PhD Research Fellow in Computational Medicinal Chemistry for Cancer Drug Discovery 

About the position

We invite applications for a PhD Research Fellow position in within the interdisciplinary research team GLIOFORCE – Targeting Cellular Biomechanics to Block Tumour Cell Invasion, a new Life Science Convergence Environment at the University of Oslo. 

The GLIOFORCE team merges world-class expertise in biomedicine, physics, engineering and pharmacy to explore mechano-adaptation as a targetable vulnerability in the most aggressive brain cancer, Glioblastoma. The successful candidate will work closely with 3 other PhD students in an interdisciplinary research consortium that will describe, model and manipulate the physical forces that cancer cells experience during invasion. With this information, we aim to identify the weak spots in cancer cells’ spreading strategy and design innovative tools that specifically target these vulnerabilities. By focusing on physical mechanics of cancer cell spreading, GLIOFORCE aims to open up new avenues for treating aggressive cancers like Glioblastoma.

Starting date no later than October 1, 2026. 

The fellowship period is four years, including 25 % of other career-promoting work. This may consist of teaching and/or project-related tasks, such as contributing to the organization of consortium seminars and workshops, outreach and social media profiling, laboratory assistance, or other activities that support the project.

No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo. 

Place of work is at the Department of Pharmacy in the new Life Science Building, Oslo.

Job description

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive adult brain tumor. During invasion, GBM cells sense and navigate through the tumor microenvironment, adapting their nuclear biomechanical properties to enable efficient spreading through complex extracellular environments. The nuclear envelope protein BAF has emerged as a critical adaptable node in determining nuclear biomechanical properties. This PhD project aims to identify and validate small-molecule inhibitors that target BAF interactions to block GBM invasiveness.

The PhD candidate will:
•    use computational structure models to identify mutations and small-molecule inhibitors capable of disrupting BAF-centered protein-protein interactions
•    apply molecular docking (Glide, AutoDOCK) and molecular dynamics simulations (AMBER, NAMD, GROMACS) to assess binding affinities and evaluate stability of BAF-compound complexes
•    screen chemical databases (ChEMBL, ZINC, ENAMINE, PubChem) to identify candidate BAF-binding small molecules using virtual screening approaches
•    validate inhibitors via biological assays, through hands-on cell biology experiments, genetics, and advanced light microscopy approaches to measure compound toxicity and impact on cell behaviour such as nuclear morphology dynamics and 3D cancer cell invasiveness
•    iteratively refine computational models based on experimental validation to develop second-generation inhibitors with improved efficacy

The project offers a highly interdisciplinary research environment spanning computational chemistry, cell biology, physics, and materials science. The work will leverage GPU computing on high-performance supercomputers such as Saga and LUMI to accelerate drug candidate identification. The position may include secondments to industry partners for biophysical analyses (X-ray crystallography, NMR), and direct validation using medic-inal chemistry, cell biology approaches and advanced light microscopy. 

Primary supervisor is Assoc. Prof. Osman Gani, with co-supervisors from the GLIOFORCE team (Assoc. Prof. Coen Campsteijn and Prof. Lasse Vines) as well as an organic chemist from the medicinal chemistry group at Department of Pharmacy.

What skills are important in this role?

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has a strategic ambition to be among Europe’s leading communities for research, education and innovation. Candidates for these fellowships will be selected in accordance with this, and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

Required qualifications:

• Master’s degree in pharmacy, computational chemistry, medicinal chemistry, bioinformatics, or a closely related field. Foreign completed degree (M.Sc.-level) corresponding to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system. 
• Strong background in molecular modeling, molecular dynamics simulations, or computer-aided drug design. Proven record of programming language through publicly available Github/Gitlab or similar repositories.
• Experience in the cell biology lab
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English
  
   

Candidates without a master’s degree have until June 30, 2026 to complete the final exam.

Desired qualifications:

• Experience with molecular docking tools (such as Glide, AutoDOCK) in program-matic way
• Experience with molecular dynamics simulation packages (AMBER, NAMD, GROMACS)
• Familiarity with high-performance computing or GPU-accelerated simulations
• Interest in close collaboration with experimental researchers and willingness to perform basic cell biology experiments
• Ability to teach in a Scandinavian language
   

Language requirement:

• Good oral and written communication skills in English
• English requirements for applicants from outside of EU/ EEA countries and exemptions from the requirements:
  https://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/regulations/regulations.html#toc8

Grade requirements:
The norm is as follows:

• The average grade point for courses included in the Bachelor’s degree must be C or better in the Norwegian educational system
• The average grade point for courses included in the Master’s degree must be B or better in the Norwegian educational system
• The Master’s thesis must have the grade B or better in the Norwegian educational system

The purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree. For more information see:
http://www.mn.uio.no/english/research/phd/

All candidates and projects will have to undergo a check versus national export, sanctions and security regulations. Candidates may be excluded based on these checks. Primary checkpoints are the Export Control regulation, the Sanctions regulation, and the national security regulation.

What are we looking for in you?

Personal skills:

• Strong analytical skills and scientific curiosity
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in an interdisciplinary research environment
• High level of motivation, responsibility, and perseverance
• Clear and constructive scientific communication skills
   

Employment in the position is based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualification requirements applicable to the position, including personal qualifications.

We can offer you

• A pleasant and stimulating work environment
• Good welfare schemes
• Opportunity of up to 1.5 hours a week of exercise during working hours
• A workplace with good development and career opportunities
• Career development programmes
• Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes
• Oslo’s family-friendly surroundings with their rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities
• Salary in position as PhD Research Fellow, position code 1017 in salary range NOK from 550 800 - 595 000, depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund 

We need different perspectives in our work

UiO is an open and internationally oriented comprehensive university that strives to be an inclusive and diverse workplace and academic environment. You can read more about UiO’s work on equality, inclusion, and diversity at uio.no.

We fulfill our mission most effectively when we draw upon our variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives. We are looking for great colleagues, could you be the next one?

We will do our best to accommodate your needs. Relevant adjustments may include modifications to working hours, task adaptations, digital, technical, or physical adjustments, or other practical measures.

If you have an immigrant background, a disability, or CV gaps (Norwegian), we encourage you to indicate this in the job application portal. We always invite at least one qualified candidate from each group for an interview. In this context, disability is defined as an applicant who identifies as having a disability that requires workplace or employment-related accommodations. For more details about the requirements, please refer to the Employer portal (Norwegian).

The selections made in the job application portal are used for anonymized statistics that all state employers include in their annual reports. More information about gender equality initiatives at UiO can be found here. 

We hope you will apply for the position with us.

How to apply

The application must include:

• Cover letter - statement of motivation and research interests
• CV (summarizing education, positions and academic work - scientific publications)
• Copies of the original Bachelor and Master’s degree diploma and transcripts of records ( see below)
• Optional: Letters of recommendation
• Documentation of English proficiency if applicable
• List of publications and academic work that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)

Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for this job". Foreign applicants should attach an official explanation of their University's grading system.

When applying for the position, we ask you to retrieve your education results from Vitnemålsportalen.no. If your education results are not available through Vitnemålsportalen, we ask you to upload copies of your transcripts or grades. Please note that all documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

General information

The best qualified candidates will invited for interviews.

Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we can't, you will hear from us.

Please refer to Regulations for the Act on universities and colleges chapter 3 (Norwegian), Guidelines concerning appointment to post doctoral and research posts at UiO (Norwegian) and Regulations for the degree of Philosophiae Doctor (PhD) at the University of Oslo.  

The University of Oslo has a transfer agreement with all employees that is intended to secure the rights to all research results etc.