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EURAXESS

15 PhD positions available in the domain of Machine Learning & Medicinal Chemistry

aidd_phd

Machine learning is changing our society, as exemplified by speech and image recognition applications. Also, the life sciences change rapidly through the use of artificial intelligence, and it is expected that fields like drug development can take advantage of machine learning. The main goal of the Advanced machine learning for Innovative Drug Discovery (AIDD) project is to train and prepare the next generation of scientists who need to have skills in both machine learning and drug discovery and will, after graduating, be able to contribute to speed up the drug development process. The European Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network funds the AIDD project that brings together twelve academic partners (Helmholtz Zentrum München (coordinator), Germany; Aalto University, Finland; Freie Universität Berlin, Germany; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium; Johannes Kepler Universität Linz, Austria; The Swiss AI Lab IDSIA, Switzerland; TU Dortmund, Germany;Universiteit Leiden, Netherlands; Université du Luxembourg, Luxembourg; University of Vienna, Austria; Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain and Vancouver Prostate Center, University of British Columbia, Canada) as well as four industrial partners (AstraZeneca, Sweden; Bayer Aktiengesellschaft, Germany; Janssen Pharmaceutica NV , Belgium and Enamine Limited Liability Company, Ukraine).

The AIDD network offers 15 PhD fellowships. The employed fellows will be supervised by academics who have the solid technical expertise and have contributed to some of the fundamental AI algorithms which are used billions of times each day in the world, and by machine learning scientists working at pharmaceutical companies. The developed methods by the fellows will contribute to an integrated "One Chemistry" model that can predict outcomes ranging from different properties to molecule generation and synthesis. The network will offer comprehensive, structured training through a well-elaborated Curriculum, online courses, and six schools.

Each fellow will perform research for 1.5 years at an academic partner and 1.5 years at an industrial partner.

PhD Positions

Common Requirements for all ESR

All the applicants are expected to:

  1. have a Master's degree in computer science, physics, chemistry, or engineering with and sincere interest in biology and the life sciences;
  2. have some prior expertise in one or more of the following fields: machine learning, modeling and simulation;
  3. be excellent in oral and written English with good presentation skills;
  4. possess strong interpersonal skills, excellent written and verbal communication, and the ability to work effectively both independently and in cross-functional teams;
  5. be a highly creative person with outstanding problem-solving ability and the willingness to undertake challenging analysis tasks in a timely fashion.

Furthermore, the following software skills are required:

  1. Excellent software engineering skills are essential. Programming skills in Python must be top-notch.
  2. Experience with relevant libraries (TensorFlow/PyTorch, the python scientific stack) is necessary.
  3. Good command of modern software development tools, from git to continuous integration pipelines, is an additional plus.

The successful candidate will also demonstrate a passion for driving scientific questions with a positive and problem-solving attitude and the willingness to undertake challenging analysis tasks in a timely fashion. Excellent English is required, both spoken and written, and the ability to work effectively both independently and in cross-functional teams. We also believe that you enjoy teamwork, have a collaborative nature, and will be an encouraging colleague to all.

Eligibility Criteria

Early-Stage Researchers (ESRs) shall, at the time of recruitment by the host organization, be in the first four years (full-time equivalent research experience) of their research careers and have not been awarded a doctoral degree.

At the time of recruitment by the host organization, researchers must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of their host organization for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the reference date. Compulsory national service and/or short stays such as holidays are not taken into account. As far as international European interest organizations or international organizations are concerned, this rule does not apply to the hosting of eligible researchers. However, the appointed researcher must not have spent more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to their recruitment at the host organization.

Eligibility and Mobility Rules are defined only at the first employment.

Deadline: 18 April 2021

Source

MSCA ITN PhD