What does your work look like? 

You will be a part of a multidisciplinary team. You will typically work on 2 or 3 projects simultaneously. Projects vary in size from three-month consultancy projects to large multi-year collaborations. You will work on the project locations (various universities across the Netherlands), as well as in the office and from home.  

A typical day includes a stand-up or work meeting discussing the status of the project software: some issues with the code may need testing or require further development. You stay abreast of the latest technological and scientific developments in the project. You finish your contribution to a paper being written in your project. You attend an online presentation of a project you are interested in.

The  Natural Sciences & Engineering (NSE) section covers domains ranging from high-energy physics, material sciences, civil engineering and astrophysics. We bring new computing paradigms to our scientific partners to catalyze their research.  Our projects deepen our understanding of the physical world and have direct applications such as the design of new materials or the optimization of the energy grid.

RSEs are explicitly encouraged to explore technological and disciplinary fields outside of their main expertise and can develop their skills by following external training, leading projects and attending conferences and community events.  

Who are you? 

You are intrinsically motivated to solve complex research problems using digital methods. You are passionate about working at the intersection of research and technology, helping academics solve cutting-edge research questions with advanced technology. Above all, you can communicate effectively with both academic researchers and technical experts. Furthermore:  

• You have experience in, or a strong affinity with, the natural or exact sciences;
• You have strong credentials in academic research, such as a PhD or equivalent (in mathematics, physics, engineering, computer science or similar);
• You have experience with development of research software, methodologies or open source frameworks for research.

We are currently particularly interested in the following profiles:

• Machine learning for physics and chemistry;
• High-performance computing: performance analysis, code optimization;
• Multi-scale and multi-physics simulations through model coupling.

What do we offer?  

• We work at the forefront of cutting-edge international research. 
• You will be part of a team of , collaborative and ambitious people with a passion for academic research.  
• You will be given extensive opportunity to further develop your professional and personal capacities.  
• Salary scale 9 to 12, based on our Collective Labour Agreement (WVOI Cao-OI) depending on qualifications and expertise. 
• Excellent secondary benefits: travel and communication allowance, holiday allowance (8%), 42 holidays on the basis of full-time, a year-end bonus (8,33%), personal development budget, fitness plan, bicycle plan and flexible work from home options and facilities.
• Incoming international employees could benefit from significant government tax relief (30% ruling) for a set number of years.

The Netherlands eScience Center is the national centre for innovative software solutions in academic research. We aim to bridge the gap in knowledge and expertise between digital technologies on the one hand and scientific and scholarly inquiry on the other. We create the tools and digital methodologies that enable researchers across all disciplines to answer research questions, harnessing our unique blend of academic expertise and software development skills. We attach great importance to software quality and sustainability, and academic recognition of research software.

We stand for a research-focused, professional, collaborative, open and resourceful approach to everything we do, and we require that our staff can identify with these eScience Center values. Our people have a diverse background in education, gender, nationality and ethnicity. Together, we form an inclusive group with a common drive.

Our Research Software Engineers are distributed into four different sections, Life Sciences, Social Sciences & Humanities, Environment & Sustainability, and  Natural Sciences & Engineering, with many opportunities to collaborate and exchange knowledge between the different sections.