Assistant professor Applied Statistics

Do you have a passion for merging the worlds of life sciences and statistics to drive innovation in plant breeding? Are you committed to educating and mentoring the next generation of scientists and researchers? Then we may be looking for you!

The Biometris group at Wageningen University and Research is looking for an Assistant Professor who will contribute to the development of methodology in the area of Statistical Genetics and Genomics for plant breeding.

As, an Assistant Professor, your duties and responsibilities will be to:

• translate life science problems into statistical modelling questions;
• teaching and examining courses at bachelor’s, master’s and PhD level;
• supervising MSc and PhD students;
• initiating research projects and attracting external funding.

You will enter a career trajectory called Tenure Track, a career path for scientists who pursue to excel in education and research. We seek to attract scientific talent and to stimulate and support their development.

The ideal candidate:

• has a strong track record in research in the area of statistics and/or quantitative biology, to be demonstrated by work done in PhD and postdoc positions;
• is a motivating teacher with proven experience in developing and teaching statistics courses to life scientists, both at elementary and more advanced levels;
• knows how to obtain academic and commercial research grants;
• has good communication skills;
• preferably has a University Teaching Qualification;
• is fluent in English and Dutch;

In our international working environment good command of English is a prerequisite, candidates should preferentially have a C2 language level. Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found here.

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

• sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially 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 compensation / holiday 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 be offered a fixed-term, 7 year contract which, upon positive evaluation based on criteria elaborated in the University's Tenure Track policy, can lead to a permanent employment contract as professor. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between between € 4.332,- and € 5.929,- for a full-time working week of 38 hours in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale 11).

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 18th 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.
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. For instance under the "30% rule", certain categories of international staff can receive tax exemption on approximately 30% of their gross salary.

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, 7,200 employees (6,400 fte) and 13,200 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.. 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

You will work here
Biometris is the central group for mathematics and statistics at Wageningen University and Research Centre. The group consists of about 100 people, of which 25 are PhDs and postdocs. Education and consultation are pivotal to the societal role of Biometris. Education is at the very heart of the university and Biometris provides BSc courses on statistics, mathematics and research methodology at Wageningen UR, as well as numerous other courses for MSc and PhD students, post-docs and industry. Biometris also provides statistical, mathematical and methodological consultancy and training to researchers inside and outside Wageningen UR.

Within Biometris we focus our research on the development of research methodology and on mathematical and statistical techniques that can be applied to the Life Sciences. Consequently, our research is done in collaboration with other research groups both in and outside Wageningen. In this way, we contribute to the scientific and societal impact of Wageningen UR.
Our research focusses on the themes of Methodology for Interdisciplinary Research, Statistical Genetics and Genomics (in especially plants), Applied Mathematics for the Life Sciences, Food and Health Risk Assessment, and Big Data in Life Sciences. Our capital lies in the expertise of our employees. We therefore strive to keep our employees motivated and scientifically up-to-date and offer ample opportunities for personal development.
We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.

For more information about this position, please contact Carel Peeters, Associate professor, by e-mail: carel.peeters@wur.nl or by phone: +31634510631.

For more information about the procedure, please contact Noorien Abbas, by email: vacaturemeldingen.psg@wur.nl.

Do you want to apply?
You can apply directly using the apply button on the vacancy page on our website which will allow us to process your personal information with your approval.

This vacancy will be listed up to and including 18th December 2023. We will schedule the first round of interviews soon after the closing date.

Equal opportunities
Wageningen University & Research (WUR) employs a large number of people with very different backgrounds and qualities, who inspire and motivate each other. We want every talent to feel at home in our organisation and be offered the same career opportunities. We therefore especially welcome applications from people who are underrepresented at WUR. A good example of how WUR deals with inclusiveness can be read on the page working at WUR with a functional impairment.