The Academy for Scientific Taste Evaluation, T.A.S.T.E. ,in collaboration with Maastricht University campus Venlo, is looking for a Researcher / PhD candidate Sensory analysis.

What are you going to do?

As a researcher / PhD candidate you are responsible for the PhD- project Sensory Analysis, analyzing the current sensory analysis methods and studying how these can be improved.

This project will be an integral part of developing scientific insight in taste and more specifically in the interaction effects of the various factors that play a role in mouthfeel as part of taste perception. 

Experience in technological laboratory research is required. Furthermore, quantitative skills are required to analyze (historical) data on taste perception and to show connections between quantitative and qualitative data.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for an ambitious and highly motivated researcher-PhD candidate, with a passion for food, nutrition and health, who has an open mind and isn’t bothered to go beyond the boundaries of what  is generally believed as being true. The PhD program will take between 2 and 4 years, on a part-time basis of 32 hours per week.

• You have a demonstrably completed scientific Master degree in for instance a food science-related biotechnological direction,
• You have affinity with computer modelling and A.I. / deep- learning
• You can think holistically and 'out of the box',
• You have the capacity to individually set up and carry out fundamentally sound scientific research,
• You have extensive knowledge and skills in various statistical methods;
• You have affinity with / interest in flavor, nutrition and health
• You have a creative mind and are a systemic thinker
• You can distinguish main and minor issues and make connections between acquired data and acquired insights;
• Excellent communication skills (both written and verbal) in Dutch and English

We offer you a challenging opportunity to contribute to scientific thinking about taste and the development of models to measure taste. You will be guided by, among others, Dr. Peter Klosse who is the founder of the only validated taste classification model in the world.

You have access to workplaces in Venlo, Maastricht and Overasselt and make use of the facilities of the UM campus in Venlo. We offer a starting salary of € 1.900,00 gross per month (based on 32 hours per week) with a max. growth to € 2.400, - gross per month, in accordance with salary scale PhD students following the collective labor agreement Dutch Universities. Every year an assessment takes place.

Collaboration T.A.S.T.E. - Maastricht University - Zuyd University of Applied Sciences

The PhD research fits seamlessly into the ambitions as formulated by Maastricht University Campus Venlo. There is a collaboration between the TASTE Foundation, Zuyd University of Applied Sciences (Research Center Gastronomy) and UM Campus Venlo. In this collaboration, this research will be integrated as much as possible in the existing and planned research and development processes.

T.A.S.T.E. The Academy of Scientific Taste Evaluation was founded by Dr. Peter Klosse in 2017. One of its goals is to do research in the field of flavor and taste. Klosse defended his flavor classification model successfully and got his PhD from Maastricht University in 2004. Nationally, but also increasingly internationally he is considered to be an authority in gastronomy. He is often referred to as the Taste Professor.
The mission of T.A.S.T.E. is to promote the use of tasty and healthy food. By learning more about why something is experienced as tasty, that knowledge can be used to get a better future for people (physically and psychologically healthier, more energetic and fitter), farmers and producers (more successful) and the environment (more sustainable).

www.tasteresearch.org