Assistant Professor (post-doc)

Reference Number: WB-KG-16/2026

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

The position of assistant professor in the OPUS 28 project entitled (Bio)functionalized mineral and organic adsorbent-based floating islands as a nature-based, passive treatment system for the removal of pharmaceuticals from urban water reservoirs. PI: dr Przemysław Decewicz (at the University of Warsaw), prof. dr hab. Tomasz Bajda (at the AGH University; leader of the consortium). Funding institution: National Science Centre.

The interdisciplinary project aims to develop and evaluate passive, biofunctionalized floating systems for the remediation of urban waters contaminated with pharmaceutical residues. Research conducted at the University of Warsaw will focus on the bioprospecting and characterization of environmental bacterial strains capable of degrading selected pharmaceuticals and on assessing their suitability for application in the developed remediation system. The work will include phenotypic, genomic, and transcriptomic characterization of selected strains. Transcriptomic analyses will be used to investigate their responses to pharmaceutical contaminants and to better understand the molecular mechanisms underlying their biodegradation activity and adaptation to environmental conditions. Metataxonomic and metagenomic approaches will enable monitoring of the persistence of introduced bacteria, changes in aquatic microbial communities, and potential biosafety risks. These investigations will be complemented by ecotoxicological assessment of effects on non-target organisms. The results will provide a basis for evaluating the effectiveness, environmental compatibility, and safe application of the developed remediation approach.

Basic responsibilities and obligations:

• Conducting scientific research in biological sciences and publishing findings in international scientific journals.
• Securing research funding.
• Fulfilling other academic teacher responsibilities as required by employment at the University of Warsaw.

More information: Scope of responsibilities of the academic teacher

Where to apply

E-mail: p.decewicz@uw.edu.pl

Requirements

Research Field: Biological sciences » Biology

Education Level: PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

• Fulfill the requirements set out in Article 113 of the Law on Higher Education and Science (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 1571, consolidated text).
• Fulfill the requirements set out in Annex to NCN Council Resolution No 84/2024 of 5 September 2024 amending the Regulations on awarding funding for research tasks funded by the National Science Centre as regards research projects for post-doc position (link).
• Hold a Ph.D. degree in biological sciences, biotechnology, material science, geology, chemistry or a related field obtained before the application deadline.
• Have significant scientific achievements documented by well-cited publications in renowned international journals, invitations to deliver lectures or seminars, etc.
• Have international experience, e.g.: participation in international conferences, engagement in international research projects, international collaborations documented by joint publications.
• Submit a research plan outlining personal scientific development.
• Research competencies in environmental microbiology, molecular biology, microbial biotechnology, bioengineering, geomicrobiology, materials science, or a related interdisciplinary field.
• Have practical experience in planning and conducting laboratory experiments involving microorganisms.
• Have experience in at least one of the following research areas:
  • isolation, cultivation and phenotypic characterization of environmental microorganisms;
  • genomic, transcriptomic, metataxonomic or metagenomic analyses;
  • advanced microscopic imaging, including scanning electron microscopy, fluorescence microscopy or confocal microscopy, preferably applied to microorganisms, biofilms or microbe-material interactions;
  • cultivation of eukaryotic cell lines and the performance of in vitro cytotoxicity, viability or cellular response assays;
  • ecotoxicological assessment involving aquatic or other environmentally relevant non-target organisms;
  • development or characterization of mineral, organic or biofunctionalized materials, microbial immobilization systems, or interactions between microorganisms and material surfaces.

Have excellent organizational and communication skills and be prepared to contribute to the day-to-day organization of laboratory work, coordination of research activities, mentoring of students and project-related administrative tasks.

In addition, we expect:

• Experience in research on the biodegradation or environmental fate of organic micropollutants.
• Knowledge of approaches used to assess the biosafety of environmental microorganisms, including the identification of antimicrobial resistance determinants, virulence-associated traits and mobile genetic elements.
• Experience in sample preparation and microscopic characterization of microorganisms, biofilms or porous and biofunctionalized materials.
• Experience in maintaining mammalian or aquatic organism-derived cell lines and conducting in vitro toxicity or cellular response assays.
• Experience in bioengineering, geomicrobiology or materials science, particularly in the characterization or biofunctionalization of mineral, organic or porous materials, microbial immobilization, biofilm formation, or microbe-material interactions.
• Experience in integrating microbiological, microscopic, omics and ecotoxicological data will be considered a particular advantage.
• Ability to work independently and collaborate effectively within an interdisciplinary research team.
• Experience in organizing or coordinating laboratory work.
• Experience in mentoring or providing day-to-day scientific and technical support to Ph.D., MSc or undergraduate students.
• Experience in administrative tasks related to the implementation of research projects.
• Familiarity with procurement procedures at universities or public research institutions, including basic knowledge of the Polish Public Procurement Law, will be considered an additional advantage.
• Research mobility, e.g., a fellowship at a prestigious foreign research institution.
• Experience in securing research funding.

If hired, we expect the University of Warsaw to be the primary workplace for the successful candidate.

Languages: ENGLISH

Level: Excellent

Research Field: Biological sciences » Biology

Additional Information

Benefits

Full-time employment contract

Employment starting from 1st January 2027, for 24 months.

Basic remuneration PLN 140 000 gross/year according to the National Science Centre OPUS 28 regulations. More information: link and link.

Workplace: Faculty of Biology, Institute of Bioengineering, Laboratory of Applied Microbial Ecology.

Career opportunities: More information: link

Selection process

Method of submitting an application

Send applications via email to p.decewicz@uw.edu.pl and the Faculty Dean's Office: dziekanat.biol@uw.edu.pl.

Candidates will receive an email confirmation of document submission. If no confirmation is received, please contact the project leader.

Required documents

• Personal questionnaire – available on the Faculty of Biology UW website.
• Motivation letter including description of scientific interests and research activity plan.

Ensure the completeness of your application and submit it by the deadline. Failure to meet these requirements will result in rejection on formal grounds. Please, ensure that your application is complete and submitted by the deadline indicated!

Criteria for the assessment of candidates in a competition

• Scientific quality and relevance of the candidate's previous research experience to the objectives and scope of the project.
• Quality of the publication record and, where applicable, patent output, taking into account the candidate's career stage and individual contribution to the reported achievements.
• Relevance of the candidate's methodological expertise to one or more principal research areas of the position: environmental microbiology and microbial biodegradation; genomic, transcriptomic, metataxonomic or metagenomic analyses; bioengineering, geomicrobiology or materials science; characterization of mineral, organic or biofunctionalized materials and microbe-material interactions; advanced microscopic imaging; cell-based biosafety assessment; or ecotoxicology.
• Ability to independently plan, conduct, analyse and communicate scientific research, as well as to integrate complementary experimental and data-analysis approaches.
• Potential of the candidate's expertise to complement the competencies of the research team, integrate microbiological, bioengineering and materials science approaches, and introduce additional methods for investigating microbial activity, microbial colonization, microbe-material interactions and the biosafety of the developed systems.
• Experience in research projects, international collaboration and, where applicable, securing research funding, taking into account the candidate's career stage.
• Organizational and teamwork skills, including experience in coordinating laboratory activities or mentoring students and junior researchers.
• Originality and feasibility of the proposed research plan and its potential to develop new research directions within the host research group, as well as to foster collaboration and interdisciplinary research with other research groups at the Faculty of Biology.

Stages of competiton

• Stage I - formal evaluation of documents,
• Stage II - substantive evaluation on the basis of submitted documents,
• Stage III - interview with selected candidates, during which the candidate will be required to give a short presentation on their previous achievements and career plans, followed by a Q&A session with members of the selection committee,
• Stage IV - final evaluation of competence, experience and scientific achievements,
• Stage V - adjudication of the competition and announcement of results.

Interviews will take place between 16th and 18th of November 2026. Candidates will be notified individually about their interview schedule with the selection committee at least 5 days before the interview.

Candidates will be informed of the results via email by 25th November 2026.

Additional comments

Contact for any questions relating to the competition

Via email: p.decewicz@uw.edu.pl (please include the announcement reference number).

Accessibility needs should be indicated on the Candidate's Questionnaire, in: Other relevant information from a candidate

The University of Warsaw has implemented the procedure for whistleblowers reporting cases of law violation and for undertaking follow-up actions. For more information about this topic and the processing of candidates' personal data please follow the link

The University of Warsaw is a winner of the HR Excellence in Research award granted by the European Commission to institutions adhering to the European Charter for Researchers.

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available: 1

Company/Institute: Faculty of Biology, Institute of Bioengineering

Country: Poland

City: Warsaw

Postal Code: 02-096

Street: Miecznikowa 1

Contact

City: Warsaw

Website: http://www.biol.uw.edu.pl/pl/wydzial

Street: Miecznikowa 1

Postal Code: 02-096

E-Mail: p.decewicz@uw.edu.pl, dziekanat.biol@uw.edu.pl