Research professor in Virology of DNA viruses (BOFZAP)

The Molecular Structural and Translational Virology Research Group at the Rega Institute for Medical Research, an important pillar of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Transplantation of the KU Leuven, invites scholars to apply for a full‐time research professorship in the Faculty of Medicine of KU Leuven. The Rega Institute is a world leading center for antiviral drug development with an internationally recognized reputation in various aspects of drug-discovery due to the acquired state-of-the-art expertise, outstanding infrastructure, and success stories in drug-development. The Rega Institute has not only contributed to the development of antivirals against herpes-, retro-, and hepadnaviruses but also developed a translational research platform RegaVir, for typing drug-resistance among DNA viruses.
We are looking for motivated and internationally oriented candidates with an excellent research record and with educational competence in the field of human DNA viruses. With the retirement of two professors conducting translational research in the DNA virus research group of the Molecular Structural and Translational Virology Research Group, the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Transplantation wants to further expand her team of research professors. This position is funded by the Special Research Fund (BOFZAP), established by the Flemish Government.
Candidates with a strong research record (publications and/or extramural grant support) in DNA viruses, with a focus on viral pathogenesis, virus-host interactions, or antiviral drug discovery are strongly encouraged to apply.
The appointment is expected to start on September 1, 2027. Applications will be evaluated in parallel and independently by 1) the KU Leuven Research Council in a competitive process across academic domains and 2) the faculty advisory committee. During the first 10 years, the teaching obligations as a research professor will be limited. Afterwards, the position will be transformed into a regular professorship.
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Duties

Research

It is part of the assignment of the appointed candidate to develop an international, competitive research program, to pursue excellent scientific results at an international level and to support and promote national and international research partnerships. The candidate must meet a strong research profile or have the potential to do so. In addition, the candidate is expected to have a multidisciplinary attitude and a willingness to cooperate intensively with other researchers and research units at KU Leuven and at the University Hospital (UZ Leuven). 

The candidate:

• Is an excellent, internationally oriented researcher and develops a research program at the forefront in the field of human DNA viruses.
• Develops an own research group.
• Publishes at the highest scientific level articles in various leading international journals in the virology domain and/or broader international top journals.
• Focusses closely to the development and exploration of emerging technologies and treatment strategies for various DNA viruses.
• Supervises master students, PhD students and postdocs at a high international level. 
• Aims to acquire competitive research funding from national and/or international agencies and submits effective research project proposals for this purpose.
• Establishes both within KU Leuven, national and international partnerships in the context of the research program. 
• Strives for excellence in research and provides a contribution to the international research reputation of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Transplantation of the Biomedical Science Group, and KU Leuven. 
• Has a pronounced interest in fundamental research on DNA viruses, but also actively seeks to the valorization and applications of these findings, e.g., societal applicability (transfer of the fundamental and clinical research to the relevant patient group) on the one hand and applied research with an industrial finality on the other hand. The candidate can identify and pursue potential valorization of the research results in cooperation with clinicians (societal valorization) or with a valorization manager and the technology transfer unit Leuven Research and Development (industrial finality).

Teaching

Although the position regards a research professorship at the start of employment, the candidate is expected to gradually contribute to state of the art teaching. 

The assignment of the candidate to be appointed also includes a teaching assignment.

He/she will contribute to the overall educational project of KU Leuven by providing high-level training, guidance and supervision of bachelor/master and PhD students in the lab in the framework of their thesis. The candidate also contributes to the pedagogic project of the faculty/university. He/she develops teaching in accordance with KU Leuven’s vision on activating and research‐based education and makes use of the possibilities for the educational professionalization offered by the faculty and the university.

Service

Scientific, societal  and internal services (administrative and/or institutional) are also part of the assignment.

Requirements

• You have a MD/PhD or a PhD in either Pharmaceutical Sciences, Medical or Biomedical Sciences, (Molecular) Biology, Bioscience engineering, or equivalent.  
• You have by preference 5 years of postdoctoral experience and expertise with drug discovery programs.
• You have a strong research profile in the field and an indisputable research integrity.
• The quality of your research is proven by publications in prominent/leading international top journals. The high quality of your research should be evidenced by high-impact first and/or last author publications in international peer-reviewed journals.
• You have demonstrable qualities related to academic education. Teaching experience is a plus. 
• You possess organizational skills and have a cooperative attitude. You also have leadership skills within a university context.
• Your spoken and written English is excellent. The official administrative language used at KU Leuven is Dutch. If you do not speak Dutch (or do not speak it well) at the start of employment, KU Leuven will provide language training to enable you to take part in administrative meetings. Before teaching courses in Dutch or English, you will be given the opportunity to learn Dutch resp. English to the required standard. 

Offer

• We offer full-time employment in an intellectually challenging environment. KU Leuven is a research-intensive, internationally oriented university that carries out both fundamental and applied scientific research. Our university is highly inter- and multidisciplinary focused and strives for international excellence. In this regard, we actively collaborate with research partners in Belgium and abroad. We provide our students with an academic education that is based on high-quality scientific research.
• Depending on your qualifications and academic experience, you will be appointed to or tenured in one of the grades of the senior academic staff: assistant professor, associate professor, professor, or full professor. In principle, junior researchers are appointed as assistant professor on the tenure track for a period of 5 years; after this period and a positive evaluation, they are permanently appointed as an associate professor. 
• You will work in Leuven, a historic and dynamic and vibrant city located in the heart of Belgium, within twenty minutes from Brussels, the capital of the European Union, and less than two hours from Paris, London, and Amsterdam. 
• KU Leuven is well set to welcome foreign professors and their family and provides practical support regarding immigration and administration, housing, childcare, learning Dutch, partner career coaching, …
• To facilitate scientific onboarding and accelerate research in the first phase a starting grant of 110.000 euro is offered to new professors (subject to eligibility criteria). 

More information

Call Research professorships (BOFZAP)
Procedure application and selection

Interested?

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