The Computational Intelligence Group of the Department of Computer Science is seeking a scientific programmer to support and strengthen our research activities. The job requires advanced programming skills in C++, and Python and a clear affinity with scientific research. Experience with robots is a pre. The responsibilities of the scientific programmer include: software engineering of our simulation package and the toolbox for scientific analyses, specifically implementing new features, debugging, and unit testing, managing the computing resources (a cluster of 5 heavy duty workstations at this moment), providing our simulation package for fellow researchers as well as for our students including easy distribution and documentation. Additionally the person is required to collaborate on the scientific aspects of the experiments, assist with running experiments in software and on real robot hardware, and have the ambition of being a co-author of some of our publications.

Experience with robots is a pre. The responsibilities of the scientific programmer include: software engineering of our simulation package and the toolbox for scientific analyses, specifically implementing new features, debugging, and unit testing, managing the computing resources (a cluster of 5 heavy duty workstations at this moment), providing our simulation package for fellow researchers as well as for our students including easy distribution and documentation. Additionally the person is required to collaborate on the scientific aspects of the experiments, assist with running experiments in software and on real robot hardware, and have the ambition of being a co-author of some of our publications.

Fixed-term contract: 1 year.

A challenging position in a socially involved organization. On full-time basis the remuneration amounts to a minimum gross monthly salary of €2,709 (scale 10)
and a maximum of  €4,274 (scale 10 ), depending on your education and experience. The job profile, education and research technician 2 is based on the university job ranking system and is vacant for at least 0.8 FTE.

The initial employment contract will affect a period of 1 year, with the possibility of extension.

Additionally, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam offers excellent fringe benefits and various schemes and regulations to promote a good work/life balance, such as:

• a maximum of 41 days of annual leave based on full-time employment 
• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus 
• solid pension scheme (ABP) 
• contribution to commuting expenses
• optional model for designing a personalized benefits package

The ambition of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is clear: to contribute to a better world through outstanding education and ground-breaking research. And to be a university where personal education and societal involvement play a leading role. Where people from different disciplines and backgrounds work together on innovations and on generating new knowledge. Our teaching and research embrace the whole spectrum of science – from the humanities, the social sciences and the pure sciences through to the life sciences and the medical sciences.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is home to more than 26,500 students. We employ more than 4,600 individuals. The VU campus is easily accessible, located in the heart of Amsterdam’s Zuidas district, a truly inspiring environment for teaching and research.

Diversity
Diversity is one of our university’s core values. We are an inclusive community, and we believe that diversity and international activities enhance the quality of education and research. We are always looking for people who can enhance diversity on our campus thanks to their background and experience.

The Faculty of Science
The Faculty of Science inspires researchers and students to find sustainable solutions for complex societal issues. From forest fires to big data, from obesity to medicines and from molecules to the moon: our teaching and research programmes cover the full spectrum of the natural sciences. We share knowledge and experience with leading research institutes and industries, both here in the Netherlands and abroad.

Working at the Faculty of Science means working with students, PhD candidates and researchers, all with a clear focus on their field and a broad view of the world. We employ more than 1,250 staff members, and we are home to around 6,000 students.
 
About the department, institute, project
The research of the CI Group is centred around collective adaptive systems. The group is actively developing, investigating, and applying such systems in a variety of “incarnations”. Evolutionary computing, machine learning, and swarm intelligence are the algorithmic pillars to this end; evolutionary robotics and on-line learning are two of the principal application areas. Much of this research is carried out through computer simulations. Over the years the CI Group has developed a specific simulator based on Gazebo to support experiments with realistic robots that evolve and learn in a customisable environment. To continue our internationally leading research we need to improve the quality of the simulation package, hence we are now seeking a scientific programmer for a period of two years.