Call for a scholarship under the project RESTORESEAS

Admission requirements

1. Bachelor degree in marine biology, biology, marine sciences or a related field;
2. Candidates must be enrolled in study cycles leading to the award of academic degrees or in non-academic degree courses (according to the FCT Research Grant Regulation nº950/2019 of December 16, 2019, articles 3 and 6).

Ranking criteria

1. Experience in maintaining and handling live animals in aquaria conditions (preferably corals);
2. Experience in setting up experimental systems for studies on the effects of climate change on marine organisms;
3. Experience in monitoring the physical-chemical parameters of seawater, collection and preservation of seawater samples;
4. Experience in measuring functional physiological variables in marine organisms, such as respiration and growth rates;
5. Experience in the preparation of marine animal tissues, namely in the preparation of samples for proteomic analysis. 

Preference will be given to candidates with good performance in oral and written communication in English. The successful candidate should be self-motivated, independent, able to work in a team and to fulfil deadlines.

Work plan:

1. Design and set-up of experimental systems for reciprocal transplantation of the black coral Antipathella wollastoni to study the coral’s acclimation capacity to ocean warming;
2. Preparation of coral fragments (nubbins) and monitoring of experiments;
3. Participation in laboratory tasks related to organism-level key physiological functions (e.g. respiratory metabolism, growth, tissue condition);
4. Participation in laboratory analyzes to determine the physiological condition of the tissue through lipid analysis;
5. Participate in laboratory for the quantitative analysis of antioxidant enzymes and proteins;
6. Collaborate on data analysis and report and manuscript preparation.

Participation in project meetings

Applicable legislation and regulations: Code of the Portuguese labour, approved by thelaw No. 40/2004, of August 18 (Statute of the Scientific Research Fellow with all the changes introduced (Decree Law 202/2012 of August 27, Decree Law 89/2013 of July 9, Decree Law 233/2012 of October 29 , Law No. 12/2013 of January 29, Decree Law No. 123/2019 of August 28 of the Regulation of Research Grants of the Foundation for Science and Technology, I.P. https://www.fct.pt/apoios/bolsas/regulamento.phtml.pt

Working location: The work will be carried out at the IMAR-Instituto do MAR, in Horta (Ilha do Faial), under the scientific supervision of Dr Marina Carreiro-Silva and Pedro Afonso.

Scholarship duration: The scholarship will last for 11,5 months, scheduled to start on April 14, 2024.

Compensation: The amount of the grant corresponds to €990,98 according to the table of values ​​of grants awarded directly by FCT, I.P. in the Country

(https://www.fct.pt/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Tabela-de-Valores-SMM_atualizacao-2024.pdf)

The scholarship holder will be covered by personal insurance and voluntary contribution to the national social security system, in accordance with Dec. Law No. 40/89 of February 1st. Monthly remuneration and voluntary social insurance will be paid monthly by bank transfer

Selection criteria: The selection of candidates will be based on curricular evaluation, considering the academic background and professional experience described in the admission requirements on a scale from 0 to 20. Interviews may be conducted to better assess the capability of the candidates.

Application submission: The call will be open from 5 to 18 march 2024. Applications must be submitted by email, with the subject “Call – Restoreseas” to candidaturas@imar.org.pt, with the following documents: letter of motivation with justification of skills for the position, detailed Curriculum Vitae and copy of degree certificates. Failure to submit the requested documents will be reason for exclusion of the application

Evaluation committee: Pedro Afonso (President of the Jury), Marina Carreiro e Silva (Vogal) e Inês Gomes (vogal), Telmo Morato (alternate), Jorge Fontes (alternate).

Notification of results: The results will be presented in a list ranked by the candidates’ final scores, to be sent by e-mail to all applicants. The successful candidate will be notified via email. If the decision is unfavourable, the candidates have 10 working days to appeal. The jury reserves the right not to award the scholarship based on the quality of the applications.