Are you interested in data science and machine learning and want to apply this for a societal relevant cause? We are the Dutch food safety institute where you will mainly work as Postdoc Machine Learning Scientist. You will be working with the worldwide leading scientists in data science and food safety. Are you ready to join Wageningen Food Safety Research (WFSR) and help to improve the safety and security of our food and thereby improving public health?

What are you going to do?
You will be part of a group that investigates the impacts of the global and societal changes on food safety and food security. You will contribute to the development and implementation of risk-based assessment, decision support, and monitoring tools to predict and prioritize known and unknown hazards in the food supply chain.

You will work in different ongoing research projects involving machine learning, deep learning, and computer vision. You will work in multiple projects and will write scientific publications. You will help to answer scientific questions and provide insights to food safety authorities and other stakeholders we work with.

We offer an interesting and dynamic position as a scientific researcher, covering different food safety and security topics, within a team of highly skilled, enthusiastic, multicultural, and engaged colleagues. Above all, we offer you the environment to develop your skills and learn from the best.

You will work here
Wageningen Food Safety Research conducts high-quality independent research into safe and reliable food. Most of our work is commissioned by the Dutch government and our main clients are the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature and the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA). In addition, we collaborate with many national and international partners in a variety of projects funded among others by the European Commission and the European Food Safety Authority. We are part of Wageningen University & Research (WUR).

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

• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• the option to accrue additional compensation hours by working more;
• sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed December 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 €3.202,- and €5.221,- for a full-time working week of 36 hours, in accordance with the CLA Wageningen Research (scale 10). Additionally, a contract for 32 hours a week can be discussed. You will initially receive a two-year contract.

Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a multi-faceted position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

You are going to work at the greenest and most innovative campus in Holland and with your work you have a clear and positive impact on society. At WUR we work on the most pressing challenges of our time, like climate change and feeding the world in a sustainable way.

Coming from abroad
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.
Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, we can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example helping your partner to find a job, housing, 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. 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.

• A Ph D degree in data science, artificial intelligence, or a related field;
• expertise in quantitative analyses of complex data originating from different sources, using machine learning and deep learning;
• proven publication track record in scientific journals or conference proceedings;
• hands-on experience in developing and deploying machine learning applications.
• experience or affinity with the intersection between climate change, biodiversity, and food security / safety;
• good communications skills in English, both written and verbally, and a track-record of working in multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary teams and projects.

In our international working environment there is an increasing amount of communication in English. For this position it is about language level C1.

You can see that there are plenty of challenges ahead of you. These challenges can also be seen as development opportunities. So if you do not yet have the track-record required in the vacancy, but do have solid work experience, we would also like to invite you to apply. For more information about this position, please contact Bas van der Velden, teamlead datascience, by e-mail bas.vandervelden@wur.nl.

For more information about the procedure, please contact Rutger Voorrips, corporate recruite, by e-mail; rutger.voorrips@wur.nl.

Do you want to apply?
You can apply directly using the apply button on the vacancy page on our website which will allow us to process your personal information with your approval.

This vacancy will be listed up to and including October 14th, 2024. Don’t wait with your application. As soon as we have suitable candidates, we will initiate the first interviews.

Procedure
As part of our selection process, an assessment may be incorporated within the procedure

Equal opportunities
Wageningen University & Research (WUR) employs a large number of people with very different backgrounds and qualities, who inspire and motivate each other. We want every talent to feel at home in our organisation and be offered the same career opportunities. We therefore especially welcome applications from people who are underrepresented at WUR. A good example of how WUR deals with inclusiveness can be read on the page working at WUR with a functional impairment.