Project Leader in Animal Studies and Bacterial Infectious Diseases

Do you want to contribute to research that truly makes an impact for both animals and people?

As a (Senior) Project Leader in animal studies and bacterial infectious diseases within the Bacteriology department, you will work on innovative animal studies that contribute to the development of new treatment and prevention methods for bacterial infectious diseases in livestock. You combine subject-matter expertise with project leadership in a dynamic research environment with clear societal relevance.

Within Wageningen Bioveterinary Research (WBVR), applied bacteriological animal research is currently conducted on, among others, streptococci, E. coli and APP in pigs, and salmonella, campylobacter and coccidiosis/clostridium in poultry.

Your role
In this position, you act as project leader for animal studies commissioned by both public and private parties. You are (jointly) responsible for designing, planning, coordinating and monitoring these studies. You ensure that projects are carried out carefully, efficiently and in accordance with applicable protocols, timelines and budgets. You maintain a strong focus on quality and animal welfare and ensure clear reporting of research results.

Your tasks and responsibilities

• Designing, planning, coordinating and monitoring animal studies, including alignment with internal teams and external clients.
• Supervising critical phases of animal studies, such as vaccination or challenge moments (carried out by animal caretakers).
• Supporting analysts in the development of new laboratory tests and analyses.
• Analysing, summarising and reporting research results for internal projects, external clients and scientific publications.
• Building and maintaining relationships with relevant internal and external stakeholders.
• Contributing to the acquisition of projects to strengthen the portfolio of public–private and commercial projects.
• Work is conducted with pathogens in high biosafety classes (veterinary BSL-4 and human BSL-3). This means strict access and quarantine regulations apply. For certain activities, an additional quarantine period applies in accordance with EU regulations. This means employees may not keep cloven-hoofed animals and must avoid contact with such animals and visits to poultry production companies for 72 hours after these activities.

Your team
You will work within WBVR, where research into infectious animal diseases has direct societal value. Within the Bacteriology department, efforts focus on reducing bacterial infections in livestock and limiting their impact on animal health and welfare. You will collaborate closely with experienced researchers, project leaders, laboratory analysts and biotechnicians.

Your workplace
WBVR has high-quality animal facilities where animal welfare is central. WBVR operates unique animal facilities in Lelystad (two locations, veterinary BSL 1–4) and works closely with Wageningen Livestock Research (WLR) on the interaction between infectious diseases and husbandry-related factors such as nutrition, environmental enrichment and microbial environmental status. You will work in a multidisciplinary team within a socially relevant research environment.

• Article 9 certification (Experiments on Animals Act) – required.
• Completed university degree in Life Sciences or Veterinary Medicine – required.
• Background in veterinary diseases in livestock is an advantage.
• PhD in bacteriology or immunology is an advantage.
• Proactive attitude and strong organisational skills.
• Flexible and comfortable working across different projects, teams and contexts.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Team player with the ability to build and strengthen external collaborations.
• Skills in conducting client discussions that result in project acquisition.
• In our international working environment, English is increasingly used. Do you not yet meet the required language level? No problem - we support you through Wageningen in’to Language.

Room to grow
Do you see yourself in this role but do not (yet) meet all the listed requirements? Do you have relevant and solid work experience? Then we warmly invite you to apply. We explicitly see this position as an opportunity for further professional development.

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
• there is a strong focus on vitality;
• a fixed year-end bonus of 8,3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. We offer, depending on your experience, a competitive gross salary of between € 3,399,- and € 7,068,- for a full-time working week of 36 hours, in accordance with the CLA Wageningen Research (scale10-12). Additionally, For this role a contract for 32 hours can be discussed. As for your contract, we initially offer a one-year contract that can be extended. Of course, we are happy to have a conversation with you if you have any questions about this.

Wageningen University & Research offers plenty of opportunities for growth and development, with a strong internal recruitment policy and excellent training programmes.

You will work on the greenest and most innovative campus in the Netherlands, in an international and open working environment.

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte) and 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch the video below to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.

Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.

Because we expect you to work and live in the Netherlands our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family. If you come with a partner, we offer a Dual Career group program organized by our Welcome Center. This program helps your partner to get familiar with the Dutch culture, labour market and assists your partner to find a job.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Communitypage contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, our Welcome Center can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example housing, opening a bank account or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.