Come and innovate TU Delft education with your PhD research

Job description
TU Delft engineers are expected to contribute to complex practical challenges by designing and investigating cutting-edge solutions to real-life problems. Educating this next generation of engineers requires not only instilling specific knowledge from individual courses, but also integrating these knowledge blocks into a meaningful, richly connected cognitive schemes of knowledge and skills. In the end, various aspects of teaching at TU Delft can and must be designed, implemented, evaluated, and optimized for a seamless continuum of education. The Teaching Academy of the TU Delft has identified this integration, engineering students’ progression and retention of knowledge & skills, as one of the themes in the “Initiative on Innovation in Delft Engineering Education” (IDEE).

The goal of this PhD project is to explore how that seamless integration can be approached and achieved. As a PhD candidate, you will contribute to:

1. Conceptualizing the notion of ‘progression and retention’ of knowledge and skills
2. Identifying factors that impact progression and retention
3. Designing interventions based on these factors and investigating their effects
4. Examining generalizability of the interventions from a single course to different courses even across programs and faculties in addition to promoting interdisciplinary integration for better student learning outcomes.

You will work in a multidisciplinary team of TU Delft staff members and two post-docs in four work packages within the ‘Progression and Retention’ theme.

Institutional setting of this PhD position
This PhD position is part of the Initiative on Innovation in Delft Engineering Education (IDEE). IDEE is a cross-faculty program for innovations and research in engineering education for degree programs at TU Delft. This PhD project is one of the research projects within IDEE at TU Delft. The candidate will work in close vicinity of the other IDEE PhD and PD candidates, supported by Scientific Expert and the TU Delft Teaching Academy.( www.tudelft.nl/idee).

TU Delft Teaching Academy
The Teaching Academy is the network for and by lecturers of TU Delft with the mission to collaboratively enhance engineering education and drive education innovations across faculty boundaries. Learn more about the Teaching Academy here.

Job requirements
We are looking for a motivated PhD candidate who:

• Either has a background in one of the social sciences such as Educational Studies or Cognitive Psychology and a strong interest in engineering and engineering education (e.g., a BSc in Science or Engineering and a MSc in Social Sciences or Organization Studies), or conversely, a background in science or engineering and a strong interest in education and educational research.
• Is acquainted with the higher educational system, especially in a university context.
• Is committed to doing action research and applying mixed methods in various educational practices.
• Possesses skills to organize the research work in consultation with a multidisciplinary team and to handle the ambiguities, inconsistencies, and uncertainties that come when interacting with multiple stakeholders with different interests and values.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)
Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Applied Sciences
With more than 1,100 employees, including 150 pioneering principal investigators, as well as a population of about 3,600 passionate students, the Faculty of Applied Sciences is an inspiring scientific ecosystem. Focusing on key enabling technologies, such as quantum- and nanotechnology, photonics, biotechnology, synthetic biology and materials for energy storage and conversion, our faculty aims to provide solutions to important problems of the 21st century. To that end, we educate innovative students in broad Bachelor's and specialist Master's programmes with a strong research component. Our scientists conduct ground-breaking fundamental and applied research in the fields of Life and Health Science & Technology, Nanoscience, Chemical Engineering, Radiation Science & Technology, and Engineering Physics. We are also training the next generation of high school teachers.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Applied Sciences.

Conditions of employment
Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from € 2872 per month in the first year to € 3670 in the fourth year. As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

For international applicants, TU Delft has the Coming to Delft Service. This service provides information for new international employees to help you prepare the relocation and to settle in the Netherlands. The Coming to Delft Service offers a Dual Career Programme for partners and they organise events to expand your (social) network.

Additional information
If you would like more information about this vacancy or the selection procedure, please contact Volkert van Steijn, via v.vansteijn@tudelft.nl.

Application procedure
Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than 7 Jan 2025 via the application button and upload the following documents:

• CV
• Motivational letter

You can address your application to Volkert van Steijn.

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.

Please note:

• You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post.
• A pre-employment screening can be part of the selection procedure.
• A knowledge security check will be part of the selection procedure (for details page 45: national knowledge security guidelines).
• Please do not contact us for unsolicited services.