Scientific Programmer (Bioinformatics Software Developer)

The research group of Danielle Posthuma within the Complex Traits Genetics laboratory at the Centre of Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research (CNCR) of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is looking for a Scientific Programmer to contribute to the continued development and maintenance of widely used genetic web-tool called FUMA (Functional Mapping and Annotation of GWAS).

FUMA is a heavily used web platform that enables researchers worldwide to perform functional interpretation and downstream analysis of genome-wide association study (GWAS) results. Thousands of researchers use FUMA every year to analyze genetic data through an interactive web interface supported by a robust computational backend. The webtool is built on Laravel, the tool utilizes PHP, JavaScript, Python, and R.

You will play a key role in the technical development and maintenance of FUMA, with possible involvement in the scientific development as well (i.e. suggesting novel additions).

Your responsibilities include:

• Develop and implement existing and new analysis modules and visualizations within FUMA, including integration of statistical pipelines developed by the Complex Traits Genetics group
• Integrate large-scale biological reference datasets for use within FUMA. These resources including molecular QTLs, chromatin interaction, functional annotation, and single-cell transcriptomic resources from the latest scientific literature
• Maintain and improve the production infrastructure, including software dependencies, databases, Linux servers, job scheduling, storage management, and automated data update pipelines
• Optimize performance, scalability, and reliability of the web platform and backend analysis pipelines
• Be responsible for maintaining reproducible workflows for preprocessing, harmonizing, and updating biological datasets
• Resolve software bugs, improve code quality, and modernize components of the codebase when needed
• Provide user support by troubleshooting analyses and answering technical questions from researchers worldwide
• Collaborate closely with computational biologists and statistical geneticists within the department to translate new research methods into user-friendly software

Onderwijs-/onderzoeksmedewerker

Werk mee aan baanbrekend onderzoek naar Basic Safety
Als onderwijs/onderzoekersmedewerker maak je deel uit van het onderzoeksprogramma NWO OC ‘Redistributive Growth’ aan de Universiteit van Amsterdam. Je ondersteunt onderzoekers bij het verzamelen, beheren, analyseren en uitvoeren van grote kwantitatieve datasets over economische determinanten van Basic Safety en financiële zekerheid. Je werkt nauw samen met een interdisciplinair team van onderzoekers, promovendi en maatschappelijke partners. Je draagt bij aan de voorbereiding van wetenschappelijke publicaties en onderzoeksprojecten die direct relevant zijn voor beleid en maatschappelijke vraagstukken.

Dit ga je doen
Je behandelt en interpreteert verschillende onderzoeksvragen waarin kwantitatieve data verzameling en analyse centraal staat. Daarbij lever je een belangrijke coördinerende bijdrage aan de kwaliteit en reproduceerbaarheid van het onderzoek.

Belangrijkste taken en verantwoordelijkheden:

• Verzamelen, interpreteren, opschonen, beheren en documenteren van kwantitatieve onderzoeksdata;
• Integreren en harmoniseren van verschillende datasets tot één consistente onderzoeksdatabase;
• Voorbereiden en uitvoeren van statistische analyses, waaronder representativiteitstoetsen, threshold analyses en beschrijvende en multivariate analyses;
• Coördineren, assisteren en begeleiden van veldonderzoekers tijdens de voorbereiding, uitvoering en kwaliteitscontrole van de dataverzameling;
• Bijdragen aan een transparante en reproduceerbare onderzoeksworkflow.

Dit vragen we van jou

• Je beschikt over een universitair diploma en hebt bij voorkeur een tweejarige Research Master in de sociale wetenschappen, economie of een verwante discipline afgerond;
• Je hebt ervaring met kwantitatieve dataverzameling, datamanagement en statistische analyse;
• Je werkt zelfstandig met Excel en met SPSS en/of R of Python;
• Je kunt zorgvuldig werken met complexe datasets en weet gegevens uit verschillende bronnen te integreren en te valideren;
• Je hebt ervaring met het organiseren of coördineren van kwantitatief veldonderzoek en weet de kwaliteit van dataverzameling te bewaken in samenwerking met veldonderzoekers;
• Je werkt gestructureerd, zorgvuldig en proactief: je ziet wat er moet gebeuren en neemt initiatief;
• Je communiceert helder en overtuigend, zowel mondeling als schriftelijk, in het Nederlands en in het Engels.

Dit bieden we jou
We bieden een parttime dienstverband van 0,6 fte (22,8 uur) per week voor de periode van één jaar met een proeftijd van twee maanden, bij voorkeur met ingang van 1 september 2026.

Op deze functie is het UFO-profiel onderwijs-/onderzoeksmedewerker 5 van toepassing. Deze functie is ingedeeld in schaal 6. Dit betekent een bruto maandsalaris tussen € 3.173 en € 3.785 bij een volledig dienstverband (38 uur per week) exclusief vakantiegeld (8%) en eindejaarsuitkering (8,3%). Inschaling is afhankelijk van competenties en werkervaring.

De Cao Nederlandse Universiteiten is van toepassing.

De UvA heeft een uitgebreid pakket secundaire arbeidsvoorwaarden, waaronder:

• 29 vakantiedagen bij een volledig dienstverband & extra vakantiedagen tussen kerst en de jaarwisseling;
• Uitstekende (thuis)werk faciliteiten;
• Vergoeding reiskosten woon-werkverkeer;
• Pensioenopbouw bij het ABP;
• Daarnaast biedt de UvA uitstekende studie- en ontwikkelingsmogelijkheden en stimuleert medewerkers om zich blijvend te professionaliseren;
• Je mag deelnemen aan de open UvA colleges waarmee je maximaal 30 studiepunten per jaar kunt verdienen.

Hier ga je werken
Je wordt onderdeel van het onderzoeksprogramma NWO OC ‘Redistributive Growth’ binnen de Sectie Finance aan de Amsterdam Business School, Faculteit Economie en Bedrijfskunde van de Universiteit van Amsterdam. Het team verricht internationaal toonaangevend onderzoek naar economische bestaanszekerheid en financiële zekerheid. Je werkt samen met onderzoekers, promovendi en maatschappelijke partners aan innovatieve onderzoeksprojecten waarin wetenschappelijke kwaliteit en maatschappelijke impact hand in hand gaan. Binnen het team is veel ruimte voor eigen initiatief, professionele ontwikkeling en samenwerking in een inspirerende academische omgeving.

PhD position on polymer brush coatings for electro-chemical processes.

Water is indispensable to modern society. It is used in our homes, in food production, and throughout the chemical and processing industries. However, many industrial water-based processes rely on chemical additives such as cleaning agents, acids, bases, antiscalants, rinse aids, and other processing chemicals. While effective, these substances ultimately should not enter wastewater streams, making treatment more complex, energy intensive, and costly.

Therefore, we propose a different solution. Rather than removing these chemicals after use, a more sustainable strategy is to redesign industrial processes so that fewer, or ideally no, chemical processing aids are required in the first place.

To tackle this challenge, researchers from five universities, University of Twente (coordinator), TU Delft, Wageningen University & Research, the University of Groningen, and the University of Copenhagen, will join forces with industrial partners including Nobian and Avebe. Together, we aim to develop innovative technologies that enable cleaner and more sustainable industrial water use.

As a PhD candidate, you will develop novel nanometer-thin polymer coatings, known as polymer brushes, that can control surface interactions and prevent fouling in electrochemical systems. You will design, synthesize, and characterize sustainable and durable polymer brush coatings with tailored functionalities, such as antifouling behavior and selective molecular interactions.

You will then integrate these coatings into table-top test setups for electrochemical separation and cleaning-in-place processes and investigate how they improve process efficiency while reducing or eliminating the need for chemical additives. Through this work, you will contribute to the development of next-generation water treatment technologies that support a more sustainable and circular industry.

PhD in AI and Quantum Information Science

In this PhD position, you will develop advanced AI methods for quantum information systems. The work sits at the boundary of machine learning and quantum computation, addressing how quantum devices can remain robust and reliable when operating under real-world noise conditions.

What you'll contribute to

This PhD contributes to AI methods for quantum systems, laying scientific groundwork for making these systems more reliable and usable at scale.

Your research environment
You will join BIASlab, a research group in the Department of Electrical Engineering, under the supervision of Dr. Ivana Nikoloska. Dr. Nikoloska is also affiliated with the Casimir Institute.

What we're looking for
A Master's degree (or near-completion) in electrical engineering, computer science, or a related field, with a solid foundation in machine learning and/or quantum information theory.

Assistant Professor in Storytelling and Digital Media

Assistant Professor in Storytelling and Digital Media

• Our goal: We aim to strengthen our expertise in the study of narrative across media, especially how storytelling evolves across literary, audiovisual, interactive, and digital forms.
• Your colleagues: You will join the Literature and Art department and the research program Arts, Media, and Culture (AMC). Depending on your research focus, you may also collaborate with colleagues in one of our research centers, such as the Center for Gender and Diversity (CGD), the Maastricht Centre for Arts and Culture, Conservation and Heritage (MACCH), and the Maastricht Center for Citizenship, Migration, and Development.

The position and profile
We are opening an Assistant Professor position in Storytelling and Digital Media. We are looking for a colleague with a background in literary or media studies whose research explores how storytelling is shaped by digital media and technologies, examining emerging narrative forms such as immersive media, data visualization, games, social media, and other digital platforms. We are interested in research that addresses critical questions of representation, ethics, inclusion, and the role of digital infrastructures in shaping whose stories are told, how they circulate, and how they are experienced. In teaching, you will equip students with the conceptual and practical skills to critically analyze narratives across media and to create meaningful, responsible, and innovative forms of storytelling using contemporary digital tools. You will contribute to an interdisciplinary learning environment that brings together perspectives from the humanities, the social sciences, and technological fields, reflecting the increasingly interconnected nature of storytelling with and through digital, creative, and interactive media.

What you do
You will contribute to the teaching in a variety of BA and MA programs at FASoS, such as the BA programs Digital Society and Arts and Culture and the MA programs Media Studies: Digital Cultures and Arts and Culture. Teaching tasks include tutoring, coordinating, and lecturing courses, as well as supervising internships and BA and MA theses. You will engage in field-leading research in storytelling with and through digital media, publishing in leading journals, presenting at conferences, and organizing research activities. At FASoS, teaching and research duties follow the regular division of 60% teaching and management and 40% research. The research time can be extended through external fundraising at the national and European level. FASoS is a collaborative environment, and you are expected to actively collaborate with colleagues from across departments in interdisciplinary teaching and research activities, especially in the context of the AMC research program.

Are you ready to set the course for the years ahead? Then we’d love to meet you.

What you bring
We’re not looking for someone who ticks all the checkboxes; we are interested in who you are and what you bring.

Do you recognize yourself in this?

• PhD in digital humanities, media studies, literary studies, cultural studies or related fields
• Expert in the study of narrative in a digital context. You study how digital technologies and media transformations shape narrative forms, practices, and experiences. This may include research on transmedia storytelling, digital literature, audiovisual and interactive narratives, games, social media, immersive media, AI-generated narratives, or other emerging forms of storytelling.
• Experienced researcher. You have a growing publication record, appropriate to your career stage, in internationally recognized venues, and are motivated to develop collaborative grant proposals.
• Technology-savvy: You have an affinity for digital tinkering at the intersection of the social sciences and the humanities and can teach courses that focus on hardware, software, networking, cybersecurity, and big data. You combine a strong conceptual understanding with a practical, hands-on approach, and are able to translate technological knowledge into applied settings and guide others in doing the same.
• Inspiring teacher. You have demonstrated experience in course coordination, teaching innovation, and thesis supervision. You encourage active student participation and value team teaching within our Problem-Based Learning (PBL) system. You are willing to obtain the Dutch University Teaching Qualification (UTQ) within two years.
• Collegial and community-minded. You contribute to our academic environment through openness, collaboration, and a willingness to take on shared responsibilities.
• Multilingual communicator. You have an excellent command of English (C1 level, written and spoken). Non-Dutch speakers are expected to acquire an intermediate level of Dutch (B1) within three years.

For the successful fulfilment of this position, candidates should be willing to relocate to Maastricht or in the vicinity.