade point for courses included in the Bachelor’s degree must be C or better in the Norwegian educational system
• The average grade point for courses included in the Master’s degree must be B or better in the Norwegian educational system
• The Master’s thesis must have the grade B or better in the Norwegian educational system

For more information see:

The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree. 

All candidates and projects will have to undergo a check versus national export, sanctions and security regulations. Candidates may be excluded based on these checks. Primary checkpoints are the Export Control regulation, the Sanctions regulation, and the national security regulation.

What are we looking for in you?

Personal skills:

• Strong motivation for research and able to work proactively in a multidisciplinary team 
• Ability to work independently in a self-driven manner
• Ability to work precise in a structured manner and swiftly adapts to new tasks
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills
• Positive attitude and the ability to handle hectic periods

Employment in the position is based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualification requirements applicable to the position, including personal skills.

We can offer you

• A pleasant and stimulating work environment
• Good welfare schemes
• Opportunity of up to 1.5 hours a week of exercise during working hours
• A workplace with good development and career opportunities
• Career development programmes
• Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes
• Oslo’s family-friendly surroundings with their rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities
• Salary in position as PhD Research Fellow, position code 1017 in salary range NOK from 550 800 - 595 000, depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund 

We need different perspectives in our work

UiO is an open and internationally oriented comprehensive university that strives to be an inclusive and diverse workplace and academic environment. You can read more about UiO’s work on equality, inclusion, and diversity at uio.no.

We fulfill our mission most effectively when we draw upon our variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives. We are looking for great colleagues, could you be the next one?

We will do our best to accommodate your needs. Relevant adjustments may include modifications to working hours, task adaptations, digital, technical, or physical adjustments, or other practical measures.

If you have an immigrant background, a disability, or CV gaps (Norwegian), we encourage you to indicate this in the job application portal. We always invite at least one qualified candidate from each group for an interview. In this context, disability is defined as an applicant who identifies as having a disability that requires workplace or employment-related accommodations. For more details about the requirements, please refer to the Employer portal (Norwegian).

The selections made in the job application portal are used for anonymized statistics that all state employers include in their annual reports. More information about gender equality initiatives at UiO can be found here. 

We hope you will apply for the position with us.

How to apply

The application must include:

• A cover letter specific for this position - statement of motivation and research interests in the specific scope of the current position
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work - scientific publications)
• Transcripts of records, copies of the original Bachelor and Master degree diploma (see below)
• Documentation of English proficiency if applicable
• List of publications and academic work that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)

Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for this job".
Foreign applicants should attach an official explanation of their University's grading system.

When applying for the position, we ask you to retrieve your education results from Vitnemålsportalen.no. If your education results are not available through Vitnemålsportalen, we ask you to upload copies of your transcripts or grades. Please note that all documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

General information

The best qualified candidates will invited for interviews.

Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we can't, you will hear from us.

Please refer to Regulations for the Act on universities and colleges chapter 3 (Norwegian), Guidelines concerning appointment to post doctoral and research posts at UiO (Norwegian) and Regulations for the degree of Philosophiae Doctor (PhD) at the University of Oslo.  

The University of Oslo has a transfer agreement with all employees that is intended to secure the rights to all research results etc.