The PhD school SAFE at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Aarhus, is growing rapidly. The school is currently advertising 23 new PhD research fellowships. Once the positions are filled, the number of PhD students registered at SAFE will amount to 80 and the school will be one step closer its goal of 200 PhD students.

SAFE was established less than a year ago and has since its start been sought after. When the first 37 fellowships were posted the result was 1.300 applications from all corners of the globe. In general, the PhD school SAFE is very internationally oriented.

- With about 50 percent foreigners we have a large proportion of PhD students from other countries compared to the other faculties at the University of Aarhus. DJF has always had a strong international focus and that is reflected in the PhD school, says PhD administrator Bo Kjelde.

The new school for scientists will offer PhD courses within DJF’s various main areas, including biotechnology, agricultural engineering, plant science, animal science, nutrition, and food science. The school also offers more basic courses in subjects such as biostatistics and research ethics.

The fellowships being offered currently, and which are expected to start this autumn, cover a wide range of topics. “Killer” slugs, yellow rust in wheat, biogas, black currant quality, hot water as a ”fungicide” in apples, and utilisation of phosphorus in cattle are but a few of the subjects with which coming PhD students can work.

The SAFE research fellows are not the only PhD students to be found at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences. The faculty also has about 80 PhD students from other faculties and universities, but who carry out their research and are taught and guided by scientists at DJF.

For more information please contact: PhD administrator Bo Kjelde, Faculty Secretariat, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Aarhus, telephone (+45) 8999 1674, e-mail: Bo.Kjelde@agrsci.dk

Text: Janne Hansen