PhD fellowship in pharmaceutical data science at Department of Pharmacy

We are offering a three-year PhD fellowship in pharmaceutical data science focusing on database design for amorphous pharmaceuticals commencing 15 November 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Project description

This fellowship focuses on enhancing reproducibility and data reporting practices in amorphous pharmaceuticals research. Based in the University of Copenhagen’s Center for Pharmaceutical Data Science Education (CPDSE), it is a data science project dedicated to providing FAIR data to enable better development of amorphous pharmaceuticals. The main target of the PhD project is to conceptualize and test a universal data schema to model time-dependent relationships within pharmaceuticals’ dynamical behavior. You will work closely with international experts in crystallography, amorphous pharmaceuticals, and data science.

The project will provide the PhD student with strong interdisciplinary training in FAIR data practices, software development, and data modelling and collection practices in pharmaceutical research. It addresses a major challenge in the development of amorphous API based dosage forms related to solubility and shelf-life.

Supervisors

Associate Professor Anders Østergaard Madsen, Department of Pharmacy

Email: anders.madsen@sund.ku.dk

Postdoc Philipp Hans, Department of Pharmacy

Email: philipp.hans@sund.ku.dk

Start

November 15, 2026

Duration

3 years as a PhD student

Our group and research

You will join a dedicated research team focused on machine learning applications in crystallographic method development and applied structural science on pharmaceutical systems. The team is part of the research group Pharmaceuticals, Processes and Products at the Department of Pharmacy. The team is engaged in the Center for Pharmaceutical Data Science Education.

Our department

The mission of Department of Pharmacy is to advance the pharmaceutical sciences by performing drug-related research and research-based teaching in topics including pharmaceutical technology and formulation, drug delivery, advanced drug analysis, and clinical and social pharmacy.

Information about the Department can be found at https://pharmacy.ku.dk/

Job description

Your key tasks as a PhD student at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences are:

• Carrying through an independent research project under supervision
• 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, preferably abroad
• Obtaining experience with teaching or other types of dissemination related to your PhD project
• Teaching and knowhow dissemination activities
• Write scientific papers aimed at high-impact journals
• Writing a PhD thesis on the grounds of your project

Key criteria for the assessment of applicants

Applicants must have qualifications corresponding to a master’s degree related to the subject area of the project, e.g. chemistry, physics, materials science, data/computer science, mathematics, etc with a strong interest in interdisciplinary thinking and data science applied to pharmacy. Please note that your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (two years).

We encourage applications from candidates with a background e.g. in experimental chemistry/pharmacy who are eager to master data modeling and programming, as well as candidates from computer or data science who are motivated to learn domain-specific pharmaceutical knowledge, or ideally both.

Other important criteria are:

• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Relevant work experience
• Previous publications
• The grade point average achieved
• Other professional activities
• A curious mindset with a strong interest in, for example, applying statistical or machine learning methods to data correlation, dynamics assessment, and the interpretation of Molecular Dynamics (MD) trajectories on the structured data.
• Creative Problem-Solving skills & a Quick Analytical Mind with a naturally curious approach to turning unstructured or "messy" real-world physical dataset challenges into clean, FAIR-compliant data frameworks.
• Experience with, or strong motivation to become proficient in Python programming, version control, and database design and data query practices.
• Dual Aptitude: being able to understand both experimental practices that lead to data generated & computational approaches to organize and rationalize such data
• Algorithmic & Anticipatory Thinking: Ability to conceptualize complex, non-linear laboratory workflows (sample preparation, storage history, analytical measurements) into structured, extensible, and backward-compatible data schemas
• Diligence & Attention to Detail (rigorous stewardship & schema validation)
• Autonomy & Collaborative Spirit
• Communication and language Skills**:** Strong written and spoken English skills, with the ability to communicate across disciplines.

Place of employment

The place of employment is at the Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in a dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include modern laboratories and high performance computing facilities..

Terms of employment

The average weekly working hours are 37 hours per week.

The position is a fixed-term position limited to a period of 3 years.

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 to the Graduate School of Health and Medical Sciences.

The PhD study must be completed in accordance with The Ministerial Order on the PhD programme (2025) and the Faculty’s rules on achieving the degree.

The PhD student is expected to be affiliated with the graduate programme in pharmaceutical sciences, Drug Research Academy.

Salary, pension, and terms of employment are in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. Depending on seniority, the monthly salary starts at approximately 31,800 DKK/Roughly 4,250 EUR (August 2026-level) plus pension.

Application procedure

Your application, in English, must be submitted electronically by clicking “Apply now” below and must include the following documents in PDF format:

1. Motivated letter of application (max. one page)

2. CV incl. education, experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position

3. Certified copy of original Master of Science 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. Applicants with a Master´s degree from abroad should also enclose a short description of the grading scale used

4. Publication list (if possible)

5. Other information to consider: References and recommendations (if possible)

The deadline for applications is 25 August 2026**, 23.59pm CET**

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

The further process

After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorised recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the hiring committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an unbiased assessor.

The assessor makes a non-prioritized assessment of the academic qualifications and experience with respect to the above-mentioned area of research, techniques, skills and other requirements listed in the advertisement.

Once the assessment work has been completed each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant.

The applicant will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.

You can read about the recruitment process at https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/

Questions

For further information, applicants may contact the supervisor Philipp Hans, e-mail: philipp.hans@sund.ku.dk, phone: +45 3533 4376 or PhD coordinator Marianne W. Jørgensen, e-mail: marianne.joergensen@sund.ku.dk, phone: +45 3533 6449.

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/

For more information on working and living in Denmark visit http://ism.ku.dk (International staff mobility) and https://www.workindenmark.dk

The University of Copenhagen wish to reflect the diversity of society and encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.

Københavns Universitet giver sine knap 10.000 medarbejdere muligheder for at udnytte deres talent fuldt ud i et ambitiøst, uformelt miljø. Vi sikrer traditionsrige og moderne rammer om uddannelser og fri forskning på højt internationalt niveau. Vi søger svar og løsninger på fælles problemer og gør ny viden tilgængelig og nyttig for andre.

Kontakt

Anders Østergaard Madsen E-mail: xvt721@ku.dk

Info

Ansøgningsfrist: 25-08-2026 Ansættelsesdato: 15-11-2026 Arbejdstid: Fuldtid Afdeling/Sted: Department of Pharmacy