The NORPOD programme
What is NORPOD?
The NORPOD Postdoctoral Programme is an initiative of the Nordic EMBL Partnership designed to promote interdisciplinary research and collaboration in molecular medicine across its four nodes. It supports the NORPOD Fellows mobility as well as the exchange of expertise among researchers, and institutions, helping to connect strengths in areas such as precision medicine, infection genomics, and neuroscience. Through NORPOD, fellows gain access to training, career development, and international research opportunities within the EMBL network.
The programme, funded by NordForsk, aims to strengthen translational research, innovation, and leadership in molecular medicine to advance our understanding of health and disease.
Uniqueness
The NORPOD Programme is unique in that each fellow is jointly hosted by two Nordic EMBL Partnership nodes, working under the guidance of complementary supervisors to foster true cross-institutional and interdisciplinary collaboration.
Training
Through a diverse range of training activities, NORPOD helps fellows grow as adaptable and highly skilled scientists, well equipped to navigate complex research.
Mentorship
Due to the Partnership’s shared values of excellence and collaboration, the NORPOD fellows receive dedicated support and guidance to facilitate their career development and foster a creative, inclusive research culture.
Meet our Fellows
Amanda Munoz-Juan
with Gilles Vanwelleghem (DANDRITE) and Björn Schröder (MIMS)
Amanda started her NORPOD research fellow position in the autumn of 2024 and her project is entitled "Comparative study of gut epithelium dynamics during inflammation".
Sara Palomino Echeverria
with Anniina Färkkilä (FIMM) and Mariike Kuijjer (NCMBM)
Sara started her NORPOD research fellow position in the autumn of 2024 and her project is entitled "Unveiling the spatial regulation of chemoresistance in ovarian cancer".
Lei Xia
with Esa Pitkänen (FIMM) and Biswajyoti Sahu (NCMBM)
Lei started his NORPOD research fellow position in the spring of 2025 and his project is entitled "Novel insights into the cancer genome and epigenome using long-read sequencing and machine learning".
Charlène Sueur
with Biswajyoti Sahu (NCMBM) and Arafath (Rafa) Najumundeen (FIMM)
Charlène started her NORPOD research fellow position in the summer of 2025 and his project is entitled "Revealing the epigenetic history of colon cancer progression (REVEAL)".
Eva D'haene
with Helena Kilpinen (FIMM) and Thomas kim (DANDRITE)
Eva started her NORPOD research fellow position in February 2026 and her project is entitled "Uncovering convergent chromatin dysregulation in neurodevelopmental disorders with systematic phenotyping of in vitro neurons".
Dongkuyn Lim
with Charlotte Boccara (NCMBM) and Thomas kim (DANDRITE)
Dongkyun started his NORPOD research fellow position in March 2026 and his project is entitled "Sleep-Driven Maturation of Interneurons and Glia: Spatial Profiling Across Postnatal Development".
Training courses
The NORPOD Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme offers a range of training opportunities designed to support fellows in developing their research and transferable skills.
Some activities are mandatory, while others are optional and designed to support your professional and personal development. This list of courses will be updated regularly, and fellows will be contacted directly by the NORPOD coordinators when registration opens for each training activity.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) course
with an emphasis on Implicit Bias
Date: 10-11 November 2025
Node: NCMBM by Elizabeth Smethurst
Leadership workshop
Mandatory for NORPOD Fellows
Date: 24-25 March 2026
Node: NCMBM, delivered by Tina Persson's Passage2pro.
From Research to Reach:
Science communications
for Early Career Researchers
Date: TBA
Node: DANDRITE by Rikke Lindhard
Patient Engagement workshop
TBA
Date: 2026
Node: FIMM/NCMBM
Supervisory course
TBA
Date: 2026
Node: DANDRITE by Astrid Munk
Visual communications course
TBA
Date: 2027
Node: FIMM - delivered online
AI tools for research
TBA
Date: 2027
Node:
Grant writing course
Ongoing at each node
Date: Various
Node: DANDRITE, FIMM, MIMS, NCMBM
Events
NORPOD Symposium
Mandatory for NORPOD Fellows
Date: TBA
Node: TBA
Young Investigator Meeting (YIM)
Part of the Nordic EMBL Partnership meeting
Mandatory for NORPOD Fellows
Date: 7 September 2026
Node: MIMS
Next call
A new call will open in 2027
Contact
Any questions relating to the NORPOD Programme should be addressed to:
Saba Parween, Science Manager at MIMS