Are you interested in developing urban design solutions that address urban water bodies and their infrastructures? Are you passionate about smartly combining different functions in your designs? Do you have experience in designing urban water environments? If yes, check our new EngD vacancy!

We are currently seeking for two EngD candidates to develop multifunctional prototypes of urban quay wall environments, for two spatial types. This specific vacancy has a focus on the design of multifunctional solutions in wider profiles regarding the combination of canals and adjacent open spaces. In the EngD project you will first develop designs that maximally meet the criteria for multifunctionality, and successively bring them to a practically implementable level for the test sites of Amsterdam municipality.

In this 2-year project, you work will mainly entail the following tasks:

• Investigate sub-typologies of quay walls and their typical environments (including adjacent street profiles, buildings, etc.) together with the municipality of Amsterdam and other stakeholders.
• Create multifunctional designs for the quay wall and its local environment (street profile scale), taking into account functions of (a.o.) urban climate adaptation, biodiversity enhancement, traffic systems, energy utilities, cultural heritage. Via a backcasting method, develop design options geared at the implementation firstly for projects in which quay walls will be entirely redesigned and secondly for projects in which the quay walls will be renovated. These designs will serve as input for (re-) constructing the real-life test sites that are concurrently developed by the municipality of Amsterdam.
• Follow an extensive array of courses (about 60 ECTS) within the WU EngD programme as well as specific self-chosen courses that are geared towards optimal support of your EngD project.

This project is embedded in a large Dutch national ‘growth fund’ (in Dutch ‘Nationaal Groeifonds’) project called “Future Proof Living Environment -Infra- Multifunctional Quay Walls”. In this project, you will also interact with the stakeholders from Amsterdam municipality, partners from the Advanced Metropolitan Solutions Institute as well as many consortium partners from the project who will advise in your design process.

The research takes place in the chairgroup Landscape Architecture within the Environmental Sciences group of Wageningen University which is led by prof. dr. Sanda Lenzholzer.

You have:

• a successfully completed MSc degree (before 1.10.2024) in urban design, landscape architecture, urban environmental management or related fields;
• experience in designing with water in an urban context
• a strong interest in multifunctional design with the ability to turn conflicting functions into innovative solutions
• an ability to collaborate and interact with societal, municipal and industry stakeholders;
• excellent communication skills that meets different communication and knowledge levels amongst a variety of societal stakeholders and academic partners
• creative, innovative, eager to learn and persistent;
• be able and ready to start this EngD position no later than 1.10.2024;
• experience in using GIS, 3D drawing software (e.g. AutoCAD, Vectorworks) and visualization software of the Adobe package;
• For this position your command of the English language is expected to be at C1 level. Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found here. Additionally, a good command of the Dutch language at least at B2 level is highly recommended.

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• partially paid parental leave;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed December bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will receive a good salary. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of € 2,618,- for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU). Initially, we offer you a half-year contract, which will then be extended to a two year contract in case the ‘go’ in the EngD trajectory has been issued. Of course, we would be happy to discuss this with you if you have any questions.

Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a unique position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

You are going to work at the greenest and most innovative campus in Holland, and at a university that has been chosen as the “Best University” in the Netherlands for the 19th consecutive time.

Coming from abroad
Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.

Because we expect you to work and live in the Netherlands our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, we can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example helping your partner to find a job, housing, or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.

Wageningen University & Research

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte) and 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch the video below to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.