Post doc in seaweed aquaculture and ecosystem services at Aarhus University, Denmark

Are you interested in seaweed cultivation and its impact on the marine environment? Can your expertise contribute to the development of this field of applied research? Then the Department of Ecoscience invites you to apply for a 2-year post.doc. position.
 

Expected start date and duration of employment

This is a 2–year post.doc. position starting from 01.07.2025 or as soon possible.
 

Job description

The job involves working with topics such as:

• Kelp cultivation, optimising gametophyte production, selective breeding, ecosystem services and environmental impacts of kelp cultivation
• Aspects of genetics, microbiomes, metabolomics or biodiversity in relation to seaweed production
• Experimental planning, practical work in the lab and in the field, post experimental analyses of samples (seaweed, water, sediment, biodiversity), data analyses and writing of scientific publications

You will be contributing to existing and new science-industrial research projects. You may also be involved in supervising bachelor and master students, and you will be expected to take lead on the writing of scientific papers. We also expect you to participate in the writing of proposals for external funding

These activities will be in close collaboration with collaborative partners from other universities (Danish and international) as well as companies/industries involved in seaweed aquaculture or applications


Your profile

Applicants should hold a PhD preferably within topics such as seaweed aquaculture, ecosystem effects of seaweed cultivation, seaweed ecophysiology or equivalent.

Experience with documentation/quantification of biodiversity (taxonomy, image analysis tools, eDNA), genetics/selective breeding, microbiome or metabolomics is an advantage, but not essential.

Commercial diver and/or boat handling certificates are an advantage, but not essential

• Publication experience is essential
• Successful experience with writing of research proposals is an advantage
• Experience with handling and analysis of seaweed samples is an advantage
• Experience with statistical analysis is essential (i.e. use of R)
• You need to be able to work independently, as well as in a team
• Collaboration skills are necessary, as you will be working in a team, most often across scientific disciplines, and interacting with industry partners
• Good Danish and/or English skills are mandatory.

Who we are

We offer you work in the section of Marine Ecology, part of the Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, where you will be part of a seaweed research group, working with science industrial projects, in applied as well as fundamental macroalgae ecophysiology. We focus on optimising biomass yield and quality at sea and in land-based cultivation, as well as evaluating ecosystem services from cultivation practices, such as carbon/nutrient uptake, benthic/pelagic interaction and biodiversity.

We primarily work with Saccharina and Ulva, but we also work on domesticating other species with a commercial and/or environmental potential.

We work in land-based systems, coastal systems and off-shore as part of marine multi-use pilots in wind farms.

In the AU Center for Circular Bioeconomy, we cooperate with Food science, Animal science, Agroscience, Engineering, Social and Environmental Sciences
 

What we offer

The Department offers:

• a well-developed research infrastructure, laboratories and access to shared equipment
• an exciting interdisciplinary environment with many national, international and industrial collaborators
• a research climate encouraging lively, open and critical discussion within and across different fields of research
• a work environment with close working relationships, networking and social activities
• a workplace characterised by professionalism, equality and a healthy work-life balance
• an openminded working environment, where you can contribute to setting the direction for future work through your knowledge, ideas and actions.

Place of work and area of employment

The place of work is C.F. Møllers Alle 3, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark, and the area of employment is Aarhus University with related departments. 
 

Contact information

For further information, please contact: Senior Researcher, Annette Bruhn, +452963 8034, [email protected]
 

Deadline

Applications must be received no later than 9th of April 2025.
 


Application procedure

Shortlisting is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the appointment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. All applicants will be notified whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee, and each applicant is given the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that concerns him/her self. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.


Letter of reference

If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.

If you wish to add a referee after you have submitted your application, you must send this person’s details (name, job title, place of work, and email address) as well as the name of the position you have applied for to: [email protected]


Formalities and salary range

Technical Sciences refers to the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.

The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities.

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

Research activities will be evaluated in relation to actual research time. Thus, we encourage applicants to specify periods of leave without research activities, in order to be able to subtract these periods from the span of the scientific career during the evaluation of scientific productivity.

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Read more here. Please find more information about entering and working in Denmark here.

Aarhus University also offers a Junior Researcher Development Programme targeted at career development for postdocs at AU. You can read more about it here.

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.
 


Aarhus University

Aarhus University is an academically diverse and research-intensive university with a strong commitment to high-quality research and education and the development of society nationally and globally. The university offers an inspiring research and teaching environment to its 38,000 students (FTEs) and 8,300 employees, and has an annual revenues of EUR 935 million. Learn more at www.international.au.dk/