PhD fellowship in Understanding Brain Cell Function in Obesity

We are offering a PhD fellowship in Understanding Brain Cell Function in Obesity commencing January 1st, 2026, or after agreement.

About CBMR

The Center’s uniquely multi- and interdisciplinary approach combines research in genetics, physiology and pharmacology, to better understand the complex interplay of the many factors that drive cardiometabolic disease. You can learn more in the Executive Summary of CBMR's Strategy 2024–2028.

CBMR was established in 2010 and has been in the Maersk Tower at the Panum building since 2017. Around 250 employees create an international, highly collaborative research environment across disciplines.

Our group and research

The Pers Group investigates how genetic variation influences obesity and type 2 diabetes by mapping gene regulation and cell function in the brain. Using single-cell genomics, perturbation technologies, and transgenic models, we identify brain cell populations and molecular pathways through which genetic risk impacts metabolic health.

Project description

The successful candidate will contribute to developing molecular insights and resources that support the broader research community in identifying relevant cell populations and mechanisms involved in metabolic regulation. This is an exciting opportunity to work at the intersection of neuroscience, metabolism, and data science in a collaborative and supportive research environment.

Duration: 3 years as a PhD student

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. molecular biomedicine, bioinformatics or human biology. Please note that your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree.

Other important criteria are:

• The grade point average achieved
• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Previous publications
• Relevant work experience in the field of single-cell analysis
• Relevant work experience in the field deep learning
• A curious mind-set with a strong interest in understanding the brain’s role in energy homeostasis
• Language skills

Place of employment

The place of employment is at Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, Maersk Tower, Panum Institute, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in a dynamic and international research environment.

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 January 1, 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.

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.

Questions

For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact the principal supervisor Associate Professor Tune H Pers at tune.pers@sund.ku.dk. For questions regarding the recruitment procedure, please contact SUND HR CBMR at hr-cbmr@adm.ku.dk.

International applicants may find these links useful www.ism.ku.dk (International Staff Mobility) and https://www.workindenmark.dk/ .

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: 21 September 2025, 23.59 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.

The University of Copenhagen wish to reflect the diversity of society and encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.

Please note in your application that you found the job at Jobindex