Doctoral student in Carbohydrate Food Biochemistry - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

Project description

Third-cycle subject: Chemistry

Our current climate goals require the transition to a bio-based and circular economy, where several products can be derived from renewable resources. Food production has a strong environmental fingerprint and food has a major impact on nutrition and public health. The project will address two major challenges for sustainable food systems, namely circularity and resource efficiency and the design of healthy food products, by transforming cereal by-products into food products with improved functionalities and prebiotic effect.

The doctoral student will design multifunctional dietary fiber gels from cereal by-products using oxidative enzymes. The doctoral student will investigate the biochemical changes in the dietary fibers upon modification and crosslinking, and their gelling and rheological properties. The doctoral student will evaluate how the gels affect the diversity of gut bacteria and their functionality to produce beneficial metabolites. Finally, the doctoral student will prove the sustainability of the overall process to design the gels. The project will be carried out in collaboration with Chalmers and IVL Swedish Environmental Institute. The candidate is expected to participate in all activities of the project, including research, meetings, dissemination of results, and co-supervision of master's students.

Supervision:

Associate Professor Francisco Vilaplana is proposed to supervise the doctoral student. Decisions are made on admission

What we offer

• The possibility to study in a dynamic and international research environment in collaboration with industries and prominent universities from all over the world.Read more
• A workplace with many employee benefits and monthly salary according to KTH’s Doctoral student salary agreement.
• A postgraduate education at an institution that is active and supportive in matters pertaining to working conditions, gender equality and diversity as well as study environment.
• Work and study in Stockholm, close to nature and the water.
• Help to relocate and be settled in Sweden and at KTH.
• The PhD student will be part of the Department of Chemistry the Division of Glycoscience, a multidisciplinary environment with competences on molecular biology, biochemistry and materials sciences

Admission requirements

To be admitted to postgraduate education (Chapter 7, 39 § Swedish Higher Education Ordinance), the applicant must have basic eligibility in accordance with either of the following:

• passed a second cycle degree (for example a master's degree),
• completed course requirements of at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 second-cycle higher education credits, or
• acquired, in some other way within or outside the country, substantially equivalent knowledge
• In addition to the above, there is also a mandatory requirement for English equivalent to English B/6, read more here
• The potential candidate must have a Master’s degree in biotechnology, material sciences, or chemical sciences and engineering. Previous experience in the field of lignocellulose biomass, carbohydrate (bio)chemistry, and/or polymer science is an advantage. Previous experience in enzyme production and handling is also valuable.

Selection

In order to succeed as a doctoral student at KTH you need to be goal oriented and persevering in your work. During the selection process, candidates will be assessed upon their ability to:

• independently pursue his or her work
• collaborate with others,
• have a professional approach and
• analyse and work with complex issues.
• excellent communication skills in written and oral English

After the qualification requirements, great emphasis will be placed on personal competency. 

Target degree: Doctoral degree

Information regarding admission and employment

Only those admitted to postgraduate education may be employed as a doctoral student. The total length of employment may not be longer than what corresponds to full-time doctoral education in four years ' time. An employed doctoral student can, to a limited extent (maximum 20%), perform certain tasks within their role, e.g. training and administration. A new position as a doctoral student is for a maximum of one year, and then the employment may be renewed for a maximum of two years at a time.

Union representatives

You will find contact information for union representatives on KTH's website.

Doctoral section (Students’ union on KTH Royal Institute of Technology)

You will find contact information for doctoral section on the section's website.

Application

Apply for the position and admission through KTH's recruitment system. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that the application is complete in accordance with the instructions in the advertisement.

Applications must be received at the last closing date at midnight, CET/CEST (Central European Time/entral European Summer Time).

Applications must include the following elements:

• CV including your relevant professional experience and knowledge.
• Application letter with a brief description of why you want to pursue research studies, about what your academic interests are and how they relate to your previous studies and future goals. (Maximum 2 pages long)
• Copies of diplomas and grades from previous university studies and certificates of fulfilled language requirements (see above). Translations into English or Swedish if the original document is not issued in one of these languages.Copies of originals must be certified.
• Representative publications or technical reports. For longer documents, please provide a summary (abstract) and a web link to the full text.
• By submitting this application, the candidate accepts that the candidacy may be evaluated by all members of the consortium.

Other information

Striving towards gender equality, diversity and equal conditions is both a question of quality for KTH and a given part of our values.

For information about processing of personal data in the recruitment process please read here.

We firmly decline all contact with staffing and recruitment agencies and job ad salespersons.

Disclaimer: In case of discrepancy between the Swedish original and the English translation of the job announcement, the Swedish version takes precedence.