Postdoctoral Researcher, Evolutionary Cell Biology and Bioinformatics

The University of Eastern Finland is inviting applications for a Postdoctoral Researcher position in Evolutionary Cell Biology and Bioinformatics at the Department of Environmental and Biological Sciences of the Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology on the Joensuu campus. The position will be filled for a fixed term of two years from 1 October 2025 onwards (or as agreed).

Please find more information below and submit your application no later than 8 September 2025.

Role and salary

We are seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Researcher to join our research project in the Mitochondrial Biology research group (website) at the Department of Environmental and Biological Sciences of the University of Eastern Finland. This project, funded by the Research Council of Finland, investigates the evolutionary mechanisms of life history strategies by seeking to elucidate mechanisms underlying cell cycle regulation, mitonuclear coadaptation, and speciation, with implications for understanding cancer susceptibility and cell cycle-related disorders. We focus on closely related mammalian species (the brown and mountain hare) that differ in metabolic traits, cell proliferation, and ecological adaptations. The approach provides a unique opportunity to study the mechanisms of cellular-level differentiation from the evolutionary perspective.

The Postdoctoral Researcher position is hosted by the Department of Environmental and Biological Sciences at the Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology on the Joensuu campus. The project involves close collaboration with and exchange visits to the Mitochondrial Bioenergetics and Metabolism group at Tampere University (website).

As our new Postdoctoral Researcher, your main responsibilities include:

• leading the comparative analysis of cell cycle regulation, chromatin architecture, and mitonuclear gene networks using single-cell and multi-omics datasets
• developing and applying pipelines for transcriptomics, chromatin conformation (Hi-C), and single-cell integration across species
• producing high-quality scientific publications
• participating in international conferences
• developing new research questions and proposals within our research group

Other responsibilities include mentoring and supervising PhD students as well as taking part in scientific collaborations. As a Postdoctoral Researcher, you may also have the opportunity to participate in teaching activities on courses relevant to your expertise.

The position will be filled for a fixed term of two years from 1 October 2025 (or as agreed). The position will be filled for a fixed term due to it pertaining to a specific project task. A probationary period is applied to all new members of the staff.

The salary of the position is determined in accordance with the salary system for Finnish universities. The salary comprises two components: a job-related salary element and a personal salary element. For a Doctoral Researcher, the job-related salary element is based on level 5 of the job requirement level chart for teaching and research staff depending on the stage of the applicant's doctoral research and postgraduate studies. The personal salary element is 6–50% of the job-related salary element. At the beginning of the employment, the total salary will be approximately EUR 3,825 - 4,020 /month.

Our requirements and expectations

Requirements

• a doctoral degree in bioinformatics, systems biology, genomics or another relevant field. The person to be appointed must have completed their doctoral degree less than five years ago at the time of accepting the position (a net period of time, which does not include parental leaves, military service, etc.)
• good skills in spoken and written English
• experience in single-cell data analysis (e.g., scRNA-seq, ATAC-seq, or SUM-seq)
• familiarity with genome assembly, annotation, and comparative genomics
• skills in high-throughput data analysis using R, Python, and Linux environments

The following will be considered an advantage

• interest or experience in comparative genomics and evolutionary bioinformatics
• familiarity with mitochondrial function

Your benefits

You will have access to the university’s staff benefits, including

• the opportunity for flexible multi-location work
• extensive occupational health care
• a broad selection of staff training
• staff discount on lunch in our campus restaurants, as well as on a range of other services
• affordable sports services and a tax-free bike benefit

Please read more in the Work at UEF section on our website.

You will have an opportunity to work in a meaningful role as part of our international, creative, participatory and inclusive academic community.

Enjoy your life in Finland! Known for its cleanliness, welfare know-how, modern technology and superb education system, Finland is an exotic and safe country to work in. Please visit the Life in Finland section on our website to learn more.

How to apply?

Submit your application by using our electronic application form no later than 8 September 2025 by 23:59 (midnight) Finnish time (UTC+3).

Please note that you must include the following appendices in your application:

• a CV (Template for a CV, TENK website)
• a list of publications (Template for a list of publications, Research Council of Finland website)
• copies of your academic degree certificates / diplomas, and copies of certificates / diplomas relating to your language proficiency, if not indicated in the academic degree certificates/diplomas
• a motivation letter (1-2 pages) in which the applicant describes their interest in the position and research project, as well as their career aspirations
• other documents to demonstrate the applicant’s merits for the position

If your diploma is not in English, Finnish or Swedish, an official English translation must be provided. All translations must be issued either by the awarding educational institution or an authorised translator. Each page of the official translation must bear the translator’s stamp and/or signature. Official translations must be accurate translations of the original documents. Translations made by the applicants themselves are not accepted.

Questions?

For further information on the position, please contact Jaakko Pohjoismäki, email: jaakko.pohjoismaki@uef.fi, tel. +358 29 4453052.

For further information on the application procedure, please contact HR Specialist Iiris Korhonen, email: iiris.korhonen@uef.fi, tel. +358 29 4458161 and HR Specialist Noora Hämäläinen, email: noora.hamalainen@uef.fi, tel. +358 29 4458302.