The Marie Skłodowska Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship programme in brief
O1. The program is a very prestigious one, offering a great opportunity to boost the carrier of gifted and promising researchers.
O2. The objective of Marie Skłodowska Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship programme (MSCA-PF) is to support researchers’ careers and foster excellence in research. The Postdoctoral Fellowships action targets researchers holding a PhD who wish to carry out their research activities abroad, acquire new skills and develop their careers. The programme mainly offer supports for research, living, mobility, family allowance.
O3. Two main types of fellowships are provided:
-
● European Postdoctoral Fellowships. They are open to researchers moving within Europe or coming to Europe from another part of the world to pursue their research career.
-
● Global Postdoctoral Fellowships. They fund the mobility of researchers outside Europe.
O4. The submission deadline of proposals to the European Commission is 14 September 2022 and successful research proposals selected for funding may start in May 2023 at the earliest.
O5. The successful candidate(s) will have the unique change to work under the umbrella of a very prestigious project awarded to our institution in 2020 by the European Commission through H2020-Widening-ERA-Chairs programme. The project will run till December 2026 and is the only one developing in Romania (www.esei-biomed.eu).
O6. Eligibility criteria
-
● Academic qualification: Applicants must be in possession of the PhD diploma upon the call deadline application (September 14, 2022).
-
● Research experience: Applicants must have at least 3 years and a maximum of 8 years full-time equivalent experience in research, from the point of release of PhD degree till the application deadline. Experience is considered only for proven research activity. Career breaks are not considered.
-
● Nationality & Mobility rules: Applicants can be of any nationality but must not have resided/carried out their activity more than 12 months in Romania in the 36 months immediately before the call deadline (14.09.2022).
O7. A secondment period of several months can be foreseen at one of the current collaborators, depending on the project topic.
How to apply
We encourage all motivated and eligible postdoctoral researchers to send their expressions of interest at eseibiomed@iroiasi.ro and iliescu.ciprian@iroiasi.ro, before the 15 June 2022.
Your application shall include:
-
● CV clearly specifying:
(i) PhD domain, (ii) all degrees and qualifications: (iii) the exact dates for each position and its location (institution, country), (iv) a list of publications, (v) the own contribution to the most relevant publications, (vi) contribution to the grants writing (if the case); (vii) co-adviser for master and doctoral students (if the case); (viii) other relevant achievements for the position.
-
● Motivation letter including a research outline (max 2 pages) identifying the research synergy with both the project supervisors and the proposed research field for MSCA-PF programme.
-
● At least two recommendations letters from the key supervisors (PhD supervisor included).
-
● Type of fellowship you are interested in: European Postdoctoral Fellowship or Global Postdoctoral Fellowship
The applications will be carefully checked by the two supervisors. The most promising application(s) will be selected, and the candidate(s) contacted by the end of June.
Note
The selected applicant(s) will be responsible for developing and writing their own MSCA-PF proposal, but they will benefit from the support of their supervisors. In addition, the applicant(s) will receive the valued support from the National Contact Point (NCP@UEFISCDI) aiming to write a competitive proposal at the standards required the by the European Commission.
Research field
Nanomedicine (preferably for oncology).
Candidate(s) expertise
Nanomedicine is strongly inter- and multidisciplinary, and thus candidates with background in Chemistry, Biology, Medicine, but with clear connection with nanomedicine are expected. Skills in development of nanomaterials with focus on synthesis, physico-chemical characterization, in vitro evaluation on cell cultures will be a plus in the selection process.
Department
TRANSCEND is the research unit of the Regional Institute of Oncology Iasi, Romania, and is committed to the creation of an interdisciplinary platform capable of generating scientific knowledge with high translational potential in clinical practice. Two interconnected research areas produce a unique translational hub: molecular medicine and nuclear medicine. The molecular medicine includes activities focused on molecular biology, cell cultures, cytogenetics and molecular genetics, proteomics, molecular imaging and bioinformatics. The nuclear medicine is focused on radiochemistry-radiopharmacy and translational diagnostics (Transcend IRO).
Since last year, when the very prestigious ESEI-BioMed project focused on developing Nanomedicine in the institute launched, a new Laboratory - Nanotechnology Lab - started to be shaped in the TRANSCEND. The new lab is already equipped with a professional automated jacked glass reactor for nanoparticles synthesis from Syrris (UK), a microfluidic system for liposomes preparation from ElveFlow (France), a DLS equipment for in situ and ex-situ measurements of size and Zeta Potential from Corduan Technologies (France) and other small equipment needed for development od nanoparticles for medicine (https://tinyurl.com/yckupce4 ).
Supervisors
The Postdoctoral Fellow will be co-supervised by Dr. Habil. Ciprian ILIESCU and Dr. Brindusa DRAGOI
Dr. Ciprian ILIESCU is Principal Research Scientist (CS1) and the ERA-Chair holder of the ESEI-BioMed project. His research area includes bioengineering, nanocarriers for drug and gene delivery, microphysiological systems, point of care testing, transdermal drug delivery and e-tatou.
Dr. Brindusa DRAGOI is Senior Research Scientist (CS2) and the coordinator of the ERA-Chair project ESEI-BioMed. Her research area includes development of (nano)particles (layered double hydroxides, liposomes, microemulsion) for cancer therapy and diagnosis.
Estimated timetable for the application
Deadline for sending an expression of interest - 15 June 2022
Reply to the most promising candidate(s) - 30 June 2022
Writing the MSCA-PF proposal - 01 July – 09 September 2022
MSCA-PF 2022 call deadline - 14 September 2022