The Department of Methodology and Statistics is seeking to appoint an Assistant Professor specializing in the areas of text mining, natural language processing (NLP), or active learning for text data. The successful candidate will contribute to our growing research and education programme in Applied Data Science. The department encourages applications from candidates trained in social science methodology & atatistics, as well as candidates with expertise in computational social science, data science, statistics, and computer science, who would welcome the opportunity to work in the Faculty of Social & Behavioural Sciences.

 

You will be employed at the Department of Methodology and Statistics of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences at Utrecht University. Among other activities in this area, the department hosts the Social Data Science (SoDa) team and the open-source project ASReview as part of ODISSEI, the Dutch national infrastructure for the social sciences. The department plays a central role in Utrecht University's Applied Data Science focus area and participates in the focus area of Human-centered Artificial Intelligence. Additionally, our department collaborates with the strategic themes Dynamics of Youth and Institutions for Open Societies. 

The department provides data science education in the field of text mining, NLP, or active learning for text data across all academic levels in a variety of educational programmes. For example, we coordinate the Research Master's programme Methodology and Statistics for the Behavioural, Biomedical, and Social Sciences, and we participate in the one-year interdisciplinary Master's Applied Data Science and the interdisciplinary minor in Applied Data Science. We also teach many Data Science courses for researchers and other professionals as part of the Summer School Utrecht, and we advise staff and students concerning their research activities.

Tasks
The Department of Methodology and Statistics has a job opening for a full-time assistant professor (tenured), requiring you to contribute to our educational and research programme. The position involves 60% teaching/management activities and 40% research time. Core tasks will include:

• contributing to the Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes, primarily within the curriculum of the Applied Data Science programmes we contribute to;
• carrying out and supervising research within the scope of the research executed by the Department of Methodology and Statistics, often in collaboration with other research institutes or societal partners;
• contributing to the acquisition of substantial external research funding for the benefit of the research programme of the department of Methodology and Statistics.

Teaching

• The candidate has experience with developing and coordinating academic courses in a team setting. Experience with teaching courses on text mining, NLP, or active learning for text data is an asset.
• The candidate is able to provide inspiring lectures and has an eye for the improvement of teaching methods, as evidenced by positive teaching assessments.
• The candidate holds a Basic Teaching Qualification (BKO), or is willing to acquire this qualification in the near future.

Research:

• The candidate holds a PhD degree in the field of data science, (social) statistics, computer science, computational social science, or an adjacent field.
• The candidate has experience in conducting scientific research in the field of applied data science. Experiences with text mining, NLP, or active learning for text data is an asset.
• The candidate has ideas about their own research line and how this fits in with the Department of Methodology and Statistics.
• The candidate’s work adheres to the highest standards of open science. Experience with open-source software is an asset. Their work may comprise non-traditional outputs, or impact-related activities.
• The candidate is able to contribute to the (collective) acquiring of external research funding for the benefit of the research programme of the Department of Methodology and Statistics.

General

• The candidate has good communication skills, a proactive work attitude, and is able to work within a team.
• The candidate is willing to learn Dutch. We expect a relevant level of competence within two years of taking up the appointment.
• The candidate has experience with and an interest in advising students and staff doing substantive social science with respect to methods and techniques of data analysis.
• Programing skills are required, and Python skills are an asset.

We offer a full-time permanent (i.e., tenured) position. Your gross salary - depending on previous qualifications and experience  - ranges between €3,821 and €5,943 (scale 11/12 according to the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities) per month for a full-time employment. Salaries are supplemented with a holiday bonus of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3% per year. In addition, Utrecht University offers excellent secondary conditions, including an attractive retirement scheme, (partly paid) parental leave and flexible employment conditions (multiple choice model). For more information: working at Utrecht University.

"A better future for everyone". This ambition motivates our scientists in executing their leading research and inspiring teaching. At Utrecht University, the various disciplines collaborate intensively towards major societal themes.
The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences is one of the leading faculties in Europe providing research and academic teaching in cultural anthropology, educational sciences, interdisciplinary social science, pedagogical sciences, psychology, and sociology.  

Almost 6.000 students are enrolled in a broad range of undergraduate and graduate programmes. The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences has some 850 faculty and staff members, all providing their individual contribution to the training and education of young talent and to the research into and finding solutions for scientific and societal issues.