Are you interested in digital twins, computational models, and predictive personalized preventive medicine? The Informatics Institute of the Faculty of Science, in collaboration with the Amsterdam University Medical Centers, is inviting applications for a fully funded PhD position (4 years) for a research project that will develop personalised digital twins for computational modelling of orthostatic hypotension and fall risk prediction in older patients.

Project description:
The risk of falling and experiencing major complications increases significantly with age. It is estimated that one-third of individuals aged over 65 fall at least once a year, and among these incidents, 20% result in severe injuries. Orthostatic Hypotension (OH) is one of the most common cardiovascular risk factors for falls.

Tasks and responsibilities:
In this project you will enhance the generalised cardiovascular models and develop "personalised" models capable of predicting the fall risk of a person at an early stage. You will perform sensitivity analysis and inverse uncertainty quantification to parameterise the model based on stratified clinical data sets, followed by validation studies on other datasets. Drawing from detailed time-resolved beat-to-beat measurements of blood pressure, cerebral blood flow and cerebral oxygenation taken from individual patients, you will personalise the models. Finally, the short-time dynamics model will be coupled to the long-time clinical predictions of the risk of the patient to experience the OH-related falls in the next years by using statistical and AI-based models. For more information, please see here and references therein.

You are enthusiastic, proactive, self-motivated, and have the affinity with the research topics mentioned in the project description.

Your experience and profile:

• Master's degree in Computational science, Computer science, Bioinformatics, or related field;
• Programming skills (with Python as preferred programming language);
• Fluent in written and spoken English, as demonstrated by either a MSc degree in English or a certificate of the language proficiency tests (TOEFL, Academic IELTS, or Cambridge).

Knowledge of hypotension physiological processes is not required, but would be a bonus.

A temporary contract for 38 hours per week for the duration of 4 years (the initial contract will be for a period of 18 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended for a total duration of 4 years). The preferred starting date is as soon as possible. This should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and master students.

The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week and dependent on relevant experience, ranges between € 2,770 in the first year to € 3,539 in the last year (scale P). UvA additionally offers an extensive package of secondary benefits, including 8% holiday allowance and a year-end bonus of 8.3%. The UFO profile PhD Candidate is applicable. A favourable tax agreement, the ‘30% ruling’, may apply to non-Dutch applicants. The Collective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlands is applicable.

Besides the salary and a vibrant and challenging environment at Science Park we offer you multiple fringe benefits:

• 232 holiday hours per year (based on fulltime) and extra holidays between Christmas and 1 January;
• Multiple courses to follow from our Teaching and Learning Centre;
• A complete educational program for PhD students;
• Multiple courses on topics such as leadership for academic staff;
• Multiple courses on topics such as time management, handling stress and an online learning platform with 100+ different courses;
• 7 weeks birth leave (partner leave) with 100% salary;
• Partly paid parental leave;
• The possibility to set up a workplace at home;
• A pension at ABP for which UvA pays two third part of the contribution;
• The possibility to follow courses to learn Dutch;
• Help with housing for a studio or small apartment when you’re moving from abroad.

Are you curious to read more about our extensive package of secondary employment benefits, take a look here.

Faculty of Science

The University of Amsterdam (UvA) is the Netherlands' largest university, offering the widest range of academic programmes. At the UvA, 42,000 students, 6,000 staff members and 3,000 PhD candidates study and work in a diverse range of fields, connected by a culture of curiosity.

The Faculty of Science (FNWI) has a student body of around 8,000, as well as 1,800 members of staff working in education, research or support services. Researchers and students at the Faculty of Science are fascinated by every aspect of how the world works, be it elementary particles, the birth of the universe or the functioning of the brain.

The mission of the Informatics Institute (IvI) is to perform curiosity-driven and use-inspired fundamental research in Computer Science. The main research themes are Artificial Intelligence, Computational Science and Systems and Network Engineering. Our research involves complex information systems at large, with a focus on collaborative, data driven, computational and intelligent systems, all with a strong interactive component.

The research will be carried out in the in the Computational Science Lab (CSL), part of the Informatics Institute, in close collaboration with the Amsterdam University Medical Centers (AUMC). CSL aims to make dynamic complex systems tractable through mathematical and computational modelling and simulation. The group consists of researchers who together a broad range of dynamical systems in fields including biomedicine, urban environments, socioeconomic systems, coral growth, and the human immune system. Being interdisciplinary in nature, the group has many interactions and collaborations with other research groups and institutions as well as a wide range of stakeholders (public and private).

Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam.