Postdoctoral researcher in Archaeogenomics

The Faculty of Science at the University of Turku invites applications for a fixed-term postdoctoral researcher position at the Department of Biology. Employment begins in February 2025 at the earliest or upon agreement, and lasts until the end of December 2026.

The position is part of the Human Diversity research consortium, funded by the Profi7 program of the Research Council of Finland. We are now recruiting 3 postdoctoral researchers for Human Diversity and this is one of these advertised positions. The central questions of the consortium are how human contacts, past environments and communication networks influence material and immaterial culture, genes, disease burden, transgenerational effects, evolutionary fitness of people, and languages and their use. Human Diversity brings together research teams across faculties who study human diversity from complementary perspectives, construct diverse digital datasets and develop technologies for documenting and analyzing such data. Such unique collaboration and data infrastructure enable a holistic understanding of how past human and cultural diversity have evolved, transformed, and created the diversity we see now, and how ongoing migrations and communication networks are likely to affect them both in the physical and digital world.

Job description

Technical advances in the study of ancient DNA (aDNA) have recently made it possible to directly probe the genomes of past individuals and populations and thus study phenomena as diverse as health and disease, pathogen evolution, domestication, kinship and relatedness, phenotypes, and population movements, replacements and admixture. This can illuminate both past events per se and how they have shaped the present-day human diversity.

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher to study the aDNA record of Northeastern Eurasia, Finland in particular, in combination with modern genomic and other datasets of the region, within the framework of the Human Diversity Consortium and in line with its focus on the human networks and contacts in the past and present. The postdoctoral researcher will work under the supervision of Associate Professor Elina Salmela, but is also expected to collaborate closely with other research groups in the Human Diversity Consortium and to conduct multidisciplinary research. The postdoc will use and combine the diverse datasets collected by the Human Diversity teams and oversee the production and curation of new genomic datasets. The postdoc's work tasks also include some teaching (at maximum 5% of working time).

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Who we are looking for

The candidate should hold a doctoral degree in biology, archaeology, bioinformatics or other relevant field (completed before the application period ends) and have a scientific and professional background that aligns with the following specific qualifications:

  • Expertise in analyzing ancient-DNA sequence data and/or in analyzing large modern genomic datasets from a population genetic or evolutionary perspective
  • Strong experience in using common computational tools for population genetics (including imputation) as well as standard data analysis tools such as R
  • Experience in publishing research articles in international peer-reviewed scientific journals
  • Fluent oral and written communication skills in English.

The following skills are an advantage but not a requirement: experience in pathogen, metagenomic, uniparental, isotopic and/or paleoproteomic analyses or in spatiotemporal modelling, bioarchaeology or scientific archaeology, ancient-DNA lab work experience, expertise in database management, previous experience of multidisciplinary working environments, knowledge of human population history in Northeastern Eurasia.

We seek a highly motivated, enthusiastic and hard-working candidate. The applicant must show good interpersonal skills and be willing to work in close collaboration with the project PI and other members of the international and multidisciplinary Human Diversity team, as well as have the ability to work independently.

We value equality and diversity in our work community and encourage qualified applicants, regardless of background, to apply for our open positions.

Benefits

We offer you responsible and interesting tasks and the opportunity to develop your professional skills in a versatile operating environment. You get a professional and inspiring team to support your work. We take care of your well-being at work and the functionality of your everyday life, e.g. with the help of flexible working hours and our well-being services.

Please read more about University of Turku as an employee from our Come work with us! pages.

The European Commission has awarded the University of Turku the right to use the HR Excellence in Research logo. The logo is a token of the University's commitment to continuous development of the position and working conditions of researchers according to the guidelines set forth in the European Charter for Researchers. 

The university offers good support and orientation for international hires. Please learn more about the Finnish culture and relocation to Finland:

Salary and trial period

The salary for the position is determined in accordance with the candidate's qualifications and experience based on the University salary system. For a postdoctoral researcher the salary follows the levels 5-6 for teaching and research personnel (3213,55-3747,44 EUR/month). In addition, a personal work performance component will be paid, which is 6-50% of the task-specific salary component. In the beginning of the employment the salary will be approximately 3600 - 4000 €/month. All standard pension benefits and occupational health care are provided for university employees.

The position has a trial period of six months.

How to apply

Please submit your application through our online recruitment system. The closing date for applications is Friday 31.1.2025 at 16.00 (Europe/Helsinki).

Please write your application and accompanying documents in English.

Applicants should enclose with their application:

  • a motivation letter, including statement of motivation, summarizing scientific work and research interests (max 2 pages)
  • a CV, including education, positions, professional experience, names and contact details of two academic referees
  • a list of publications
  • degree certificate(s)
  • other documents that may influence the filling of the position (attach as 'Other attachment' in the portal)

Further information

For further information about the position, please contact: Associate professor Elina Salmela, elina.salmela(at)utu.fi

With questions about the application process, please contact: HR-specialist Kaisa Ketomäki, kaiketom(at)utu.fi

Department of Biology

In the Department of Biology, we explore life and biological evolution in a range of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Empirical experimentation in the field and laboratory is widely applied when digging into the structure and function of individuals, populations, communities and ecosystems. The Department of Biology is one of the scientifically most productive units of the University and successfully educates experts at all degree levels. It also harbors the Center of Evolutionary Applications that supports academic research and provides molecular genetic analyses for conservation needs outside the University.

In the Faculty of Science, we seek the truth and develop solutions for sustainable future and intelligent society. Science Fiction becomes reality.

The University of Turku is an inspiring and international academic community of 25,000 students and staff in Southwest Finland. We build a sustainable future with multidisciplinary research, education, and collaboration. With us, your work will have a significant impact and relevance in the changing world.

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Postdoctoral researcher in Archaeogenomics

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