Scientific Officer Respiratory Viruses and Legionella

Vacancy
Unit: Disease Programmes (DPR)
Reference: ECDC/FGIV/2024/DPR-SORVL
Contract type: contract agent
Grade: FG IV
Deadline:

Is this job for you?  

Are you a public health professional eager to make a real impact on respiratory infections and legionnaire’s disease? ECDC is searching for a new team member to coordinate activities of the EU Reference Laboratory for Legionnaire’s Disease, and to contribute to near-real time surveillance systems.

What will you do? 

You will work in the Respiratory Virus and Legionella section in the Disease Programmes unit. To find out more about what the unit does, visit https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/about-us/ecdcs-organisational-structure.

Reporting to the Head of Section Respiratory viruses and Legionella, you will be part of a team of approximately 12 staff.
 

In this position, you will have a wide variety of tasks that will give you the opportunity to:

  • Coordinate the activities of the EU Reference Laboratory (EURL) for public health on Legionella; 
  • Contribute to the performance of near-real time surveillance of Travel-Associated Legionnaires’ Disease; 
  • Support the development and implementation of ECDC guidance on genomic surveillance of Legionella;
  • Support the Legionnaires’ disease network coordination, including preparation, organisation and follow-up of meetings; 
  • Liaise with relevant national and international bodies involved in Legionnaires’ Disease prevention and control; 
  • Contribute to the gradual integration of wastewater monitoring data on respiratory viruses into the EU surveillance of these pathogens; 
  • Contribute to the weekly monitoring of respiratory viruses and to the routine surveillance of legionnaires’ disease in the EU;
  • Contribute to risk assessments on respiratory viruses and legionnaires’ disease; 
  • Provide support to scientific studies and other disease-specific projects; 
  • Contribute to other activities of ECDC within your field of competence, as required, including public health emergency response and the 24/7 duty system. 

Administrative and operational tasks in the job mostly relate to developing public procurement procedures for outsourcing research and analysis tasks, such as scientific studies and technical reports, providing strategic direction to external contractors and monitoring the quality of their work.

What are we looking for?

Formal requirements

For your application to be considered eligible you must fulfil all the following requirements by the application deadline:

  • A level of education which corresponds to completed university studies of at least 3 years attested by a diploma[1];
  • Thorough knowledge of one of the official EU languages and a satisfactory knowledge of another official EU language to the extent necessary for the performance of your duties [2]
  • Nationality of one of the EU Member States or of Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and to be entitled to your full rights as a citizen;
  • To have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the applicable laws on military service;
  • Meet the character requirements for the duties involved[3]; and
  • Be physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post.

You will need to provide appropriate documents to show that you meet all of the above criteria.

Selection criteria

For your application to be evaluated further, you will also need:

  • At least 3 years, (following the award of the diploma), of professional experience acquired in positions relevant to the job description;
  • Formal training in public health, microbiology, epidemiology or related topic (e.g. academic degree, field epidemiology/public health microbiology training programme such as EUPHEM/EPIET, post-graduate training with a substantial public health component); 
  • Proven knowledge of public health microbiology and testing techniques for different pathogens (including Legionella) from clinical and environmental sources;
  • Understanding of different surveillance techniques, including wastewater monitoring;
  • Good understanding of genomic surveillance (different methods and pipelines);
  • Public health experience in the area of communicable disease prevention and control, including networking and communication with stakeholders; 
  • Proven experience in project management; 
  • Experience and skills in writing reports and delivering oral presentations; 
  • Excellent command of English, both written and spoken.
     

Additionally, we will assess the following competencies:

  • Ability to take initiative; 
  • Quality-driven; 
  • Organisational skills and ability to manage responsibilities under routine conditions as well as under pressure; 
  • Attention to detail and ability to perform routine tasks;
  • Ability to work collaboratively in an international, multi-cultural team; 
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills.

Depending on the number of applications received, the selection committee may apply stricter requirements within the aforementioned selection criteria.

Why ECDC?

You will play an active role in making a tangible difference in public health. 

At ECDC you will join a team of more than 400 colleagues with diverse backgrounds and professions who work together for the common goal of helping countries to prevent and respond to outbreaks and public health threats. Every position at ECDC plays an important part, and we cooperate closely for our collective goals. 

ECDC is an equal opportunities employer and encourages applications from all suitably qualified candidates without any distinction on grounds of age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, ethnic or social origin, religion, or belief. 

As an ECDC staff member, you will have the chance to work on or support initiatives impacting the health and well-being of people in Europe. You will have access to the latest European-level surveillance data and dedicated expertise in your field, collaborate with various experts and organisations across Europe and beyond, and you will be part of public health-relevant infectious disease networks. 

You will be joining ECDC at interesting times. In October 2022, the European Parliament endorsed an extended mandate that will allow ECDC to adopt a stronger role in supporting EU Member States in the prevention and control of infectious disease threats and improve European preparedness and response. This includes real-time surveillance systems, mobilising an EU Health Task Force to assist local responses in Member States and building a network of EU reference laboratories. 
 

What can we offer you

We offer a competitive salary and a range of benefits, including health insurance, learning opportunities and flexible work arrangements such as flexible working hours and teleworking in the Stockholm area for part of the week. Additionally, you can work up to 10 days a year from outside the Stockholm area.

Depending on your experience, the monthly basic salary usually starts at € 4.102 and may be supplemented by various allowances including, as applicable, expatriation and/or generous family allowances. Salary is exempt from national tax and instead an Agency tax is deducted. We also provide financial support when relocating to Stockholm.

Our benefits package is designed to support a healthy work-life balance, and we are committed to creating a supportive and inclusive work environment that values the well-being of our employees. 

Learn more about the benefits of joining ECDC here: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/about-ecdc/work-ecdc/staff-positions/what-we-offer 

How does our selection process work?

Our selection process takes, on average, three months from the application deadline. All selection processes include a remote written test and a video conference interview; some selection processes may include additional steps.

After a candidate has been selected for the position, additional shortlisted candidates can be placed on a reserve list. The reserve list may be used when ECDC needs to fill similar positions at the same level in the future. The reserve list is valid until 31 December 2025 and may be extended.

Visit https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/about-us/work-with-us/internal-procedure-recruitment-selection for an overview of the different steps in the selection process and see the ECDC-candidate-guide.pdf (europa.eu) for a detailed explanation of the selection and recruitment process. 

When starting a new contract under the EU staff regulations, all new staff must successfully complete a probationary period of nine months.

How do you apply?

To apply for this vacancy, please create/ log in to your ECDC e-recruitment user account.

See detailed instructions on how to apply here: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/Candidate-E-recruitment-user-guide.pdf

Please submit your application well ahead of the deadline in case of technical issues and/or heavy traffic on the website. After submitting your application, you will receive an automatic email message confirming receipt of your application. Ensure that the email address you provide for your applicant account is correct and that you check your email regularly.

ECDC does not accept applications submitted after the deadline or applications submitted by email, mail or any other means.

Translations of this vacancy notice in all EU languages can be obtained by using the automatic translation function on this website.

Note

While this vacancy notice can be translated into all official EU languages from its English original, the language of day-to-day operations in the Agency is generally English. ECDC therefore prefers to receive the application in English.

Disclaimer: Please note that in the event of any differences in meaning or interpretation between the original English version of this content and a translation, the original English version takes precedence

We welcome your application!

[1] Only diplomas and certificates that have been awarded in EU member states or that are the subject of equivalence certificates issued by authorities in the said Member States shall be taken into consideration

[2] Candidates with a non-official EU language or English as their mother tongue must provide proof of their level of a second language with a certificate (B1 or more).     

[3] Prior to the appointment, the successful candidate will be asked to provide a certificate from the police file to the effect of non-existing criminal record.