BEMÆRK: Ansøgningsfristen er overskredet
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
University of Copenhagen
We are offering a PhD fellowship with a special focus on statistical methods for image data collected in clinical trials on 1 November 2023 or as soon as possible hereafter. The PhD student is expected to develop and apply statistical methodology for causal analysis of observational and experimental data with focus on interpretable target parameters and rigorous statistical inference.
Project description
The PhD project aims at developing a statistical framework for studying high-dimensional mediators measured with medical imaging. Mediation analysis enables to study the role of variable on the causal pathway between a treatment and an outcome variable, and is thus of great interest to understand treatment mechanisms. While the case of a single mediator is well understood, difficulties arise with multiple mediators, especially in the high-dimensional case, as the number of possible paths going through the mediators increases super exponentially. A key part of this project is the integration of causal inference technics, elements from semi-parametric theory, and state-of-the-art machine learning techniques to develop a flexible yet interpretable approach. In particular, it should be able to account for dependencies between mediators, define mediation effects using counterfactuals, and have explicit assumptions under which a causal interpretation holds. The proposed framework will be applied on experimental data, e.g. to assess how the serotonin system mediates the effects of anti-depressive treatment in patients with major depressive disorders.
The project is a firmly based at Dep. of Public Health, University of Copenhagen but involves substantial collaboration with Peking University and Novo Nordisk. One or two extended research stays in Beijing are to be expected. The main goal of this larger collaboration is to develop new methodology and improve best practices in the analysis of image data in relation to clinical trials.
Principal supervisor is Professor Theis Lange, Section of Biostatistics, thlan@sund.ku.dk, Principal co-supervisor is Assistant Professor Brice Ozenne, Section of Biostatistics, broz@sund.ku.dk.
Start: 1 November 2023
Duration: 3 years as a PhD student
Job description
Your key tasks as a PhD student at SUND are:
- Carry through an independent research project under supervision
- Complete PhD courses or other equivalent education corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS points
- Participate in active research environments including a stay at another research team
- Obtain experience with teaching or other types of dissemination related to your PhD project
- Teach and disseminate your knowledge
- Write a PhD thesis on the grounds of your project
The successful applicant for the Ph.D. scholarship will be a statistician with a strong background in mathematics and statistics i.e., a candidate degree in for example mathematics or statistics. Accordingly, we require documented skills within theoretical and applied statistics as well as high-level programming. Also, the applicant should have the ability to communicate research findings in teaching, conference talks and by writing scientific papers for international journals.
As a prerequisite for a PhD fellowship employment, your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree. We encourage you to read more in the assessment database: https://ufm.dk/en/education/recognition-and-transparency/find-assessments/assessment-database.
Please note that we might ask you to obtain an assessment of your education performed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science.
It is a prerequisite for the PhD fellowship that the candidate can be and is not already enrolled as a PhD student at the faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen.
Place of employment
The place of employment is at the Section of Biostatistics, Department of Public Health, CSS, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in a dynamic and international research environment.
Terms of employment
The employment as PhD fellow is full time and for 3 years.
It is conditioned upon the applicant’s successful enrolment as a PhD student at the Graduate School at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant prior to employment.
The PhD study must be completed in accordance with The Ministerial Order on the PhD programme (2013) and the Faculty’s rules on achieving the degree. Salary, pension and terms of employment are in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. Depending on seniority, the monthly salary begins around 28.990 DKK /approx 3.890 EUR (Oct 2023-level) plus pension.
Questions
For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact Professor Theis Lange, Section of Biostatistics, thlan@sund.ku.dk , or Assistant Professor Brice Ozenne, Section of Biostatistics, broz@sund.ku.dk .
General information about PhD study at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences is available at the Graduate School’s website: https://healthsciences.ku.dk/phd/guidelines/
Application procedure
Submit your application via the link below..
The application must be written in English and should consist of the following:
- Motivation letter (max 2 pages). Please briefly describe your previous research experiences and interests and what attracts you to the position in terms of both the topic and the academic work.
- Curriculum vitae detailing education, work, research and teaching experiences, conference presentations, publication record, language skills and other skills relevant for the position
- Documentation of knowledge on advanced computational methods, e.g., a list of methods you have worked with and in which context.
- Official transcripts of examination results.
- A certified/signed copy of degree certificate(s).
- Contact information for two reference persons.
The University of Copenhagen wish to reflect the diversity of society and encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.
The further process
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the hiring committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an unbiased assessor.
The assessor makes a non-prioritized assessment of the academic qualifications and experience with respect to the above-mentioned area of research, techniques, skills and other requirements listed in the advertisement.
Once the assessment work has been completed each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant him/herself.
You can read about the recruitment process at http://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/
The applicant will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.
INFORMATIONER OM STILLINGEN:
- Arbejdspladsen ligger i:
Gentofte Kommune
-Virksomheden tilbyder:
-Arbejdsgiver:
KU-CENTER FOR SUNDHED OG SAMFUND, Øster Farimagsgade 5, 1353 København K
-Ansøgning:
Ansøgningsfrist: 01-09-2023; - ansøgningsfristen er overskredet
Ved skriftlig henvendelse: https://candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationInit.aspx?cid=1307&ProjectId=159893&DepartmentId=19002&MediaId=4632&SkipAdvertisement=true
Se mere her: https://job.jobnet.dk/CV/FindWork/Details/5884970
