The positions are targeted at applicants with no more than four years’ research experience and offer an incomparable opportunity to receive an outstanding and tailored training in the emerging field of disease interception (treating a disease before it fully develops, by removing altered cells).
The attached word document offers the full details of the network, the 12 PhD projects and the eligibility criteria. Applications are only possible through the INTERCEPT-MDS online application form at www.intercept-mds.eu by 23 February 2021.

REQUIREMENTS:

Eligibility criteria:

We welcome applications from PhD candidates from any country fulfilling the following criteria:

Eligible candidates must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of their host institution for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to their recruitment by the host institution (i.e. the starting date indicated in the employment contract/equivalent direct contract).

Eligible candidates shall at the date of recruitment by the host institution (i.e. the starting date indicated in the employment contract/equivalent direct contract), be in the first 4 years (full-time equivalent research experience) of their research careers and not have been awarded a doctoral degree.

Eligible candidates must have a master’s degree relevant for the chosen position (including biology, medicine, biochemistry, bioinformatics or a related discipline, depending on each PhD project) or its equivalent that would entitle them to a doctorate by July 2021, or must hold an official university qualification from a country of the European Higher Education Area with a minimum of 300 ECTs of official university studies.

Successful candidates must have a high level of proficiency in written and spoken English, which will be assessed with the motivation letter and the interview, respectively.

 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Application and selection process

The application will be done through an online application platform to be found on the INTERCEPT-MDS website: www.intercept-mds.eu. Applications must be in English. Each applicant may apply to a maximum of three individual research projects.

Eligible applications will be ranked on the basis of CVs and merits by a selection committee. The 3 best candidates for each position will be invited to a recruitment workshop in April 2021 (date to be confirmed) where the final candidates will be selected.

Applicants with a positive evaluation but not selected will be included on a reserve list to cover eventual future positions and might be contacted at a later stage. 

Timeline

Application deadline: 23 February 2021

Announcement of preselection results and call for interviews: 31 March 2021

Recruitment workshop: Short-listed candidates will be interviewed at the end of April 2021 (date to be confirmed). Owing to the current situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we anticipate the possibility of conducting interviews in a virtual format. Full details regarding the interview process will be sent to invited candidates during the arrangement of interviews.

Communication of the final results: 7 May 2021

Tentative start of the fellowship: Between July and October 2021

Benefits

• 3-year full-time employment contract (salary depends on the country of the recruitment considering both the local and MSCA regulations for Early Stage Researchers and their family status at the time of the recruitment).
• Enrolment in a PhD programme.
• Shared research and innovative multidisciplinary and multisectoral training by experts and experienced trainers from two sectors (academia and industry) and two research environments (clinic and basic).
• A structured training programme consisting of soft skill courses, targeted workshops, retreats, social events and networking.
• Secondments at other institutions within the INTERCEPT-MDS consortium.
• Gaining experience abroad.
• Opportunities for participation in national and international meetings.
• Enlarged professional network and improved future scientific career perspective in academia and the private sector.

 For further information on the INTERCEPT-MDS ITN and the application process, please visit www.intercept-mds.eu.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 953407