Postdoctoral scholarship (2 years) in AI-driven computational biology

The Department of Ecology and Environmental Science at Umeå University, Sweden, is now inviting applications for a two-year Postdoctoral Scholarship focused on for insight into marine structural biology. The candidate will be additionally affiliated to the Umeå Marine Sciences Centre and collaborate with Sookmyung Women’s University, South Korea. The postdoctoral fellow will be supported by a multidisciplinary team with complementing expertise in algal ecology & physiology, generative models, artificial intelligence-based image super-resolution, and three-dimensional reconstruction. The scholarship is full-time for two years with a start date of February 2026 or by agreement. Application deadline is Wednesday, 7 January 2026 at 23:59. We welcome your application!

Description
We are seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher to join an international project investigating the century-scale growth and reproduction of red coralline algae. These seaweeds are morphologically complex and long-lived, creating reef structures in coastal seas all around the world, but extinction because of climate change and human pressures. Our project will use cutting-edge imaging and AI-driven analysis to reconstruct their life histories and forecast future reef development, providing critical insights for global conservation policy. Support and training will be provided as required, depending on the candidate’s incoming expertise.

Qualifications
To qualify as a postdoctoral scholarship holder, the postdoctoral fellow is required to have completed a doctoral degree or a foreign degree deemed equivalent to a doctoral degree. These qualification requirements must be fulfilled no later than at the time of the decision about scholarship recipient.

Priority should be given to candidates who completed their doctoral degree, according to what is stipulated in the paragraph above, no later than three years prior. If there are special reasons, candidates who completed their doctoral degree prior to that may also be eligible. Special reasons include absence due to illness, parental leave, appointments of trust in trade union organizations, military service, or similar circumstances, as well as clinical practice or other forms of appointment / assignment relevant to the subject area.

The candidate’s doctoral degree should be primarily focused on computed tomography, image analysis or similar.

Essential criteria are:

• Demonstrated experience in programming (e.g., Python, MATLAB)
• Theoretical knowledge and practical experience in artificial intelligence-driven techniques for image processing
• Excellent proficiency of oral and written English in a scientific context

 Meriting criteria are:

• Experience with µCT or other tomography imaging techniques
• Background in biomineralization or structural biology, or desire to work within research that has an environmental sustainability perspective
• Previous work with deep learning frameworks (e.g., pyTorch, TensorFlow)
• Proven publication record in relevant fields
• Familiarity with high-performance computing environments
• Familiarity with using and adapting open-source AI models and code repositories (e.g., GitHub, Hugging Face)
• Interest in international collaboration and willingness to travel for collaborative research visit(s)

Application
A full application should include:

• Cover letter summarizing your qualifications, your scientific interests, your motives for applying, and how you feel you meet the essential and meriting criteria (max 2 pages)
• Curriculum vitae (CV) with publication list
• Verified copy of doctoral degree certificate, or documentation that clarifies when the degree of doctor is expected to be obtained
• Verified copies of other diplomas, list of completed academic courses and grades
• Copy of doctoral thesis
• Contact information to two persons willing to act as references

The evaluation will be based on the information provided in the application as detailed above. The requirements must be fulfilled at the time of approval to the position and may not need to be fulfilled at the time of the application.

The application should be written in English (preferrably) or Swedish, and attached documents should be in Word or PDF format. The application should be registered via Umeå University’s e-recruitment system Varbi and submitted by the deadline, January 7th, 2026. Further details can be provided by contacting the project lead, Dr Heidi Burdett (heidi.burdett@umu.se).

Information
Joint supervision of the research will be provided by Drs Heidi Burdett (Umeå University) and Prof. Eunju Cha (Sookmyung Women’s University).

Stipend: A postdoctoral scholarship is provided directly to the candidate from the Carl Tryggers Stiftelse / Carl Tryggers Foundation. The current scholarship level is 30,000 SEK per month. The scholarship is not subject to tax. Running costs for the project is covered by PIs.

The Department of Ecology, Environment and Geoscience carries out research and postgraduate education in ecology, environmental science and physical geography. The department has about 160 employees, about 30 of whom are post-docs. The postdoctoral Fellow will also have strong links with staff and researchers at Umeå Marine Sciences Centre and Sookmyung Women’s University.