PhD position in vascular cognitive disorders

Karolinska Institutet; Stockholms kommun; On-site; SEK 357,000 - 469,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Access to modern gym

Reimbursements for medical care

Salary on contract

Job summary

Karolinska Institutet’s Westman neuroimaging group in the Clinical Geriatrics Division at NEO Flemingsberg invites a doctoral student to join a multidisciplinary, international team of researchers and clinicians. The position is a four-year full-time doctoral education with supervision and an individual study plan.

The project focuses on vascular cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID) using molecular, clinical, neuroimaging, and biomarker data.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in statistics, data science, epidemiology, neuroscience, or related field.
• Experience with health-related research using human data.
• Ability to analyze longitudinal data with appropriate methods.
• Excellent programming skills in R or equivalent software.
• Excellent written and oral English; ability to communicate in an international team.

Responsibilities

• Data management and statistical analyses for VCID project.
• Interpret results and contribute to publications.
• Present findings at national and international conferences.
• Collaborate with international teams and engage in interdisciplinary research.

Skills

R programming

Longitudinal data analysis

Team collaboration

English communication

Education

Master's degree in statistics / data science / epidemiology / neuroscience / related field

Tools

R

Job description

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

To be a doctoral student means to devote oneself to a research project under supervision of experienced researchers and following an individual study plan. For a doctoral degree, the equivalent of four years of full-time doctoral education is required.

The research group

The doctoral student will join Assistant Professor Anna Marseglia’s team within the Westman neuroimaging group at Clinical Geriatrics Division, located in NEO campus Flemingsburg. Our multidisciplinary and international environment brings together researchers and clinicians at different career stages, including PhD students, postdocs, and senior investigators, with expertise spanning geriatrics, neurology, epidemiology, neuroscience, psychology, engineering, and biostatistics. The group offers a collaborative and supportive atmosphere with strong mentorship, close interaction between junior and senior researchers, and opportunities for professional development. We have extensive national and international collaborations, providing opportunities for networking, conference participation, interdisciplinary projects, and short-term research visits abroad.

NVS hosts two researcher centers. The Center for Alzheimer Research (CAR) and the TraCeDem - KI Transdisciplinary Research Center for Personalized Dementia Prevention & Care. These centers offer a vibrant scientific environment through seminars, workshops, symposia, training activities, mentorship programs, and interdisciplinary collaborations. During their doctoral education, the student will have opportunities to engage with broader national and international networks (e.g., VasCog, the Alzheimer's Association Professional Interest Areas, SWEAH), fostering scientific and career development.

The student will become part of a dynamic community of doctoral students and early-career researchers within both the research group and the department.

The doctoral student project and the duties of the doctoral student

Cerebrovascular disease, affecting large and small brain vessels, is a major contributor to cognitive disorders collectively known as Vascular Cognitive Impairment and Dementia (VCID). VCID is widely considered the second most common cause of dementia after Alzheimer's disease, with which it frequently co-occurs. Despite its substantial public health impact and potential for prevention, VCID remains underrecognized and poorly understood. As the population ages and effective treatments for dementia remain limited, understanding mechanisms underlying cognitive impairment is a major priority. This project offers unique opportunities to combine molecular, clinical, neuroimaging, and behavioral data to better understand the development, progression, and prevention of VCID.

The overall aim is to identify biological, clinical, and lifestyle factors driving VCID development and progression, and to understand why some individuals remain resilient despite cerebrovascular disease. Emphasis will be placed on identifying proteomic signatures of VCID, determining factors associated with transitions across disease stages, characterizing resilience trajectories among individuals at risk, and evaluating the potential protective effects of multidomain lifestyle interventions.

The doctoral student will work with large-scale population-based and intervention cohorts from Sweden, Finland, the UK, and international collaborations. These resources include rich longitudinal data on cognition, systemic and vascular health, neuroimaging, blood-based targeted proteomic biomarkers, lifestyle, and psychosocial factors. The student will develop expertise in advanced epidemiological, statistical, and machine learning approaches for the analysis of high-dimensional and multimodal data, including biomarker discovery, longitudinal modelling, risk-factor analyses, resilience phenotyping, and causal inference.

The doctoral student is expected to develop an in-depth understanding of how vascular disease contribute to cognitive disorders and the underlying biological mechanisms. Training will be achieved through active participation in the research project under supervision, doctoral courses, seminars, and journal clubs. The student will be responsible for data management, statistical analyses, interpretation of findings, and dissemination through high-quality scientific publications and presentations at national and international conferences. The position offers opportunities for international collaboration and research exchange, supporting the student's development into an independent researcher.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment full of expertise and curiosity. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Our vision is to pursue the development of knowledge about life and to promote a better health for all. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. As a doctoral student you are offered an individual research project, a well-educated supervisor, a vast range of elective courses and the opportunity to work in a leading research group. Karolinska Institutet collaborates with prominent universities from all around the world, which ensures opportunities for international exchanges. You will be employed on a doctoral studentship which means that you receive a contractual salary. Employees also have access to our modern gym for free and receive reimbursements for medical care.

Eligibility requirements for doctoral education

In order to participate in the selection for a doctoral position, you must meet the following general (A) and specific (B) eligibility requirements at latest by the application deadline.

It is your responsibility to certify eligibility by following the instructions on the web page Entry requirements (eligibility) for doctoral education.

A) General eligibility requirement

• have been awarded a second-cycle/advanced/master qualification (i.e. master degree), or
• have satisfied the requirements for courses comprising at least 240 credits of which at least 60 credits were awarded in the advanced/second-cycle/master level, or
• have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way in Sweden or abroad.*

Follow the instructions on the web page Entry requirements (eligibility) for doctoral education.

*If you claim equivalent knowledge, follow the instructions on the web page Assessing equivalent knowledge for general eligibility for doctoral education.

B) Specific eligibility requirement

You meet the specific eligibility requirement for doctoral/third-cycle/PhD education if you:

• Show proficiency in English equivalent to the course English B/English 6 at Swedish upper secondary school.

Follow the instructions on the web page English language requirements for doctoral education.

Verification of your documents Karolinska Institutet checks the authenticity of your documents. Karolinska Institutet reserves the right to revoke admission if supporting documents are discovered to be fraudulent. Submission of false documents is a violation of Swedish law and is considered grounds for legal action.

(A) and (B) can only be certified by the documentation requirement for doctoral education.

Skills and personal qualities

Necessary qualifications and qualities

• Master's degree in statistics, data science, epidemiology, neuroscience, or a related field.
• Documented experience in health-related research involving human data
• Demonstrated ability to independently analyze longitudinal data using appropriate statistical methods (e.g., mixed-effects models, latent class analysis, clustering).
• Excellent programming skills in R or equivalent statistical software.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English.
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in an interdisciplinary and international environment.
• Accurate, curious, responsible, and highly motivated to undertake doctoral studies in aging, brain and cognitive health, and vascular cognitive impairment research.

It is also considered a merit if you have one or more of the following:

• Experience with proteomics, cognitive aging, brain health, or resilience research.
• Experience integrating neuroimaging, biomarker, clinical, lifestyle and psychosocial data
• Experience with epidemiological research methods, preferably in aging and dementia research.
• Experience working with large-scale longitudinal cohort data (e.g., UK Biobank or similar).
• Strong interest in translational research, biomarker development, and the integration of epidemiological and data science approaches in ageing research.

We are looking for a collaborative individual who enjoys contributing to a positive and supportive research environment. Great emphasis will be placed on personal suitability

Terms and conditions

The doctoral student will be employed on a doctoral studentship maximum 4 years full-time.

Selection

A selection will be made among eligible applicants on the basis of the ability to benefit from doctoral education. The qualifications of the applicants will be evaluated on an overall basis.

Karolinska Institutet uses the following bases of assessment:

• Documented subject knowledge of relevance to the area of research
• Analytical skill
• Other documented knowledge or experience that may be relevant to doctoral studies in the subject.

All applicants will be informed when the recruitment is completed.

KI applies a salary scale when setting salaries for doctoral students.

NVS Department

Division of Clinical Geriatrics

Want to make a difference? Join us and contribute to better health for all

The Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society (NVS) conducts world leading research in aging, dementia, epidemiology and care sciences. This research extends from basic molecular and cell levels to clinical research and societal studies. NVS educates almost a third of KI students at basic and advanced levels. The Department has approximately 540 employees and a revenue 2023 of 530 million SEK. It comprises seven divisions, located at Campus Flemingsberg and Campus Solna.

The Division of Clinical Geriatric, with over 100 employed and affiliated researchers are located both in Neo, Campus Flemingsberg and in the Q-building in Solna. We conduct research focusing on cognitive impairment, dementia, and other aging related disorders, and education, among other medical graduates. Our research is multi-faceted and is in close collaboration with leading institutions and clinics worldwide. The research is clinically oriented with an emphasis on diagnosis, prevention and treatment. The division has a close cooperation with the Medical Unit Aging within Theme Inflammation and Aging at Karolinska University Hospital.