PhD position in Mathematics - Befattningen är under tillsättning eller redan tillsatt, och det är inte längre möjligt att lämna in en ansökan

The Department of Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics at Umeå University is advertising a PhD position in Mathematics. The position is fully funded for four years of doctoral studies. The deadline for application is March 11, 2022.  

Project description and tasks
The successful applicant will study problems in extremal and probabilistic combinatorics, as part of Dr Victor Falgas-Ravry’s project Extremal problems for multicoloured graphs and locally dependent percolation, funded by the Swedish Research Council.

More specifically, the first part of the project will focus on hereditary properties of multicoloured graphs and their possible entropy spectra, with the aim of obtaining multicolour generalisations of the Alekseev—Bollobás—Thomason theorem. The second part of the project is concerned with locally dependent random graphs and with efforts to prove locally dependent analogues of the celebrated Harris—Kesten theorem. Topics tackled may include extremal problems for set families and hypercubes, extremal graph theory, hypergraph containers, Turán-type problems, random graphs, percolation theory, local lemmas, entropy methods and discrete probability.

Combinatorics and Mathematics in Umeå
The successful applicant will be expected to take part in (and contribute to) the life of the Discrete mathematics group. Discrete mathematics is one of the four main research areas at the Department of Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics, alongside Computational mathematics, Mathematical statistics, and Analysis & modelling.

The Discrete Mathematics group has nine permanent members whose research interests span a wide swathe of modern combinatorics. The group runs a weekly seminar and enjoys a frequent flow of research visitors. Areas of particular expertise include extremal combinatorics, discrete probability, combinatorial optimisation, discrete geometry and computational combinatorics. Beyond Dr. Victor Falgas-Ravry, who will be the main supervisor, a successful applicant will be expected to interact extensively with the other group members with research interests in extremal and probabilistic combinatorics, namely Professor Klas Markström, Dr. Maryam Sharifzadeh and Dr. István Tomon (who arrives in Umeå in Spring 2022). More information about Discrete Mathematics in Umeå may be found at the group’s homepage:  https://www.umu.se/en/research/groups/discrete-mathematics/.

Qualifications
To fulfil the general entry requirements, the applicant must have qualifications equivalent to a completed degree at second-cycle level, or completed course requirements of at least 240 ECTS credits including at least 60 ECTS credits at second-cycle level.

To fulfil the specific entry requirements to be admitted for studies at third-cycle level in mathematics, the applicant is required to have completed at least 60 ECTS credits within the field of mathematics, of which at least 15 ECTS credits shall have been acquired at second-cycle level. Applicants who in some other system either within Sweden or abroad have acquired largely equivalent skills are also eligible.

You should have an excellent and rigorous training in pure mathematics, as well as the ability to express yourself clearly and fluently in English in both writing and speech. Good interpersonal skills and the ability to work in both an independent and a collaborative fashion are essential to the position.

You should have a strong background in combinatorics, in particular graph theory, and basic knowledge of probability theory. Documented experience in extremal combinatorics, graph theory, random graphs or probabilistic combinatorics will be deemed highly meritorious. Good programming skills are meritorious.

The assessments of the applicants are based on their qualifications and their ability to benefit from the doctoral-level education they will receive. 

About the employment
The position is intended to result in a doctoral degree and the main task of the PhD student is to pursue their doctoral studies which include both participation in research and doctoral courses. The duties can include teaching and other departmental work (up to a maximum of 20%). The employment is limited to four years of full-time (48 months) or up to five years if teaching part-time. Salary is set in accordance with the established salary ladder for PhD positions. Employment benefits include sick leave, paid holidays, pension benefits and parental leave. The employment starts date is negotiable, but should be no later than January 2023, with a preferred start date in August or September 2022. 

Application
Apply via our e-recruitment system Varbi. Log in and apply via the button at the bottom of the page. The deadline for applications is March 11, 2022. A complete application should contain the following documents:

• A personal letter with a brief description of your background, qualifications and research interests. Motivate why you are applying for the employment and describe how your qualifications and merits are relevant to the employment;
• A curriculum vitae;
• Certified copies of diplomas or equivalent, including documentation of completed academic courses, transcript of grades obtained, and other relevant certificates;
• Copies of relevant work such as master’s theses or research articles that you have authored or co-authored;
• Contact information for at least one and up to two reference persons (phone, email address, mail address, institutional affiliation, as well as the capacity in which they know you and have interacted with you).

The Department of Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics values ​​the qualities that an even gender distribution brings to the department, and therefore we particularly encourage female applicants.

The procedure for recruitment for the position is in accordance with the Higher Education Ordinance (chapter 12, 2§) and the decision regarding the position cannot be appealed.

Further information
For inquiries about the position and further information about the project, qualified applicants are encouraged to contact Associate Professor Victor Falgas-Ravry by sending an email to victor.falgas-ravry@umu.se

For additional questions, you may also contact the head of department Professor Åke Brännström by email to ake.brannstrom@umu.se

For more information about the department, please see
https://www.umu.se/en/department-of-mathematics-and-mathematical-statistics/

We look forward to receiving your application!

Life in Umeå
Umeå is home to one of Sweden’s foremost institutions of research and higher education, with over 35 000 students and 4200 faculty and staff. The university can pride itself in the word-leading research in several scientific fields being performed at Umeå — most notably in recent years the discovery of the CRISPR-Cas9 genetic scissors, a revolution in genetic engineering that led to the award of a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020 —as well as in the highly-regarded degree programmes it runs.

Umeå itself provides a highly attractive environment for work and study. It is a young and fast growing city of around 120 000 inhabitants, of whom almost a third are students. This makes for a rich cultural life, with many pubs, cafés, restaurants, concerts and festivals. The city is home to Norrlandsoperan and to Bildmuseet, a museum of contemporary art and visual culture. In 2014, Umeå shared  the distinction of being the European capital of culture with Riga.

The city is small,  safe and well-run, with an extensive network of bicycle paths allowing its denizens to cycle all year round. It is surrounded by beautiful nature – from the Umeå river, which freezes over in winter and becomes criss-crossed with cross-country skiing tracks, to Nydala lake and the Gammlia forest within the city limits, and to the vast and largely unspoiled countryside of forests, lakes and seashore just outside it. Working in Umeå allows you to experience the Swedish way of life, with its well-delineated seasons and traditions, from Sankta Lucia in the dark of December, through the snow-covered Spring and on to Midsummer in the overflowing light of June.