Do you want to understand and design how cutting-edge AI technologies are used in educational settings? Do you have an affinity for getting hands-on with your research topics, from field research to participatory methods to co-creating prototypes? Apply for this position for the opportunity to conduct design-led research on a major societal concern within an EU wide doctoral training network with university and industry secondments.

We are seeking a highly motivated doctoral candidate to join our research team as part of a prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) doctoral network: AlignAI. The AlignAI doctoral network aims to train doctoral candidates to develop, evaluate, and engage with Large Language Models (LLMs). It focuses on aligning these models with human values to ensure their development and deployment are ethically sound and socially beneficial. By integrating expertise from social sciences, humanities, and technical disciplines, the project will address critical issues such as explainability and fairness, thereby ensuring LLMs contribute positively to education, mental health, and news consumption.

In this position, the doctoral candidate will evaluate, design for, and forecast scenarios in which generative AI (gAI) technologies are or could be used in design-based education. This will be informed by the network-wide goal of value-alignment, and an in-depth understanding of the design and education opportunities and constraints these technologies hold. Potential results are a (1) competency framework (e.g., theoretical knowledge, skills, attitude) that design-based gAI education can or indeed should promote, and (2) a portfolio of gAI education futures that feature novel methods and tools for developing and designing gAI based on doctoral research.

The doctoral candidate will need to apply methods from design-led and qualitative research to philosophy of technology, philosophy of education, and/or related disciplines. They will also need to learn about contemporary LLM applications not only in education, but also how their effects across mental health concerns and online news consumption shapes education needs. Thus, the ideal candidate will have an interdisciplinary background that spans several of the aforementioned disciplines, and that demonstrates a clear interest in AI technology and its societal impact. At the same time, the candidate will have the necessary language, communication, and analytic skills to produce research of publishable quality.

The doctoral candidate will be supervised by Prof. Stephan Wensveen and embedded within the cluster Designing with Intelligence, Department of Industrial Design, Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). Additional supervision will be provided within the AlignAI doctoral network by Jürgen Neises (Fujitsu) and Prof. Anna Keune (TU München). The candidate will be expected to contribute actively and positively to the design and AI research communities in Eindhoven, as well as to attend workshops, summer schools, and research visits at AlignAI partner institutions.

This position is one of four PhD positions being offered at TU/e through the AlignAI doctoral network, the others being in Human Technology Interaction (Martijn Willemsen) and Philosophy & Ethics group (Carlos Zednik).

• Candidates must have a bachelor and/or master's degree in Industrial Design, Human-Computer Interaction, Design Anthropology or a closely related discipline.
• Applicants must not own a doctoral degree at the date of recruitment.
• Applicants may be of any nationality, but must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the recruitment date.
• Candidates must be able to work in an interdisciplinary team and interested in collaborating with industrial partners.
• Candidates must be motivated to develop their teaching skills and coach students.
• Candidates must be fluent in spoken and written English (C1 level).

Eligibility criteria

• Supported researchers must be doctoral candidates, i.e. not already in possession of a doctoral degree at the date of the recruitment.
• Recruited researchers can be of any nationality and must comply with the following mobility rule: they 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. For 'International European Research Organisations' (IERO), 'international organisations', or entities created under Union law, the researchers must not have spent more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their recruitment in the same appointing organisation. Compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays and time spent by the researcher as part of a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention are not considered.

Selection Procedure

• Application Submission: Applications must be submitted by December 1, 2024.
• Selection Criteria: Candidates will be evaluated based on their academic background, research experience, and alignment with the project's objectives. The selection process will be open, transparent, merit-based, impartial, and equitable.
• Interview: Shortlisted candidates will be invited for a structured interview with predefined questions and a scoring system.
• Reserve List: A reserve list of top candidates may be created for future opportunities.
• Selection Committee: The selection committee will comprise diverse experts ensuring gender balance, nationality diversity, and relevant experience.

A meaningful job in a dynamic and ambitious university, in an interdisciplinary setting and within an international network. You will work on a beautiful, green campus within walking distance of the central train station. In addition, we offer you:

• Full-time employment for four years, with an intermediate evaluation (go/no-go) after nine months.
• Salary and benefits (such as a pension scheme, paid pregnancy and maternity leave, partially paid parental leave) in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, scale P (gross salary from €2,872 (1st year) to €3,670 (4th year)).
• A year-end bonus of 8.3% and annual vacation pay of 8%.
• This salary and bonus are in accordance with the MSCA regulations for Doctoral Researchers and will be paid from the relevant monthly gross allowances (gross living allowance € 3.400 per month; gross mobility allowance € 600 per month; gross family allowance € 660 per month, only if applicable).
• High-quality training programs and other support to grow into a self-aware, autonomous scientific researcher. At TU/e we challenge you to take charge of your own learning process.
• An excellent technical infrastructure, on-campus children's day care and sports facilities.
• An allowance for commuting, working from home and internet costs.
• A Staff Immigration Team and a tax compensation scheme (the 30% facility) for international candidates. 

About us

Eindhoven University of Technology is an internationally top-ranking university in the Netherlands that combines scientific curiosity with a hands-on attitude. Our spirit of collaboration translates into an open culture and a top-five position in collaborating with advanced industries. Fundamental knowledge enables us to design solutions for the highly complex problems of today and tomorrow. 

Information

Do you recognize yourself in this profile and would you like to know more?
Please contact the hiring manager, prof.dr.ir. Stephan Wensveen at S.A.G.Wensveen@tue.nl.

Visit our website for more information about the application process or the conditions of employment. You can also contact HR Services ID, HRServices.id@tue.nl.

Are you inspired and would like to know more about working at TU/e? Please visit our career page.

Application

We invite you to submit a complete application by using the apply button.
The application should include a:

• Cover letter in which you describe your motivation and qualifications for the position.
• Curriculum vitae, including a list of your publications, portfolio of designs/inspiration and the contact information of three references.
   

We look forward to receiving your application and will screen it as soon as possible. The vacancy will remain open until the position is filled.