We are looking for a PhD candidate who will develop state-of-the-art targeted anti-cancer therapeutics and wants to obtain transferable and future career-enhancing skills.

We are looking for a PhD student (AIO) in synthetic organic chemistry who will develop novel click reactions for targeted anti-cancer therapies. Despite improvements in prevention and treatments over the past decades, cancer is still the second leading cause of death globally. Whilst survival rates have improved markedly for certain cancers, others are still linked to high mortality rates, thus highlighting the urgent need for the development of new therapeutic tools. With eight approved drugs on the market, of which four in just the past 12 months, Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs) are a fast growing class of oncology therapeutics. They consist of a highly potent cytotoxic drug connected via a linker to an antibody that is specifically targeting certain tumor markers. By combining the cytotoxicity of the drug and the targeting properties of the antibody, ADCs selectively kill cancer cells over healthy cells, thus broadening the effective therapeutic window with regard to conventional chemotherapy. Nevertheless, limitations in ADC design still exist which fuels the development of new generation ADCs.

• You are highly driven and extremely curious. "Why?" is a question you often ask, both inside and outside of science;
• you have an MSc degree (or equivalent) in Organic Chemistry;
• you have a strong background and solid hands-on experience in organic synthesis and/or chemical biology, and a strong interest (preferentially experience) in biochemistry (specifically expression, purification and conjugation of proteins);• You aim to excel, and your biggest talents are creativity, persistence and being inquisitive. Your affinity for the collaborative nature of the project, and good written and oral communication skills in English (minimally IELTS 6.5 or TOEFL 90) are crucial for the successful development of this study.
• you are willing to participate in various communication activities towards non-scientific public;
• you have not resided or carried out your main activity (e.g. studies) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months in the last 3 years;
• you are able to start on October 1st, 2020.

Only applications that clearly show these facets will be considered.

We offer you a challenging position for a period of 1.5 years with extension of 2.5 years after successful evaluation. Gross salary per month € 2325,- in the first year rising up to € 2972,- per month in the fourth year.
In addition, we offer:

• 8% holiday allowance;
• a structural end-of year bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent training opportunities and secondary employment conditions;
• flexible working hours that we determine together in good consultation;
• excellent pension plan through ABP;
• 232 vacation hours, the option to purchase extra and good supplementary leave schemes, e.g. the possibility to work a maximum of 2 hours per week extra for extra leave;
• a flexible model to put together part of your employment conditions yourself, such as a bicycle plan;
• a lively workplace on the Wageningen Campus;
• use of the sports facilities on campus for a small fee.

Wageningen University & Research stimulates internal career opportunities and mobility with our internal recruitment policy. There are ample opportunities for personal initiative in a learning environment. With us you get a versatile job in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

Wageningen University & Research

The Organic Chemistry group (www.orc.wur.nl) constitutes a large, interdisciplinary research team involved in teaching and research on organic chemistry, with an emphasis on surface-based reactivity, click reactions and bioconjugation chemistry. Our group excels in the field and aims to continue to do so. The team consists of around 20 PhD students and postdocs, a permanent staff of 7 technical employees, three part-time professors with external expertise, 5 assistant and associate professors, and one chair (many of whom have received highly competitive national and ERC personal grants). The new laboratory is extremely well-equipped with a unique set of analysis instruments for bio-organic chemistry. In addition to this, the embedding within Wageningen University & Research adds ample biological context for our chemical tools. Currently ca. 1700 students/year take part in one or more Organic Chemistry study elements provided by our faculty.

The mission of our University is to explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life. Within Wageningen University & Research, nine specialized research institutes from the Wageningen Research Foundation and Wageningen University have joined forces to help answer the most important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment.

With approximately 30 locations, 6,500 employees, and 12,000 students, it is one of the leading organizations in its domain worldwide. An integrated approach to problems and the cooperation between various disciplines are at the heart of the unique approach of Wageningen. We have been named Best Employer in Education category 2019-2020.

Click here for more information about working at Wageningen University & Research.
More information about Wageningen Campus you can find here.