"University Assistant (Prae-doc)"

The Department of Biological Chemistry at the Faculty of Chemistry announces a 3-year position for a university assistant (prae-doc) on the topic of developing chemical tools for investigating microbial interactions in the research group Microbial Biochemistry, Böttcher lab. The contract is initially limited to 1.5 years, the employment relationship is automatically extended to 3 years if the employer does not terminate it within the first 12 months by submitting a non-extension declaration.

The research group is currently looking for highly talented and highly motivated PhD students (prae-doc) with a strong background in Synthetic Chemistry, Chemical Biology, and/or Pharmacology, and/or Microbiology to join our Microbial Biochemistry Research Group at the University of Vienna. Our vision is to develop customized chemical tools to selectively target viability, virulence and behavior of individual species in a complex microbiome which would open the possibility of chemical microbiome engineering in the future.

As a university assistant prae doc, you will complement/complete the research team around exploring chemical strategies for the customized modulation of bacterial population behavior with the goal of selectively interfering and controlling growth, motility, virulence and species interactions of human pathogens and commensals. You will also take over tasks such as investigating the chemical interactions of commensal and pathogenic bacteria as well as the chemistry of microbe-human interactions and aim to exploit the potential of the privileged structures of natural products by synthetic organic chemistry. What makes us special as a team is that we hereby focus mainly on novel anti-infective compounds including inhibitors of virulence and specific pathogenesis-associated targets as well as species selective antibiotics.

Your future tasks: You actively participate in research, teaching & administration, which means: You are involved in research projects and scientific studies on the aforementioned topics with the possibility of writing a dissertation. Design and synthesis of inhibitors targeting phages. Biological assay development. Preparation of research reports, manuscripts for publications and oral presentations. You work on your dissertation and its completion. You are expected to sign a doctoral thesis agreement within 12 months. You hold courses independently within the scope of the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement. Supervision and training of students and staff members. Involvement in the organisation of meetings, conferences, symposium. You take on administrative tasks in research, teaching and administration.

This is part of your personality: Completed Master's degree or Diploma, in the field of chemistry or similar. Experience in the organic synthesis of small molecule libraries. Experience in the development of high-throughput assays. Experience in the handling of phages and microbes (S1 & S2). Excellent command of written and spoken English. Very good organization skills, precision and diligence in laboratory work. Highest level of motivation. Excellent teamwork skills.

What we offer: Work-life balance: Our employees enjoy flexible working hours and can partially work remotely. Inspiring working atmosphere: You are a part of an international academic team in a healthy and fair working environment. Good public transport connections: Your workplace is easily accessible by public transport. Internal further training & Coaching: Opportunity to deepen your skills on an ongoing basis. There are over 600 courses to choose from – free of charge. Fair salary: The basic salary of EUR 3.714,80 (on a full-time basis) increases if we can credit professional experience. Contract: The employment duration is 3 years. Initially limited to 1.5 years, the employment relationship is automatically extended to 3 years if the employer does not terminate it within the first 12 months by submitting a non-extension declaration.

It is that easy to apply: With your scientific curriculum vitae and a letter of intent. With your summary of research interests / ideas for a prospective doctoral project proposal (max. 2 pages). Master Degree / Diploma. At least two references. Via our job portal / Apply now - button.

If you have any content questions, please contact: Thomas Böttcher at thomas.boettcher@univie.ac.at