Predoctoral Researcher for the group of Immunobiology

The Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III (F.S.P.) (CNIC) has been conceived to develop research of excellence, competitive and of international relevance in relation to cardiovascular diseases. The CNIC has a research center of 24,000 m², located in Madrid, with more than 6,000 m² for laboratories equipped with a state-of-the-art infrastructure and equipment.

IMPORTANT:

To be eligible, candidates must officially apply in parallel to:

-          Applications should be recorded here in the CNIC website (See the Recruitment Plan section) to be able to formally evaluate their applications at CNIC.

-          Applications should also be recorded in parallel in UNLIMITED webpage (https://www.unimedizin-mainz.de/unlimited-msca ) and submitting as indicated to the UNLIMITED email: UNLIMITED – MSCA Doctoral Network: unlimiteduni-mainz.de.

Functions:

The selected person will carry out their tesis in the context of the project UNderstanding Lipid ImmunoMetabolIsm To trEat Disease, acronym: UNLIMITED” ref: 101227259 granted to Dr. David Sancho funded in the call “HORIZON-MSCA-Doctoral Networks-2024”. EC-European Commission”

The selected candidate will perform their doctoral thesis characterizing how fatty acid oxidation manipulation in tissue macrophages shapes their metabolic and functional programming in homeostasis and in preclinical disease models of atherosclerosis and cancer.

This contract will be funded by the HORIZON-MSCA-Doctoral Networks-2024 UNderstanding Lipid ImmunoMetabolIsm To trEat Disease, acronym: UNLIMITED” ref: 101227259 granted to Dr. David Sancho, funded in the call “HORIZON-MSCA-Doctoral Networks-2024”. EC-European Commission”

Mandatory Requirements

1. Bachelor’s degree in biomedical or health sciences, biophysics, bioengineering, or related fields.
2.  Master’s degree in the field of biomedicine, health sciences, or related areas.
3. Being accepted/enrolled in a doctoral program at the time the contract is formalized.
4. Not having exceeded the maximum of 4 years of contract under the same predoctoral appointment, in accordance with Article 21 of the Science Law.
5. Not already holding a Doctoral degree from any Spanish or foreign university.
6. The candidate must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Spain for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the recruitment date.

Valuable Requirements:

C1. Scientific‐technical contributions. The academic record will be evaluated, as well as previous research experience (research stays, Bachelor’s or Master’s theses), and technical knowledge related to immunology, cellular biology, mitochondrial research, or cardiovascular biology.

C2. Other curricular merits of the candidate will be assessed, such as awards, authorship of research articles and/or reviews in indexed scientific journals, conference contributions, etc.

C3. Mobility and internationalization. The relevance and impact of the candidate’s research stays at national or international centers and/or in the industrial sector will be assessed, taking into account the prestige of the host institution and the activities carried out during the stay.

C4. Experience in biochemistry, molecular biology, flow cytometry, animal handling and experimentation.

C5. Interview.

Positive action: a correction index of 1.5 is established for each year of experience in the evaluation of the number of years in those criteria where experience is evaluated, in the event that the disable person greater than 66% and 1.2 in the event that the disable person greater than 33%.

We offer:

• Joining a modern Research Center of international relevance in the scientific field.
• Integration into young teams in an environment of scientific excellence.
• Access to a modern infrastructure with the most advanced technology
• Immediate incorporation
• “Contrato de Investigador/a Predoctoral en formación”, of 1 year duration, extendable up to the maximum limit of 4 years, in accordance with  con el Art. 21 Ley de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación (texto refundido Ley 14/2011, de 1 de junio, de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación), funded for the first three years by the project entitled “UNderstanding Lipid ImmunoMetabolIsm To trEat Disease, acronym: UNLIMITED” ref: 101227259, granted to David Sancho in the call   “HORIZON-MSCA-Doctoral Networks-2024” EC-European Commission, and the fourth year will be financed with group funds in accordance with the CNIC PhD salary scale.
• The remuneration and terms&conditions of employment for the first three (3) years shall be as stipulated in the call for applications. During the fourth (4) year, such remuneration and terms&conditions shall be those determined by the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) for the Predoctoral Researcher category.
• The selected candidate must meet complies with the legal requirements for the formalization of the contract in accordance with the Spanish labor law.

Recruiment Plan:

The RESOLUTION OF THE SECRETARIAT OF STATE FOR PUBLIC FUNCTION APPROVING THE COMMON ACTION CRITERIA FOR THE RECRUITMENT PROCESSES IN THE STATE PUBLIC SECTOR ENTITIES of April 11, 2022, sets forth in point 6.1 that “Unless a specific regulation establishes a merit-bases recruitment system (“concurso”), the competition (“concurso-oposición”) must be the recruitment system”.

In CNIC, the specific regulations approved by the Foundation's board of trustees establish a merit-based recruitment system (“concurso”) including a personal interview.

At least the top three candidates with the highest scores will be interviewed, provided they exceed a total of 70 points in the sum of the evaluable criteria (C1-C4). The candidate with the highest score will be hired, provided they reach 85 points (C1-C5).

In compliance with CNIC internal regulations, all candidates must submit their application through the CNIC website in order to be formally evaluated and considered eligible for recruitment.

In parallel, and in accordance with the recruitment procedure established by the UNLIMITED MSCA Doctoral Network consortium, candidates shortlisted after the first evaluation stage at CNIC will be required to complete the consortium application procedure, including submission of the documentation specified in the UNLIMITED call and participation in the network-level selection process.

Therefore, the recruitment procedure will consist of two consecutive stages:

1. Institutional pre-selection at CNIC, based on eligibility verification and evaluation of merits according to the published criteria.
2. Consortium-level selection, carried out jointly by the UNLIMITED Recruitment Committee, which will make the final decision on the appointment of the candidate, following MSCA Doctoral Network rules.

Only candidates who successfully complete both stages will be eligible for final recruitment.

Recruitment Commission:

• Head of the group “Immunobiology”
• Researcher of the group “Immunobiology”
• Research Office Manager
• Research Office coordinator
• HR member

The CNIC guarantees, in its field of action, the principle of equality in access to employment, and cannot establish any discrimination, direct or indirect, based on reasons of origin, including racial or ethnic, sex, age, marital status, religion or convictions, political opinion, sexual orientation and identity, gender expression, sexual characteristics, union affiliation, social condition, language within the State and disability, provided that the workers are in conditions of aptitude to carry out the work or employment for which try they are assigned.

By participating in the selection process, the participant agrees that their data appear in the public resolutions of the selection process. Such resolutions (provisional list of admitted and excluded, definitive list of admitted and excluded and resolution of the process) are published on the CNIC website.

Score criteria:

C1. Scientific‐technical contributions. The academic record will be evaluated, as well as previous research experience (research stays, Bachelor’s or Master’s theses), and technical knowledge related to immunology, cellular biology, mitochondrial research, or cardiovascular biology. 30%

C2. Scientific‐technical contributions. The academic record will be evaluated, as well as previous research experience (research stays, Bachelor’s or Master’s theses), and technical knowledge related to immunology, cellular biology, mitochondrial research, or cardiovascular biology. 15%

C3. Mobility and internationalization. The relevance and impact of the candidate’s research stays at national or international centers and/or in the industrial sector will be assessed, taking into account the prestige of the host institution and the activities carried out during the stay. 5%

C4. Experience in biochemistry, molecular biology, flow cytometry, animal handling and experimentation (to be evaluated as a whole, taking into account the time/specialization ratio). 30%

C5. Interview (command of English will be valued). 20%

Additional data on the project:

Spain

Brief outline of the project

Additional information:

^[1] Stefanie K. Wculek et al., “Oxidative Phosphorylation Selectively Orchestrates Tissue Macrophage Homeostasis,” Immunity 56, no. 3 (2023): 516-530.e9, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.immuni.2023.01.011.

² Miguel Galán et al., “cDC1s Promote Atherosclerosis via Local Immunity and Are Targetable for Therapy,” Circulation Research, May 30, 2025, CIRCRESAHA.124.325792, https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.124.325792.