This project is closed 

The Cyprus Institute (CyI) is a non-profit research and educational institution with a strong scientific and technological orientation, emphasizing international collaborations, cross-disciplinary research, innovation, and post graduate education. CyI, through its established research centres, addresses challenging issues that are important at both the regional and international levels. Many of its research activities are being carried out in partnership with leading institutions in the respective thematic areas.

In the framework of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Doctoral Network CLOUD-DOC (https://www.cloud-motion.eu/cloud-doc), we are now recruiting a Doctoral Researcher, who will be part of a network of 12 PhD candidates enrolled in a European network of academic and private institutions.

The successful applicant will be based at the Graduate School of The Cyprus Institute and at the Climate and Atmosphere Research Centre with secondments to the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz, Germany and CERN. He/she will be enrolled in the PhD program: Energy, Environment and Atmospheric Sciences. 

The Graduate School and the Reserach Center

The Graduate School was established in 2010 and is the educational arm of The Cyprus Institute. It is a fully accredited, degree-granting institution of higher education offering exclusively postgraduate programs. It maintains a small number of students that are fully integrated into the research activities of the institute. This provides the students with the opportunity to acquire hands-on training in the use of the latest methods and techniques, have access to state-of-the-art infrastructure and conduct research with internationally recognized research teams.

The selected candidate will be working at the Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C) of the Cyprus Institute (next to the Athalassa Forestry park, Nicosia), within a highly international environment (100 research staff from 15 different countries).

The Climate and Atmosphere Research Center (CARE-C) was established in January 2020 through funding secured from the European Union’s “Horizon 2020” research and innovation programme (under grant agreement No. 856612) and the Cyprus Government, and resources from the Cyprus Institute to research and prepare to solution for the effects of climate change in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East (EMME) region.

The Center carries out a combination of research, innovation and education activities, working in collaboration with international networks of leading academic institutions and thought leaders, and taking advantage of cutting-edge local environmental monitoring facilities.

CARE-C is acting as a knowledge hub for environmental and climate change research, fostering the creation of innovative and sustainable solutions that can help address the challenges facing the EMME region.

Project Description

The position will be associated with the Marie Curie International Training Network CLOUD-DOC that focuses on utilizing the CLOUD facility in CERN for collecting on aerosol and cloud microphysics. The data will be utilized to develop and evaluate models simulating atmospheric processes and addressing questions related to climate evolution and air quality.   

CLOUD focuses on understanding atmospheric nucleation, which is an important source of aerosol particles in the atmosphere. These particles can influence cloud microphysics through acting as seeds for cloud droplets. Clouds, in turn, can influence atmospheric chemistry particle formation processes through e.g. their role in transporting trace gases from the Earth’s surface to the upper troposphere or influencing the atmospheric radiative balance.

The PhD project will be focused on the climate impacts of new particle formation in the upper troposphere (UT) over the Asian monsoon and tropical rain forest regions. The research will be based on development and application of the EMAC Earth System Model. The aim will be to quantify the effects of synergistic multi-acid nucleation (from CLOUD measurements) with convective transport of ammonia over the Asian monsoon region, as well as aerosol cloud and radiation interactions following nucleation of biogenic compounds based on CLOUD parameterisations over the tropical rain forest.

The candidate will be trained to use and develop complex global chemistry and climate model codes, including the use of national super-computers, parallel programming for high performance computing, big data analysis, model version control, debugging, and visualisation.

Qualification requirements

  -- Master degree in Atmospheric Sciences, Physics, Chemistry, Engineering or related field.

  -- Basic knowledge of environmental physics and chemistry.

  -- Excellent knowledge of the English language, both verbal and writing.

  -- Knowledge of programming languages (e.g. FORTRAN, Python).

  -- Independent thinking.

  -- Strong analytical and organizational skills.

  -- High interpersonal skills and ability to work in a team.

Eligibility criteria for the applicants

Mobility Rule: researchers must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the recruiting beneficiary for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their recruitment date. Compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays, and time spent as part of a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention are not taken into account. For international European research organisations, international organisations, or entities created under Union law, recruited researchers must not have spent more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their date of recruitment in the same appointing organisation.

Note that the mobility rule applies to the (first) beneficiary where the researcher is recruited. In case of multiple recruitments, the mobility rule only applies to the first recruitment.

Researchers are recruited for minimum 3 and maximum 36 months. They must be enrolled in a doctoral programme and should work full-time on the project.

Eligible Researchers

All researchers recruited in a DN must be doctoral candidates (i.e. not already in possession of a doctoral degree at the date of the recruitment) and undertake transnational mobility (see the mobility rule definition in section 1). Researchers who have successfully defended their doctoral thesis but who have not yet formally been awarded the doctoral degree will not be considered eligible. For all recruitments, the eligibility of the researcher will be determined at the date of their first recruitment in the action.

Application Process

Applicants should refer to the CyI website under the PhD in Energy, Environment and Atmospheric Sciences Admissions section for additional information about the application process.

Kindly note that applications should be sent through the online application system of The Cyprus Institute Graduate School. When applying through the online application, in Step 2 of the application under the section ‘Scholarship or Financial Aid’, applicants should select ‘Specific PhD Project’ and they should enter the project reference code: GS-EAS-MTACF-22-1 in order to be considered for the position.

Application Deadline: 1 December, 2022

Contact Information

For further information, please contact Associate Professor Dr. Theodoros Christoudias (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). For more information about postgraduate studies at The Cyprus Institute and admission requirements, please contact the Office of Graduate Studies of The Cyprus Institute at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or at tel: +357 22208614.