Are you that researcher that likes to work on the physiology of plants grown under fully controlled conditions? Do you want to contribute in research to substantially reduce energy in greenhouses and even improve production and product quality.
The chair group Horticulture and Product Physiology of Wageningen University & Research (WUR) is offering a PhD position which is the opportunity you are looking for.
Dutch greenhouse horticulture is world leading The use of energy for lighting is the main bottleneck to decrease energy use in greenhouses. LEDs open up exciting new possibilities. The ultimate goal of this project is to substantially reduce energy use in greenhouses by optimizing the spectrum of LED light, while maintaining or even improving production and product quality. This project seeks to study the important scientific and application questions to optimally make use of additional farred to supplemental red/blue LED light. Our group recently published a paper about this subject (Ji et al., 2020, New Phytologist) (https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nph.16805).
You will be conducting greenhouse and climate room experiments and determine yield and underlying components as well as some fruit quality parameters, Experiment-specific measurements involve fruit sink strength (potential fruit growth rate), expression of target genes, plant architecture, leaf photosynthesis rates at prevailing light using portable gas exchange measurement equipment and chlorophyll fluorescence imaging. These measurements all contribute to the understanding of the physiological and morphological regulation of FR effects on plant growth and yield.

• A PhD candidate with an MSc degree in Plant Sciences, Plant Biology or a related discipline;
• Experience in environmental plant physiology is required;
• A proven ability to develop experimental methodology related to environmental plant physiology is expected;
• The proven ability to think in physiological and molecular concepts;
• You are a result-driven team player with creative ideas and excellent communication skills;
• You have excellent communication skills as well as good proficiency in English (both oral and written). You are required to show us a certification of English skills. For more information about the required level please take a look at: https://www.wur.nl/en/Education-Programmes/PhD-Programme/English-language-requirements.htm;

We are offering an exciting and challenging PhD position
Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• sabbatical leave, study leave, and paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• the option to accrue additional flexible hours by working more, up to 40 hours per week;
• 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 fully funded PhD position and you will be offered a course program tailored to your needs and the research team.
The gross salary for the first year is € 2.395,- per month rising to € 3.061,- in the fourth year in according to the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale P). This is based on a full-time working week of 38 hours. We offer a temporary contract for 18 months which will be extended for the duration of the project if you perform well.

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 16th 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. Applicants from abroad moving to the Netherlands may qualify for a special tax relief, known as the 30% ruling. 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 helping your partner to find a job, housing, schooling, and other issues.

Wageningen University & Research

Wageningen University & Research The mission of Wageningen University and 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, 6.500 employees and 12.500 students, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. An integrated approach to problems and the cooperation between various disciplines are at the heart of Wageningen's unique approach. WUR has been named Best Employer in the Education category for 2019-2020.

These are the points our employees list as good reasons to come work at WUR: read the 5 reasons to come work at WUR.

The chair group Horticulture & Product Physiology
The chair group Horticulture and Product Physiology conducts high impact research and educates students providing the scientific basis required to answer questions that are of utmost importance for sustainable crop production and product quality in horticulture.
The research focus is on how physiological processes in crops, plants and plant organs interact with the abiotic environment and how this affects crop production and product quality. Questions arising from horticultural practice are translated into fundamental research topics, aiming to explain mechanisms. The research and education contributes to sustainably feeding the World with healthy high-quality products.
The chair group is an international team consisting of 14 permanent staff members, about 25 PhD candidates and postdocs and a number of guest researchers. Each year about 40 MSc students conduct their thesis study (a 6-month research) at our group. We organize and participate in a variety of courses for BSc and MSc students to transfer knowledge on horticulture (pre- and post-harvest), environmental physiology and product quality.
More info about the chair group can be found at www.hpp.wur.nl or see the video below;
(66) Visiting the Farm of the Future - YouTube