PhD fellowship in equine asthma
Start date is 1 September 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter.
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences contributes – through education, research, and dissemination within the field of veterinary clinical sciences – to the training and education of veterinarians in Denmark and to evidence-based development of general and specialized veterinary clinical practice. The core of the department’s research and teaching activities are our two integrated animal hospitals (companion animals, large animals). The department has a staff of approximately 275 people, of which 40 are faculty members, with the remainder being animal caretakers, nurses, veterinarians without research obligations, and other auxiliary staff.
The department covers strong and internationally recognized research areas in veterinary clinical sciences. Based on these, we want to set a new standard for cross-disciplinary research, education and innovation within animal health and disease. Our research supports teaching in a manner and quality, securing continued national and international benchmarking.
It is our ambition to be among the best public workplaces in Denmark. The culture of the department is typical Scandinavian: a flat structure with a tradition for close collaboration on all levels, where employees can expect openness, mutual respect, and sharing of ideas, resources, and competencies.
Project description
Equine asthma is a well-recognized chronic disease airway disease with a multifactorial pathogenesis; however, the characterization of the different endotypes remains incomplete. Mastocytic equine asthma, which is clinically manifested by reduced performance and an increased respiratory effort during exercise, is increasingly diagnosed in Nordic countries. This study aims to employ metabolomics on well-defined endotypes of equine asthma to investigate the metabolite differences underlying the pathogenesis of equine asthma across the neutrophilic, eosinophilic and mastocytic endotypes. Further, we will access the cellular as well as metabolomic response to treatment in mastocytic equine asthma horses and explore potential new treatment options. The PhD student will work with the supervisors to design a project based on the equine asthma case load of The Large Animal Teaching Hospital, University of Copenhagen and The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU).
Principal supervisor is Associate professor Sanni Hansen, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Email: sannih@sund.ku.dk. Co-supervisors on the project are Associate professor Amanda Raine, Department of Cell & Molecular Biology, Biomedical Centre, Uppsala, Sweden and Associate professor Miia Riihimaki, Department of Clinical Sciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden.
Duration: 3 years as a PhD student. The defence usually takes place after the 3-year employment period.
Job description
Your key tasks as a PhD student at SUND are:
- Carrying out an independent research project under supervision, with content as outlined above in the project description.
- Completing PhD courses or other equivalent education corresponding to approximately 30 ECTS points.
- Participating in active research environments including a stay at another research team.
- Obtaining experience with teaching or other types of dissemination.
- Teaching and disseminating your knowledge.
- Writing a PhD thesis on the grounds of your project
Applicants must have qualifications corresponding to a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM, cand.med.vet.).
Other important criteria are:
- Danish veterinary authorisation to practice veterinary medicine.
- Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project, in particular documented interest in or previous experience within different laboratory procedures, as well as previous publications.
- Relevant clinical experience, particularly in equine asthma.
- Documented experience with fund raising.
- Ability to work independently while keeping the team up to date.
- Language skills: Fluent in English
- Is expected that the PhD student spend approximately 6 months at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Driving license is an advantage.
Place of employment
The place of employment is at Section of Medicine & Surgery, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen (https://ikv.ku.dk/english/research/medicine-and-surgery/). The Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences is renowned for its excellency in several fields of clinical veterinary research.
Part of the research will be in collaboration with Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Department of Medical Sciences, Science for Life Laboratory as well as the Department of Clinical Sciences - and longer research stay at the SLU must be taken into account.
We, at the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Copenhagen have a strong tradition of supporting PhD students in taking the lead of their own projects and developing them in the direction of their specific interests. As such, our PhDs obtain unique skills and qualifications that allow them to pursue careers in veterinary clinical as well as more general biomedical sciences.
Terms of employment
The employment is conditioned upon the applicant’s successful enrolment as a PhD student at the Graduate School at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant.
The PhD study must be completed in accordance with The Ministerial Order on the PhD programme (2013) and the Faculty’s rules on achieving the degree.
Deadline for applications: 21 May 2025, 23.59pm CET.
Questions
For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact the principal supervisor Sanni Hansen, sannih@sund.ku.dk
General information about PhD studies at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences is available at the Graduate School’s website: https://healthsciences.ku.dk/phd/guidelines/
Application procedure
Your application must be submitted electronically by clicking ‘Apply now’ below. The application must include the following documents in PDF format:
1. Motivation letter of application.
2. CV incl. education, work experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position.
3. Certified copy of original Master of Science or DVM or cand.med.vet diploma and transcript of records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in other language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted. As a prerequisite for a PhD fellowship employment, your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree. We encourage you to read more in the assessment database: https://ufm.dk/en/education/recognition-and-transparency/find-assessments/assessment-database. Please note that we might ask you to obtain an assessment of your education performed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science
4. Publication list (if possible)
5) Please provide a one-page description outlining your thoughts on the PhD project
Please note in your application that you found the job at Jobindex
