Jobs:Job-01873

PhD opportunity in Process Sedimentology, Univ. Bern

University of Bern, , Switzerland
Apply before: 1 November 2025

Posting: Position: PhD student Apply before: 1 November 2025 See attached file: Sedimentology2025.pdf

We are looking for a motivated PhD student in sedimentology with a focus on shallow marine clastic deposits. The proposed research addresses how these sedimentary rocks can record environmental conditions in the past. The project will involve intensive fieldwork in Switzerland, computational analyses of sedimentary bedform morphometries, and a strong interest for process-sedimentology. We particularly aim at quantifying the sizes of waves and the strengths of tidal currents recorded by the 20 Ma-old sedimentary structures (wave ripples, crossbeds, grain size) in the Molasse foreland basin adjacent to the Swiss Alps.

The tasks include logging of sedimentological sections, measuring of sedimentary structures and bedforms, reconstructions of facies relationships and applications of concepts in paleo-hydraulics to reconstruct the wave climate and tidal strengths recorded by the 20 Ma-old sediments. The PhD student will receive a strong training in field observations, facies analyasis, computational sedimentology and statistics. The project is based at the University of Bern, but a semester at Imperial College London is also foreseen.

The PhD student will be supervised by Prof. F. Schlunegger, University of Bern, and Prof. A. Whittaker, Imperial College London.

How do I apply?
Send application materials to Prof. Schlunegger (fritz.schlunegger@unibe.ch)

What materials to I need to send?

CV, letter outlining motivation for applying, transcript of Ms-studies including documentation of Ms degree (precondition for PhD), names of two referees

Deadline for application: 1.11.2025

For how long is the PhD project funded?
4 years

When does the project start?

January 1st 2026.

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Of interest for:

Terrestrial Working Group

Coastal Working Group

Hydrology Focus Research Group