Vacancy: Early Stage Researcher
Work Location: Belgium › Deinze
Company: EcoSynth
Duration of Research Programme: 36 months
Publication date: 26 November 2020
Closing date: 18 December 2020 at 12:00
Level of education: Master degree

OFFER DESCRIPTION

As member of the PhotoReAct consortium*, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions project, we are currently offering a PhD position in chemical research and process development in continuous flow photochemistry, the academic promotor of which is Professor Timothy Noël of the University of Amsterdam (https://www.noelresearchgroup.com/timothy-noel/). The main responsibility is to develop, implement, and upscale photocatalytic strategies for use in continuous process-driven syntheses. You will optimize chemical and process parameters, monitor the economic and ecological metrics of the new methodology, and benchmark against existing lab or industrial benchmarks. To create a most challenging environment and guarantee best possible exposure to state-of-the-art knowhow and research infrastructure, you will be seconded to other partners in the consortium where you will further sharpen skills in this particular field. Within the project, you design the experiments, conceive reports and interact with your supervisors, you participate and present the work at network meetings in Europe, and communicate results to the scientific community. Strong written and verbal communication skills (English), the ability to shift between strategies, and social attitude to function in a team are thus essential.

Benefits
The offer includes a competitive salary package, comprising of a living allowance, a mobility allowance, and (if applicable) a family allowance all according to the Horizon 2020 regulations: a living allowance composed of a monthly gross salary of € 2068 (€ 28787 yearly), 13th month and paid holidays. The package is further added with extralegal advantages including meal vouchers, eco-vouchers, pension scheme, and hospitalization insurance. Beside the living allowance, a mobility allowance if foreseen (gross monthly amount € 600).

Eligibility criteria
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 956324. We kindly remark that international mobility is a key driver of the programme, accordingly researchers eligible for this program have not resided, studied, or worked in Belgium for more than 12 months in the 3 years antecedent to the time of recruitment. We strongly support gender balance and equality, which will be a criterion in the recruitment procedure.
For further information on Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, please refer to: https://ec.europa.eu/research/mariecurieactions/node_en

Selection process
Eligibility criteria will be checked prior to further processing the application, after which scientific qualification, relevant expertise, and generic skills will be evaluated during an interview. Suitable candidates are selected and invited for a second interview round. To guarantee objectivity in the selection procedure, and to support transparency in the recruitment process, an internal audit by the Training and Transfer of Knowledge evaluation committee (under supervision of Leipzig University) is performed in view of the Excellence in recruitment strategy. EcoSynth will use your personal data only in the recruitment process, for more information please see https://www.ecosynth.be/index.php/privacy.

Additional comments

Living & working in Deinze, Belgium
Deinze is a town at the border of the river Lys, in the province of East-Flanders (Flemish region). It is directly connected by railway, the main station which is in walking distance from EcoSynth. Alternatively, rental bikes are available free of charge for transport between the station and the company. Deinze is also located along a major highway (E17) guiding to major cities such as Ghent, Kortrijk, and Antwerp and is less than an hour away from Brussels, the heart of Europe with its international airport connecting to the world.
If you want to work in Belgium, you do not need a working permit if you are a national of one of the Member States of the European Economic Area or if you are a Swiss national. For all details with respect to working in Belgium, please visit www.belgium.be/en/work/.

Offer Requirements

REQUIRED EDUCATION LEVEL
Chemistry: Master Degree or equivalent

REQUIRED LANGUAGES
ENGLISH: Excellent
DUTCH: Basic

Skills/Qualifications
The ideal candidate, an Early Stage Researcher (ESR), is passionate about science and technology, is open-minded and creative, and enjoys the continuous challenges of a laboratory environment while understanding the needs of an industry in transition. She or he holds a Master of Science degree in Organic Chemistry, Process Chemistry, Chemical Engineering or equivalent.

Specific Requirements
Expertise in photochemistry and/or (micro)reactor technology is a definite plus.
Hands-on expertise in organic chemistry lab techniques and a scientific mindset are a must.

WORK LOCATION(S)
EcoSynth
Belgium
Deinze
9800
Industrielaan 12

APPLY here