We are looking for a passionate and curious person who is committed to performing outstanding research that will make a difference to members of the wider community.
 
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Postdoctoral Research Fellowship has been established as a result of a partnership between the IPC and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam to develop evidence-based sport-specific systems of classification for athletes with visual impairment. The visual classification system endorsed by the IPC should encourage persons with vision impairment to participate in sport by ensuring they compete in comparable classes that minimise the impact of the visual impairment on the outcome of the competition. Accordingly, the results of your research will be used to improve the fairness of competition in the Paralympic games and in other sport competitions for people with impairment.
 
The position is a research role working exclusively on projects for IPC sport classification. The successful applicant will be responsible for the development of methods of evidence-based classification that provide fairer competition in Paralympic Sport. Across different phases of the project the successful applicant may be required to (1) use innovative measurement techniques (e.g., performance analysis and biomechanics) to evaluate sport performance; (2) use our battery of vision tests to establish the magnitude of an athlete’s vision impairment; (3) use a variety of statistical approaches to establish the relationship between vision impairment and sport performance; and (4) write research papers to report the findings and grant applications to support new work.
 
The IPC Classification Research and Development Centre at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is managed by Dr. David Mann and is performed within the Motor Learning and Performance Section headed by Prof. Geert Savelsbergh. The successful applicant will be based in the beautiful cosmopolitan city of Amsterdam; however, the position requires intermittent domestic and international travel to attend conferences, meetings, and to perform data collection at training camps and competitions.

Candidates are required to have a PhD in optometry, vision science, human movement science, psychology, or in a suitably related area (completed or with a fixed date for the defense/submission). Candidates should be fluent in English and possess excellent communication skills. Candidates should have a competitive research track record of publications in international peer-reviewed journals and presentations at international conferences (commensurate with that of a recent PhD graduate).
 
The following skills are highly desirable for the role (though not compulsory):

• experience working with elite athletes and/or coaches
• excellent statistical knowledge (e.g., familiarity with machine learning, analysis in R)
• computer programming skills (e.g., Matlab)
• interest and experience in supervising Masters and PhD students
• fluency in Dutch
• experience in vision and/or psychometric testing
• experience of performance analysis in sport

Fixed-term contract: 2 years.

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 €4,274 (scale 10), depending on your education and experience. The job profile: is based on the university job ranking system and is vacant for at least 1 FTE.

The IPC Postdoctoral Research Fellowship is a 2-year position with a possibility for extension (dependent on subsequent research grant funding). The starting date is from October 1st 2019.
 
Additionally, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam offers excellent fringe benefits and various schemes and regulations to promote a good work/life balance, such as:

• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus

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 24,500 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.

Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences
The Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences focuses on the broad domain of behaviour and health. Our teaching and research programmes are devoted to current developments in society, from healthy aging to e-health, from juvenile crime to dealing with depression, from training for top athletes to social media as a teaching tool. We are unique in that we combine three academic disciplines: psychology, movement sciences and education.

Working at Behavioural and Movement Sciences means working in an ambitious organization that is characterized by an informal atmosphere and short lines of communication. Our faculty offers tremendous scope for personal development. We employ more than 600 staff members, and we are home to around 3,400 students.