The Laboratory for Process Microbial Ecology and Bioinspirational Management (PME&BIM) at KU Leuven (Heverlee, Belgium) and the Mycology lab at the Animal Health Department (Universidad Complutense de Madrid [UCM], Madrid, Spain) are willing to support one application for the EU Marie-Curie Individual Fellowship. The research topic of the application should deal with any aspect of plant-insect-microbe interactions. Microbiology work will be done at UCM, but experiments involving genomics, plant research and/or insect models will be performed at the PME&BIM’s facilities in Belgium.

Deadline for this year’s MSCA-IF call is 09 September 2020 (17:00 h Brussels time). For more information regarding the Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions at KU Leuven and UCM, see:

https://www.kuleuven.be/english/research/EU/f/extra/msca
https://oficinaeuropea.ucm.es/euraxess-local-contact-point

KU Leuven and UCM are endorsers of the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers, and provide a stimulating and favorable working environment for researchers. Both institutions have a range of services for supporting international fellows on administrative issues, finding accommodation, healthcare, etc. Additionally, KU Leuven and UCM (together with other European universities) have recently partnered in a new alliance (UNA Europa) that offers plenty of opportunities for collaboration between institutions. For further information about this alliance see:

https://www.una-europa.eu/

If you have a strong profile and a good project in mind, do not hesitate to contact us. The host groups seek to foster an environment where all talents can flourish, regardless of gender, age, cultural background, nationality or impairments.
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About the application:

Please submit your application by email to Prof. Bart Lievens (bart.lievens@kuleuven.be) and/or Dr. Sergio Álvarez-Pérez (sergioaperez@ucm.es). The application should contain a brief motivation letter (no more than 1 page), full CV with a list of publications and a short-version of the project that the candidate would like to propose for the MSCA call (no more than 2-pages).

For clarifications or further information, contact Prof. Bart Lievens and/or Dr. Sergio Álvarez-Pérez. You can also have a look to the PME&BIM’s website: https://iiw.kuleuven.be/onderzoek/pme-bim

Deadline for this pre-selection: 31.03.2020 or until suitable candidates are selected.

REQUIREMENTS

• The candidate must, at the date of the MSCA-IF call deadline, possess a PhD degree and/or an equivalent of minimum 4 years’ full-time research experience. Periods of inactivity in research (e.g. unemployment, parental leave, etc.) do not count towards the time of research experience
• The candidate must fulfill any other eligibility and mobility requirements of the MSCA-IF call
• Fluent spoken and written English
• Strong background in microbiology, plant sciences and/or entomology, but candidates with relevant experience in other related fields are also encouraged to apply
• Ability to work independently as well as in a team
• European and non-European candidates of diverse cultural backgrounds are welcomed. The candidate may be of any nationality and no age restrictions apply