PhD fellowship in NanoGeoBiology at the Geobiology section
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PhD fellowship in NanoGeoBiology at the Geobiology section
Globe Institute
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
University of Copenhagen
We are offering a PhD fellowship in NanoGeoBiology commencing 01.03.2026.
Our group and research
We are a small interdisciplinary group with backgrounds in Geology, Nanoscience, and Physics, working on the question of the origin of life. Our goal is to approach this question from both a top-down and a bottom-up perspective. In the top-down approach, we analyze the oldest known remains of life to understand how the earliest organisms evolved. In the bottom-up approach, we test hypotheses about the origin of life through laboratory experiments. In both cases, we use the same set of instruments to analyze products from the bottom-up experiments as well as trace amounts of carbonaceous material found in ancient rocks.
Project description
The PhD project is about investigating carbonaceous material from various sources to establish a protocol for determining biomarkers in the material. The student will be using a broad range of tools stretching from AFM combined with Infrared spectroscopy, Raman, SEM, Tof-SIMS and other tools to characterize a range of geological samples, meteorites, artificial systems etc. The student is expected to collaborate with other disciplines on the topic.
Principal supervisor is Assoc. professor Tue Hassenkam, Geobiology section, The Globe Institute, tue.hassekam@sund.ku.dk, Direct Phone: +45 2655 2030
Start: 01.03.2026
Duration: 3 years as a PhD student [+ 3 months as research assistant for enrolment, if relevant]
Job description
Your key tasks as a PhD student at SUND are:
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. Geology, Geochemistry, Nano-Science, experimental physics, organic analytical chemistry. Please note that your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (two years).
Other important criteria are:
Place of employment
The place of employment is at the Globe, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include modern laboratories.
Terms of employment
The average weekly working hours are 37 hours per week.
The position is a fixed-term position limited to a period of 3 years. The start date is 1 March 2026 or after agreement.
The employment is conditioned upon 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 an initial three-month 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 29.691 DKK/Roughly 3,975 EUR (November 2025 level) plus pension.
Questions
For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact the principal supervisor.
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/
Application procedure
Your application must be submitted electronically by clicking ‘Apply now’ below. The application must include the following documents in PDF format:
1. Motivated letter of application (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/assessment-database. 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 possible)
Application deadline: 30 November 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: http://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.
Interviews are expected to be held in week 4.
The University of Copenhagen wish to reflect the diversity of society and encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
University of Copenhagen
We are offering a PhD fellowship in NanoGeoBiology commencing 01.03.2026.
Our group and research
We are a small interdisciplinary group with backgrounds in Geology, Nanoscience, and Physics, working on the question of the origin of life. Our goal is to approach this question from both a top-down and a bottom-up perspective. In the top-down approach, we analyze the oldest known remains of life to understand how the earliest organisms evolved. In the bottom-up approach, we test hypotheses about the origin of life through laboratory experiments. In both cases, we use the same set of instruments to analyze products from the bottom-up experiments as well as trace amounts of carbonaceous material found in ancient rocks.
Project description
The PhD project is about investigating carbonaceous material from various sources to establish a protocol for determining biomarkers in the material. The student will be using a broad range of tools stretching from AFM combined with Infrared spectroscopy, Raman, SEM, Tof-SIMS and other tools to characterize a range of geological samples, meteorites, artificial systems etc. The student is expected to collaborate with other disciplines on the topic.
Principal supervisor is Assoc. professor Tue Hassenkam, Geobiology section, The Globe Institute, tue.hassekam@sund.ku.dk, Direct Phone: +45 2655 2030
Start: 01.03.2026
Duration: 3 years as a PhD student [+ 3 months as research assistant for enrolment, if relevant]
Job description
Your key tasks as a PhD student at SUND are:
- Carrying through 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
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. Geology, Geochemistry, Nano-Science, experimental physics, organic analytical chemistry. Please note that your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (two years).
Other important criteria are:
- The grade point average achieved
- Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
- Previous publications
- Relevant work experience
- Other professional activities
- A curious mind-set with a strong interest in Early life, Biomarkers
- Good English skills, talking and writing
Place of employment
The place of employment is at the Globe, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include modern laboratories.
Terms of employment
The average weekly working hours are 37 hours per week.
The position is a fixed-term position limited to a period of 3 years. The start date is 1 March 2026 or after agreement.
The employment is conditioned upon 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 an initial three-month 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 29.691 DKK/Roughly 3,975 EUR (November 2025 level) plus pension.
Questions
For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact the principal supervisor.
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/
Application procedure
Your application must be submitted electronically by clicking ‘Apply now’ below. The application must include the following documents in PDF format:
1. Motivated letter of application (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/assessment-database. 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 possible)
Application deadline: 30 November 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: http://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.
Interviews are expected to be held in week 4.
The University of Copenhagen wish to reflect the diversity of society and encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.