Institute of Geological Sciences Starting date 1 April fully-funded for 4 years

Tasks

As a key member of a team of researchers, your primary role will be to conduct fundamental research, data acquisition, and data analysis. using these advanced imaging techniques. We offer flexibility in how you achieve the project's goals, allowing you to tailor your focus based on your skills and interests. You will have the opportunity to be responsible for obtaining high-resolution data from sediment cores, running laboratory incubation experiments to understand the stability of sedimentary signals, and participating in fieldwork. You can also focus on the application of advanced data science approaches, including supervised and unsupervised pixel clustering and neural networks, to discover unique "fingerprints" of past cold and warm climates. The project is structured into three main work packages that will guide you from initial data acquisition to final fingerprinting. A research assistant will support you with the imaging methods and/or data science.

Requirements

We are seeking a highly motivated and curious candidate with a Master's degree in Earth Sciences or a related field. We strongly encourage applications from a diverse range of academic backgrounds, including those with experience in biogeochemistry, limnology, sedimentology, environmental research, ecology, hydrology, data science, and image processing. While data science experience is a plus, a passion for hands-on analytical work, fieldwork, and a willingness to learn advanced data science techniques is most important. We value strong analytical skills and a collaborative spirit. The project is designed to provide comprehensive training in advanced analytical methods and data science, ensuring you have all the tools you need to succeed.

Your profile: You are an independent, curious, creative, and ambitious team player who enjoys interdisciplinary science, learning, and mastering new things/skills.

You possess:

• Interest or experience in advanced imaging techniques
• Interest or experience in data science
• Good ability to work independently, to formulate and tackle research problems and work in a team
• Good written and oral communication skills in English

We are committed to increasing diversity, equity, and inclusiveness in geology and especially encourage applications from underrepresented groups.

We offer

• An exciting, interdisciplinary project with a unique focus on bridging paleoclimatology and cutting-edge data science, hosted at the Institute of Geological Sciences and the Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of Bern.
• A stimulating and supportive research environment that actively acknowledges multi-dimensional diversity.
• Access to state-of-the-art laboratory facilities at the University of Bern (XRF,μXRF,HSI and our collaborators at MARUM, University of Bremen MSI
• Opportunities for international collaborations, conferences and workshop participation.
• Professional and personal development through specialized training in data science.
• A supportive framework designed for a PhD student's success, including a research assistant to help with methods, and independent, complementary projects that will help confirm reproducibility and generalize datasets.
• Integration into the Sedimentary Geochemistry unit of the Institute of Geological Sciences. For more information about the group, please visit: https://www.geo.unibe.ch/research/sedimentary_geochemistry/research/index_eng.html
• Enrollment in the renowned OCCR climate sciences graduate school. A competitive SNSF-funded PhD student salary starting at about 50'000 CHF gross annually for up to 4 years.

Applications must be submitted to [hyperspeclab.giub@unibe.ch](mailto:hyperspeclab.giub@unibe.ch?subject=Pixel2Paleo PhD) and should include a motivation letter describing your interests, experience, and relevance for this position (max 2 pages), a CV which includes the following sections: 1) Education and training, 2) Previous and current employment, 3) Major achievements/scientific activities, 4) ORCID iD number (if available). Further, attach the MSc certificate or transcriptions when available at the time of application, a summary of the MSc thesis, and the names and contact details for two referees (name, surname, institutional addresses, email, and phone number).

Please send your application via email with all sections combined in a single PDF named \<\<surname.firstname>>, indicating \<\<Pixel2Paleo PhD>> in the email subject. Please contact Petra Zahajská ([petra.zahajska@unibe.ch](mailto:Your contact person ?subject=Pixel2Paleo PhD)) with any scientific questions. The application deadline is December 15th, 2025. Interviews online are foreseen during the second half of January 2026.