Entry Level
PhD student - climate driver attribution (R1)
Reference: 407_26_ES_CVC_R1 Job title: PhD student - climate driver attribution (R1)
About BSC
The Barcelona Supercomputing Center - Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS) is the leading supercomputing center in Spain. It houses MareNostrum, one of the most powerful supercomputers in Europe, was a founding and hosting member of the former European HPC infrastructure PRACE (Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe), and is now hosting entity for EuroHPC JU, the Joint Undertaking that leads large-scale investments and HPC provision in Europe. The mission of BSC is to research, develop and manage information technologies in order to facilitate scientific progress. BSC combines HPC service provision and R&D into both computer and computational science (life, earth and engineering sciences) under one roof, and currently has over 1000 staff from 60 countries.
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We are particularly interested for this role in the strengths and lived experiences of women and underrepresented groups to help us avoid perpetuating biases and oversights in science and IT research. In instances of equal merit, the incorporation of the under-represented sex will be favoured.
We promote Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, fostering an environment where each and every one of us is appreciated for who we are, regardless of our differences.
If you consider that you do not meet all the requirements, we encourage you to continue applying for the job offer. We value diversity of experiences and skills, and you could bring unique perspectives to our team.
Context And Mission
This position is hosted by the Climate Variability and Change (CVC) Group within BSC's Earth Science Department. The CVC Group undertakes fundamental research to (1) understand climate variability and change, including for climate extremes, (2) investigate global biogeochemical dynamics, and the effectiveness and impacts of carbon removal technologies to mitigate climate change, (3) developing new Earth System modeling capabilities, and (4) improving our ability to forecast the climate variations from one month to multiple decades into the future, both at global and regional scales.
The CVC Group is looking for a talented scientist who wishes to undertake a PhD on understanding the drivers of climate extremes and their changes using data-driven / explainable AI methods. The successful candidate will develop and apply AI-based methods to understand the role and contributions of different processes in driving and amplifying climate extremes, and evaluate the driver contributions in climate model simulations compared to observational data. Based on the understanding of drivers and their representation in climate models, the successful candidate will further develop constraints for improved future predictions and projections of changes in climate extremes. The offered position will contribute to the Horizon Europe project EXPECT (https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101137656).
Key Duties
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Undertake original research to understand the drivers European summer extremes and their long-term changes
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Adjust and apply data-driven tools for predicting climate extremes and quantifying the roles of different drivers
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Analyse existing climate model experiments (e.g. from CMIP6, CMIP7 and the Single Forcing Large Ensemble Model Intercomparison Project, LESFMIP)
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Support EU and national research projects on the subject
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Develop a PhD thesis covering topics related to understanding the drivers of climate extremes and their changes
Requirements
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Education
- Master’s degree in atmospheric or climate science, physics, applied mathematics, or a related discipline
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Essential Knowledge and Professional Experience
- Knowledge of key processes related to climate variability and climate change
- Experience in the analysis of climate model experiments
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English
- Ability to work in a professional environment and within a multidisciplinary research team
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Additional Knowledge and Professional Experience
- Knowledge and experience in the analysis of climate extremes
- Experience in HPC environments will be valued
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Competences
- Proficiency in working in a Linux environment (including shell programming)
- Some knowledge of programming languages for data analysis and post processing (e.g. Python, R, MATLAB, NCO, CDO)
Conditions
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The position will be located at BSC within the Earth Sciences Department
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We offer a full-time contract (35h/week), a good working environment, a highly stimulating environment with state-of-the-art infrastructure, flexible working hours, extensive training plan, restaurant tickets, private health insurance, support to the relocation procedures
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Duration: Open-ended contract due to technical and scientific activities linked to the project and budget duration
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Holidays: 22 days of holidays + 6 personal days + 24th and 31st of December per our collective agreement
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Salary: we offer a competitive salary commensurate with the qualifications and experience of the candidate and according to the cost of living in Barcelona
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Starting date: 01/10/2026
Applications procedure and process
All applications must be submitted via the BSC website and contain:
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A full CV in English including contact details
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A cover/motivation letter with a statement of interest in English, clearly specifying for which specific area and topics the applicant wishes to be considered. Additionally, two references for further contacts must be included. Applications without this document will not be considered.
Development of the recruitment process
The selection will be carried out through a competitive examination system ("Concurso-Oposición"). The recruitment process consists of two phases:
- Curriculum Analysis: Evaluation of previous experience and/or scientific history, degree, training, and other professional information relevant to the position. - 40 points
- Interview phase: The highest-rated candidates at the curriculum level will be invited to the interview phase, conducted by the corresponding department and Human Resources. In this phase, technical competencies, knowledge, skills, and professional experience related to the position, as well as the required personal competencies, will be evaluated. - 60 points. A minimum of 30 points out of 60 must be obtained to be eligible for the position.
The recruitment panel will be composed of at least three people, ensuring at least 25% representation of women.
In accordance with OTM-R principles, a gender-balanced recruitment panel is formed for each vacancy at the beginning of the process. After reviewing the content of the applications, the panel will begin the interviews, with at least one technical and one administrative interview. At a minimum, a personality questionnaire as well as a technical exercise will be conducted during the process.
The panel will make a final decision, and all individuals who participated in the interview phase will receive feedback with details on the acceptance or rejection of their profile.
At BSC, we seek continuous improvement in our recruitment processes. For any suggestions or comments/complaints about our recruitment processes, please contact recruitment [at] bsc [dot] es. For more information, please follow this link.
Deadline
The vacancy will remain open until a suitable candidate has been hired. Applications will be regularly reviewed and potential candidates will be contacted.
OTM-R principles for selection processes
BSC-CNS is committed to the principles of the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers of the European Commission and the Open, Transparent and Merit-based Recruitment principles (OTM-R). This is applied for any potential candidate in all our processes, for example by creating gender-balanced recruitment panels and recognizing career breaks etc. BSC-CNS is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We are pleased to consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or any other basis protected by applicable state or local law. For more information follow this link
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