Postdoctoral fellowships in the field of stars and star formation

Ref: IA2015-14-BPD

The Centro de Astrofísica da Universidade do Porto opens a call for up to 2 postdoctoral fellowships (Bolsa de Pós-Doutoramento) in the field of stars and star formation at the Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço (IA).

The position is offered in the context of Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço - FIS/04434 with financial support provided by the FCT/MEC through national funds and co-funded by FEDER under the PT2020 agreement, when applicable.

The Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço (IA) assembles more than two-thirds of all active researchers working in Space Sciences in Portugal, and is responsible for an even greater fraction of the national productivity in international ISI journals in this area. The research and development effort at the IA includes most of the topics at the forefront of research in Astrophysics and Space Sciences, complemented by work on instrumentation and systems with potential use in Astronomy and Astrophysics.

The positions, with a maximum duration of 2 years, must be renewed every year based on outcome of the work done. The call is open in the fields of stars and star formation, and the fellowships are to be started from the 1st of February 2016 and before the end of July 2016. Sucessful candidates will be supported by IA in order to aplly during their first or second year to FCT Postdoc fellowships (6 years) and/or FCT Senior Researcher contracts (5 years). The fellowship renewal is pending on a favorable interim evaluation of the Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço - FIS/04434.

The fellowship contract will comply with the 'Regulamento de Bolsas e Investigação da Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia' existing and 'Lei nº 40/2004, de 18 de Agosto (Estatuto do Bolseiro de Investigação Científica)'. According to the rules of the FCT, the monthly allowance will be €1490 (tax free). Funds for traveling (conferences, collaborations, observing missions) are also available. The work plan is to be carried out in IA, either in the Porto or Lisbon offices, under the supervision (or co-supervision) of an IA researcher.

Research work plan
The successful candidates are expected to pursue research on topics relevant to the long-term strategy of IA in the thematic line “Towards a Comprehensive Study of Stars”, including topics on:

• Early evolution towards the main-sequence – Characterization and modelling of disks and winds; Observational characterization and theoretical modelling of very low mass stars;
• Main sequence stars – Development and implementation of seismic probes of stellar physics; Theoretical and observational determination of the role of mixing, magnetic fields, rotation or stellar activity in main-sequence evolution;
• Evolution in and beyond the main sequence – seismic characterization of main-sequence and sub-giants; Improving the age determination of low mass stars with models and observations.

Application
The application, to be submitted using the web form below, should include the following information:

• Cover letter with a brief description of the candidate's experience and motivation;
• Curriculum Vitae (up to 4 pages), together with a complete list of scientific publications and a brief description (up to 3 lines) of the candidate's contribution to each publication;
• Name and contact details (position, email, address) of two referees, available to provide information about the candidate (to be contacted if considered necessary to clarify the information provided in the remaining documents).

Applications will be accepted from the 14th of December to the 7th of January 2016.

Selection criteria and evaluation:
The curricular evaluation of the candidates will be done based on:

• Cover letter (20%)
• CV, including publication list (50%)
• Relevance and success/impact of previous research experience (30%)

The applicant must have completed a PhD degree before the start of the fellowship. Only applications from candidates having an adequate background in Astronomy will be considered.

A short-list of candidates will be defined in the first stage of the evaluation based on the submitted documents and the criteria mentioned above. The short-listed applicants will be required to attend an interview for the second stage of the evaluation (by teleconference or videoconference if needed).

Awarding of the contract
Following the second stage of evaluation, whose result will be taken into account in the final mark, the contracts will be offered according to the ordering proposed by the selection committee.

The positions will be granted only if suitable candidates are found (at least with a minimum of 60% in the first step and a minimum of 80% after the second step).

For inquires please contact Mário J. P. F. G. Monteiro or any of the senior researchers of the Thematic Line on Stars.

Selection Committee
Mário J. P. F. G. Monteiro
Margarida S. Cunha
Jorge F. Gameiro
João J. G. Lima
José Afonso

Publication Date
30 November 2015

The period for application submission has ended for this opportunity.