The programme group Urban Planning (UP) of the Department of Geography, Planning and International Development Studies has a vacancy for a Research assistant.

We offer an exciting job opening in a dynamic, inter-disciplinary research setting, with the opportunity to develop research and managerial skills, and build professional, international networks. The ideal candidate has a master's in urban planning, geography, transportation planning, political science or a related field.

This position will be aiding the research of a current PhD student whose research focuses on (policy) learning processes of sustainable urban mobility policy and practices. The research empirically studies these processes embedded in three internationalprojects, two of which are EU-based. A more detailed summary of the research is available here.

We are looking for a research assistant who can:

• perform research activities such as statistical analyses, interview transcription, data compilation and processing;
• support administrative organisation, such as scheduling interviews;
• manage programme related communications;
• conduct literature reviews and organize literature in a database (ie, Mendeley);
• co-write reviews, project reports, summaries, blogs, project documents, and academic papers;
• where necessary, provide support during research process, e.g. assisting in training/workshops in programme cities, data cleaning, data analysis, developing visuals on the basis of research findings, etc.;
• where relevant, will (co-)organize and attend project meetings, working group meetings, dissemination events, and develop minutes of these meetings;
• provide administrative support, including managing Dropbox folders, sending out invitations to meetings, making practical arrangements for meetings, writing minutes, and making necessary travel arrangements;
• work together with secretarial, financial and academic staff of UvA/AISSR about contracts, expenditures, time registration a/o.

The research assistant we are looking for has:

• fluency in English, and preferably conversational in one other European language;
• accuracy, attention to detail and strong organizational skills;
• demonstrated the ability for critical thinking;
• the ability to time manage and work with deadlines;
• good interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills;
• well-developed research skills, both quantitative and qualitative;
• well-developed writing skills, preferable experience with academic writing for journals;
• a pro-active, demonstrated ability to work both independently and as part of a team;
• a flexible schedule (for possible international/EU travel and interviews across different time zones);
• experience/affinity with research and programmes regarding urban planning, transportation/mobility, or related topics;
• good IT skills (including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SPSS). Knowledge of online data collection software (ie, Qualtrics) is an advantage.

The position concerns a temporary appointment of 30,4 hours per week for a term of 12 months, with a probationary period of two months. Starting date is 1 February 2019, or as soon as possible.

Salary depends on past education and relevant work experience, with a minimum salary of €2.514 and a maximum salary of € 2.640 gross per month based on a full-time appointment for a 38-hour working week (in keeping with scale 8, as per the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities). We additionally offer an extensive package of secondary employee benefits, including a generous holiday scheme and year-end bonus. Because we value your continued personal development and professionalisation, we also offer excellent opportunities for study and development. 

What can we offer you?

A challenging work environment with a variety of duties and ample scope for individual initiative and development within an inspiring organisation. The social and behavioural sciences play a leading role in addressing the major societal challenges faced by the world, the Netherlands and Amsterdam, now and in the future.

University of Amsterdam

With over 5,000 employees, 30,000 students and a budget of more than 600 million euros, the University of Amsterdam (UvA) is an intellectual hub within the Netherlands. Teaching and research at the UvA are conducted within seven faculties: Humanities, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Economics and Business, Law, Science, Medicine and Dentistry. Housed on four city campuses in or near the heart of Amsterdam, where disciplines come together and interact, the faculties have close links with thousands of researchers and hundreds of institutions at home and abroad.  

The UvA’s students and employees are independent thinkers, competent rebels who dare to question dogmas and aren’t satisfied with easy answers and standard solutions. To work at the UvA is to work in an independent, creative, innovative and international climate characterised by an open atmosphere and a genuine engagement with the city of Amsterdam and society.

http://www.uva.nl/en/home

Department of Human Geography, Planning and International Development

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences (FMG) is the largest social-science educational and research institution in the Netherlands. The Faculty serves around 9,000 students in numerous Bachelor and Master programs in Political Science, Sociology, Anthropology, Communication Science, Psychology, Human Geography, Urban and Regional Planning, International Development Studies and Educational Sciences. The academic staff is employed in education as well as research. There are over 1,200 employees at the Faculty, located in a number of buildings in the center of Amsterdam.

Research and education within FMG are carried out by separate institutes. The Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research (AISSR) is responsible for research in the social sciences. The College of Social Sciences (CSS) and the Graduate School of Social Sciences (GSSS) are responsible for undergraduate and graduate teaching programs in the social sciences.

The Department of Geography, Planning and International Development Studies is one of the six Departments in the FMG. Research and teaching in the Department of Geography, Planning and International Development Studies is organized in four thematic programme groups: Governance and Inclusive Development (GID), Geographies of Globalizations (GOG), Urban Geographies (UG) and Urban Planning (UP).

This vacancy belongs to the programme group Urban Planning.

http://www.uva.nl/en/faculties/faculteit-der-maatschappij-en-gedragswetenschappen/disciplines/human-geography-planning-and-international-development/human-geography-planning-and-international-developm