We are seeking a highly motivated PhD candidate to join our research team focused on Effective Collaborative Metadata Management for Large Data Repositories. The project is part of the Crop-XR program, a highly collaborative 10-year national initiative of universities and industry, with a mission to grow resilient crops developed by data-driven design and AI plant models. 

This exciting opportunity will involve analyzing the research gaps for establishing effective metadata management in large data repositories. The most promising identified gaps will be addressed by developing novel innovative workflows and technical solutions. 

The goal is to improve the practices of metadata management in plant sciences along the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) such that complex (AI) models for improving plant resilience can be reliably developed, trained, improved, and deployed. 

The models are developed by our partners to predict how plants respond to environmental stresses such as drought, malnutrition, and extreme temperatures. This will allow plants to withstand combinations of stresses brought by a changing climate. 

Key Challenges: 

• The challenges of collaborative metadata management for plant sciences are not yet well understood. This PhD project requires an inquisitive mind and an enthusiastic communicator eager to explore this new frontier! 
• While this project is rooted in the data management research field of Computer Science, many expected problems are deeply interwoven with human issues. Thus, technical solutions need to keep both algorithmic challenges and human aspects in mind! 
• We deal specifically with metadata for plant sciences. This requires some background knowledge in relevant related plant science fields. This knowledge can also be picked up on the job. 
• Providing metadata is not prioritized by many practitioners, thus novel innovative solutions are needed. For example, fostering stronger and more effective communities and social workflows around metadata (inspired by comparable communities in software development as found on e.g., GitHub or Stack Overflow), or by developing AI-assisted tools which can guide and support users more effectively. 

Your Role: 

• You will contribute with your work to the integration of models to simulate how plants respond to environmental stresses. This in turn supports the development of more resilient plants for a more sustainable future. 
• You will develop technical solutions, systems, and algorithms processing and handling metadata, but you will also perform quantitative and qualitative research on the requirements and effectiveness of such solutions. 

Benefits: 

• Opportunity to work on cutting-edge interdisciplinary research with significant real-world impact. 
• Collaborative and dynamic research environment which is highly interdisciplinary and international. 
• Collaborate with researchers, practitioners, and developers within various disciplines. 
• Support for professional development and attendance at international conferences. 

This PhD position is positioned within the Web Information System Group in the Computer Science department of the Delft University of Technology. The PhD position will be supervised by Dr. Christoph Lofi, and will be done in close collaboration with our partner institutions in the CropXR project. 

• A Master's degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, or a related field with an affinity to data management and/or data science.
• Strong background in data management. A background in machine learning, data analysis, or bioinformatics is a plus.
• Experience with biological data integration or computational biology is a plus, but not required. However, enthusiasm for learning about computational biology is expected!
• Excellent programming skills and familiarity with databases, data repositories, and data lakes.
• Willingness and experience to perform quantitative user research, as for example user studies or interviews
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work independently, and as part of a multidisciplinary team. You will work within a department for Computer Science, collaborating within the CropXR project with biologists, bio-informaticians, and agriculture specialists.
• Strong interpersonal communication and collaboration abilities
• Excellent communication skills and proficiency in English. Dutch language skills are a plus, but not required.

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.

Fixed-term contract: 4 years.

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from € 2872 per month in the first year to € 3670 in the fourth year. As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

For international applicants, TU Delft has the Coming to Delft Service. This service provides information for new international employees to help you prepare the relocation and to settle in the Netherlands. The Coming to Delft Service offers a Dual Career Programme for partners and they organise events to expand your (social) network.

Delft University of Technology

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science

The Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science (EEMCS) brings together three scientific disciplines. Combined, they reinforce each other and are the driving force behind the technology we all use in our daily lives. Technology such as the electricity grid, which our faculty is helping to make completely sustainable and future-proof. At the same time, we are developing the chips and sensors of the future, whilst also setting the foundations for the software technologies to run on this new generation of equipment – which of course includes AI. Meanwhile we are pushing the limits of applied mathematics, for example mapping out disease processes using single cell data, and using mathematics to simulate gigantic ash plumes after a volcanic eruption. In other words: there is plenty of room at the faculty for ground-breaking research. We educate innovative engineers and have excellent labs and facilities that underline our strong international position. In total, more than 1000 employees and 4,000 students work and study in this innovative environment.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science.

"CropXR was launched in 2023 to help make agricultural production less vulnerable to climate change and less dependent on artificial fertilizers and chemical pesticides. The institute is a joint venture of the universities of Amsterdam, Delft, Wageningen and Utrecht in partnership with Plantum, the Dutch plant breeding sector association. CropXR brings together efforts from different academic disciplines (such as plant sciences, computational and data sciences, and social sciences) and private industry to help bring about sustainable change. It receives support from NWO, the Dutch National Growth Fund, and the Foundation for Food & Agricultural Research. Learn more about CropXR at CropXR.org."

For information about the opening and application procedure, please contact Dr. Christoph Lofi (c.lofi@tudelft.nl)."