30 PhD student and 2 post-doctoral positions

Young, modern, research-orientated:

Founded in 1991, the University of Potsdam has firmly estab­lished itself in the academic landscape and has developed into an outstanding economic factor and development driver for the region. It has a high level of third-party funding, has won several awards for its teaching, has a service-orientated administration and has received several awards for being family-friendly. Around 21,000 students and 3,000 employees work at three locations – Am Neuen Palais, Griebnitzsee and Golm – at one of the most beautifully situated academic institutions in Germany.

The DFG-funded Collaborative Research Center CRC 1644 “Phenotypic plasticity in plants – mechanisms, constraints and evolution”, hosted at the University of Potsdam jointly with its partner institutions MPI for Molecular Plant Physiology in Potsdam, Hasso Plattner Institute Potsdam, IGZ Großbeeren, HU Berlin and University of Cologne, invites applications for

30 PhD student and 2 post-doctoral positions

in the field of plant phenotypic plasticity, with a focus on quantitative genetics, cell, developmental and molecular biology, physiology, plant ecology, metabolomics, and computational modelling.

The approved first funding period for CRC 1644 is from 1 April 2024 to 31 December 2027. Employment is thus possible for up to 45 months. The positions will be located at the University of Potsdam or one of the partner institutions named above.

Plants have colonised almost every habitat on Earth. A major feature that has enabled this success is the remarkable ability of plants to adjust their growth and development to variable environments. The ability of a given genotype to generate different phenotypes in different environments is termed phenotypic plasticity. Such plasticity is a universal feature of life, and understanding its molecular basis and evolution is a fundamental goal in biology that forms the focus of CRC 1644. To achieve this goal, our consortium integrates genetics, cell and developmental biology, physiology, evolutionary biology, functional ecology, computational biology and mathematical modeling. We strive for a step-change in our understanding of plant phenotypic plasticity as an evolving trait of critical importance for crop breeding and to the fate of plant populations under environmental change.

CRC 1644 provides an outstanding research infrastructure including a large interdisciplinary network of researchers, state-of-the-art facilities, and funding opportunities for conference visits, summer schools, hosting international experts, and acquisition of soft skills. CRC 1644 strives to increase the proportion of women in STEM research.

The website www.uni-potsdam.de/en/ppp/ provides more information on

• the scientific framework of this call
• individual projects, respective open positions and terms of employment
• candidate responsibilities and required qualifications
• online application procedure

The PhD student positions are available in projects A1 to B7, as indicated on the website. The post-doctoral positions are in computational biology in project Z2.

Your Application

Your application should include a CV, a letter of motivation stating the positions (with IDs) you are applying for and explaining why you wish to pursue a PhD and why you have chosen the respective projects to apply for, relevant certificates, names and addresses for two academic referees, and the completed form that you can find here for download: https://www.uni-potsdam.de/en/ppp/job-portal/jobs.

Please apply by the deadline of 31.01.2024 via email to [email protected].