The University of Gothenburg tackles society’s challenges with diverse knowledge. 58 000 students and 6800 employees make the university a large and inspiring place to work and study. Strong research and attractive study programmes attract researchers and students from around the world. With new knowledge and new perspectives, the University contributes to a better future.
The University of Gothenburg tackles society’s challenges with diverse knowledge. With 58 000 students and 6800 employees, the university is a large and inspiring place to work and study. Strong research and attractive study programs draw researchers and students from around the world. With new knowledge and perspectives, the University contributes to a better future.
At the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences (BioEnv) we have teaching and research activities that stretch from the alpine ecosystem, through forests, cultivated land and streams, all the way to the marine environment. In these environments we study different levels of biological organization from genes, individuals and populations to communities and ecosystems. We work within ecology, evolution, physiology, systematics, and combinations of these fields to understand the impact of natural and anthropogenic changes of the environment.
The department is based at two different localities: at Natrium on Medicinareberget in Gothenburg and at the Kristineberg Center in Fiskebäckskil. The current position is placed at Natrium.
This position represents a collaboration between BioEnv and the Gothenburg Botanic Garden (GBG), which is one of the largest botanical gardens in Europe, being ca. 75 hectares in extent and holding roughly 20,000 species from >130 countries in its collections. GBG’s mission is to research and conserve plant diversity, to educate and raise awareness of plants, and to provide a unique visitor experience. The garden hosts important collections of many groups, with research at the garden straddling taxonomy, systematics, evolutionary biology, conservation, genetics, horticulture, and global change and restoration ecology. The GBG staff are diverse, including educators, horticulturists, managers, and scientists.
We offer
The University of Gothenburg is a state authority, which means special benefits, more holidays and a great pension. You can read more about our employment benefits here.
Subject area
Botany (Plant Science)
Subject area description
The postdoctor will work on a Swedish Science Council-funded project using a comprehensive phylogenetic tree of southern African (SA) Asteraceae to evaluate the roles of long-distance dispersal, biome shifts, and environmental change as stimuli of taxonomic and phenotypic diversification. Having undergone a major evolutionary radiation in SA to yield a regional flora comprising ca. 2500 species which has occupied all available environments, from deserts to the alpine zone, Asteraceae offers an ideal system for studying the dynamics of diversification in a continental context. In addition, the physiographic and vegetation diversity of contemporary SA, and a Miocene-Pliocene history involving tectonism and climate change, provide the opportunity to test the agency of contemporary and historical factors as drivers of evolutionary diversification.
In addition to the above, the postdoctor will be required to develop an independent research project that makes use of GBG’s living collections and/or contributes to GBG’s conservation agenda. This project may be systematic, address questions relating to trait evolution and/or geographical distribution, or have an explicit conservation focus (e.g., relating to threat assessment and ex situ conservation practices).
There is a possibility to participate in international plant collecting trips.
The research will be supervised by Prof G Anthony Verboom (University of Gothenburg and GBG), Dr Nicola Bergh (GBG), and Dr Félix Forest (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew). The postdoctor will also work closely with a PhD student whose research examines the diversification consequences of intercontinental long-distance dispersal.
Duties
- Conduct primary research leading to the publication of at least three papers, two relating to the diversification of SA Asteraceae and one relating to the GBG-based project (see above). Analytical methodologies potentially include bioinformatic processing of sequence data, phylogenomic analysis, GIS-based spatial analysis, and comparative macroevolutionary analysis.
- Attend local and/or international conferences for the purpose of presenting research findings and contribute to fundraising to support such travels.
- Deliver seminars and participate in journal clubs and other academic fora at BioEnv and GBG.
- Potentially contribute to teaching in BioEnv, up to 10% of full-time employment.
- Organize and run a limited number of training events for GBG scientific and curatorial staff, such as a series of short introductory R workshops (including Rstudio, ggplot, and tidyverse).
Eligibility
The eligibility criteria for employing teaching staff are set out in Chapter 4 of the Higher Education Ordinance and in the Appointment Procedure for Teaching Posts at the University of Gothenburg.
To be eligible for appointment as a postdoc, the applicant is required to have a doctoral degree, a doctoral degree in art or a foreign degree that is deemed to be equivalent to a doctoral degree. This eligibility requirement must be met before the employment decision is made.
In the first instance, those who have completed their degree no more than three years prior to the end of the application period shall be considered. Those who have completed their degree more than three years prior to the end of the application period may also be considered in the first instance if special grounds exist. Special grounds relate to leave of absence due to illness, parental leave, commissions of trust within union organisations, service within the defence services or other similar circumstances, as well as clinical service or service/assignment relevant to the subject area.
Assessment criteria
The suitability of applicants will be assessed based on (i) documentary evidence submitted at the time of application, (ii) a short oral presentation given at the time of interview, and (iii) response to interview questions. A subset of applicants will be invited for interview.
Required qualifications for employment:
- PhD in evolutionary biology or systematics.
- Experience of data management and statistical analysis in R.
- Working knowledge of phylogenetic inference and comparative macroevolutionary analysis
- Ability to work well both independently and as part of a group.
- Organizational skills and ability to co-lead and coordinate a large project which involves processing and analysis of large amounts of data.
- Interest in field work.
- Excellent English communication skills, both written and spoken.
Desirable qualifications for employment:
- Advanced knowledge of plant taxonomy, systematics, and evolution.
- Experience of processing and analyzing high-throughput genomic data, spatial data (e.g., SDM), and/or big data (i.e., on an HPC cluster).
- Experience of working in a team.
- Willingness to mentor undergraduate students.
- Driver’s license.
Personal qualifications:
Given the expectation of independent research development, we require someone who is independent and self-motivated. Since the postdoctor will be expected to collaborate closely with a PhD student and colleagues at both BioEnv and GBG, we are also looking for someone who is collegial, a good communicator, and capable of working as part of a team.
The most qualified candidates, in relation to the assessment criteria in the advertisement, are invited for an interview.
Regulations for the evaluation of qualifications for academic positions are given in Chapter 4, Section 3 - 4 of the Higher Education Ordinance.
Employment
The employment is temporary, lasting two years, 100% full-time, placed at the Department of Biological and Environmental Science. Starting date 11 January 2027 or, by agreement, as soon as possible thereafter.
Contact information
If you have any questions about the position, please contact:
Professor G Anthony Verboom
Phone: +46 76 6185923
Email: [email protected]
Webpage: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=QT3_z5IAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
Åsa Arrhenius, Head of Department
tel. +46 31 786 26 25
Email: [email protected]
If you have any questions about the employment process, please contact HR at the Department of Biological and Environmental Science, [email protected]
Unions
Union representatives at the University of Gothenburg can be found here: https://www.gu.se/en/work-at-the-university-of-gothenburg/how-to-apply-for-a-position#collective-agreement-and-union-representatives
Application
Submit your application via the University of Gothenburg’s recruitment portal by clicking the “Apply” button. It is your responsibility to ensure that the application is complete as per the vacancy notice, and that the University receives it by the final application deadline.
Publications that cannot be attached to the application in digital format should be mailed in single copy to:
Department of Biological and Environmental Science
Att: G Anthony Verboom
University of Gothenburg
Box 463
S-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
Label the envelope "Postdoctoral Fellowship in Botany (Plant Science), PAR 2026/629". The publications must be received no later than the application deadline.
The application should preferably be written in English and must include:
- A cover letter describing the applicant’s motivation for applying and explaining how the applicant meets the selection criteria.
- A list of qualifications (CV)
- Certificate of PhD exam
- Complete list of publications, including submitted and accepted manuscripts
Applications must be received by: 2026-09-14
Information for International Applicants
Choosing a career in a foreign country is a big step. Thus, to give you a general idea of what we and Gothenburg have to offer in terms of benefits and life in general for you and your family/spouse/partner please visit:
https://www.gu.se/en/about-the-university/welcome-services
https://www.movetogothenburg.com/
The University works actively to achieve a working environment with equal conditions, and values the qualities that diversity brings to its operations. Salaries are set individually at the University. In accordance with the National Archives of Sweden’s regulations, the University must archive application documents for two years after the appointment is filled. If you request that your documents are returned, they will be returned to you once the two years have passed. Otherwise, they will be destroyed. In connection to this recruitment, we have already decided which recruitment channels we should use. We therefore decline further contact with vendors, recruitment and staffing companies.
