PhD Student

Job description

ABOUT GHENT UNIVERSITY

Ghent University is a world of its own. Employing more than 15.000 people, it is actively involved in education and research, management and administration, as well as technical and social service provision on a daily basis. It is one of the largest, most exciting employers in the area and offers great career opportunities.

With its 11 faculties and more than 85 departments offering state-of-the-art study programmes grounded in research in a wide range of academic fields, Ghent University is a logical choice for its staff and students.

The HCRC laboratory is looking for a talented and motivated PhD student to join our group. The perspective will work closely with other lab members and our collaborators in the network to develop software tools and perform analysis of single-cell multi-omics and spatial transcriptomic data to generate new insights in the HIV viral reservoir at the single-cell resolution. With a combination of both experimental and computational approaches, our group provides an excellent environment for interdisciplinary research focusing on the understanding of the viral host factors influencing the SIV/HIV reservoir. - You are involved in patient-related (clinical) HIV/SIV research projects together with an international team of postdocs, PhD students and laboratory technicians.

You will help developing new bio-informatic pipelines to better characterize the mechanisms responsible for HIV persistence in ART-treated individuals.

Job profile

• Interested candidates should hold a university degree preferentially in the field of bioinformatics, computer science, mathematics or engineering sciences, biomedical sciences, biotechnology, biology, medicine, veterinarian medicine.
• Interest in life sciences and a strong motivation to become acquainted with the field of HIV viro-immunology are mandatory. Experience with wet lab techniques (flow cytometry, PCR,…) is an asset, but not mandatory.
• Experience with analysis of bulk or single cell sequencing data (e.g. RNA, DNA, ATACseq, CITEseq,...), spatial omics and related bioinformatic skills or other relevant omics analysis is a plus.
• You are familiar with specific bio-informatic skills sets (languages like bash, python, R etc)
• You are a team player and a fluent communicator
• You are organized, passionate about scientific research and you can work independently.
• You are highly motivated and willing to obtain a PhD
• You are willing to apply for a PhD grant via the FWO (Flanders Institute for Research)
• You have a strong interest in virus host interactions and unravelling pathways of the immune system

WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU

• We offer a full-time position as a doctoral fellow, consisting of an initial period of 12 months, which - after a positive evaluation, will be extended to a total maximum of 48 months.
• Your contract will start on 01/09/2024 at the earliest.
• The fellowship amount is 100% of the net salary of an AAP member in equal family circumstances. The individual fellowship amount is determined by the Department of Personnel and Organization based on family status and seniority. A grant that meets the conditions and criteria of the regulations for doctoral fellowships is considered free of personal income tax. Click here for more information about our salary scales
• All Ghent University staff members enjoy a number of benefits, such as a wide range of training and education opportunities, 36 days of holiday leave (on an annual basis for a full-time job) supplemented by annual fixed bridge days, bicycle allowance and eco vouchers. Click here for a complete overview of all the staff benefits (in Dutch).

How to apply

Send your CV, copy of your diploma (if already in your possession) and a motivation letter to linos.vandekerckhove@ugent.be and to karen.vervisch@uzgent.be We do not accept late applications.

For more information about this vacancy, please contact Prof. Linos Vandekerckhove,  linos.vandekerckhove@ugent.be, karen.vervisch@uzgent.be or Sarah.gerlo@ugent.be +32(0)9/332 33 98