Are you an enthusiastic scientist who likes to work on the genetics of resistance to insects? Do you want to help understand the mechanisms of resistance to insects in crop plants and wild relatives? Are you interested in tackling the challenge of contributing to greater sustainability in this sector? Are you willing to work on new solutions together with commercial plant breeders, PhD students and other researchers? Then this job is for you!

Within the insect resistance group of Plant Breeding we are looking for a highly motivated scientist who is passionate about making our agricultural production more sustainable. You will contribute to the development of plants with a natural resistance against pest insects. Within the group we use state of the art tools to identify insect resistance traits in crop plants and their wild relatives. This involves the genetic characterization of the resistance and elucidation of the mechanism through genomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics. Many of our projects are carried out in close collaboration with breeding companies and the knowledge obtained will be instrumental to develop novel high yielding varieties of vegetables and ornamentals.

We are looking for a scientist who is willing to share his/her energy, creativity and expert knowledge to strengthen our group. You will participate in ongoing projects and develop new research directions and tools. You will become part of a flourishing group that carries out basic and strategic research.

• PhD in Biology, Plant Sciences or another relevant field;
• a minimum of 3 year research experience after PhD;
• an enthusiastic, ambitious, communicative colleague with the following key competences: team player, creative, problem solving, quality oriented and stress tolerant;
• experience with supervision of students and technical assistants;
• experience in written and oral reporting (in English);
• good publication track record;
• experience in working with insects, as well as acquiring grants and funding is an asset.

We offer you, depending on your experience, a competitive salary from a minimum of € 3255,- to a maximum of € 5748,- Scale 12 for a full working week of 36 hours in accordance with the Collective Labor Agreement for Wageningen Research. The duration of the contract is initially for two years, with possibilities for extension and potentially a permanent contract.
In addition, we offer:

• 8% holiday allowance;
• a structural end-of-year bonus of 3%;
• excellent training opportunities and secondary employment conditions;
• flexible working hours and holidays can possibly be determined in consultation so that an optimal balance between work and private life is possible;
• excellent pension plan through ABP;
• the possibility to work flexible to balance work and life;
• a flexible model to put together part of your employment conditions yourself, such as a bicycle plan;
• a lively workplace where you can easily make contacts and where many activities take place on the Wageningen Campus. A place where education, research and business are represented;
• for a small fee, make use of the sports facilities on campus.

Wageningen University & Research stimulates internal career opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are ample opportunities for own initiative in a learning environment.
We offer a versatile job in an international environment with varied activities in a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

Wageningen University & Research

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is "To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life". Within Wageningen University & Research, nine specialised research institutes from the Wageningen Research Foundation and Wageningen University have joined forces to help answer the most important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment.

With approximately 30 locations, 6,000 employees, and 12,000 students, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain worldwide. An integrated approach to problems and the cooperation between various disciplines are at the heart of the unique approach of Wageningen.

For further information about working at Wageningen University & Research, take a look at thespecial career site.

Plant Breeding, Wageningen University & Research ( https://www.wur.nl/en/Research-Results/Research-Institutes/plant-research/Plant-Breeding.htm ) is a merged unit of Wageningen Research and Wageningen University with around 200 people including MSc and PhD students and guest workers. It is a highly international group with more than 50 nationalities organised in ten research groups. We conduct fundamental, strategic and applied research and provide teaching at all educational (BSc, MSc and PhD) levels. Our research focusses on the dissemination of the genetic basis of traits which are relevant in order to achieve a sustainable agri- and horticulture. We conduct this research often together or in partnership with breeding companies, local, regional and state governments.

Our objective is to raise the productivity of agriculture in a sustainable and socially acceptable manner and increase the resilience of systems to deliver food security, feed, fuel, fibre and ornamental services under current and future climate and resource availability. As guiding principles we work synergistically in teams, like to express and base our opinions on sound science and operate self-conscientiously in our networks to have impact and attract and serve our clients' needs. We strongly believe in diversity and inclusiveness to strengthen our teams, their modus operandi and their impact. We advise the public and the private sector and provide training in areas of our expertise.

Equal opportunities employer
We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of their race, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation or age.