Biostatistician (0.5 FTE)

• Employment: 0.5 FTE
• Gross monthly salary: € 2,836 - € 4,474
• Faculty of Science
• Required background: Research University Degree
• Application deadline: 15 August 2021

We are looking for

To improve the curriculum of our (Medical) Biology courses as part of the Institute for Water and Wetland Research, we are looking for a biostatician. You will play a key role in developing new statistical educational material, which you will then also teach. You will also act as a consultant in experimental design and data analysis for our scientific staff, therefore contributing to research that contributes towards healthy ecosystems.

We will expect you to develop educational material and to teach data analysis to BSc and MSc Biology/Medical Biology students, and to act as a consultant in experimental design and data analysis for IWWR's scientific staff. QANU assessed our teaching programme in 2015 as 'good'. The QANU panel recommended including more statistical training in our curriculum. We have therefore recently incorporated topics such as multifactorial analysis and 'big data' in our curriculum. We now wish to extend our current statistics teaching to include more advanced statistical methodologies, and to offer a clear learning line in quantitative data analysis. You will play a key role in introducing a new statistics course in our BSc curriculum. You will design the course contents based on your statistical expertise and the statistical needs of the curriculum. You will also teach this course. Furthermore, you will develop ideas and initiatives for a statistics course in the MSc curriculum. We believe that quantitative training for our students is best delivered in a thorough (medical) biological context, and expect that you can deliver this.

Finally, you will act as a consultant to our scientific staff, giving advice on experimental design (power analysis, sample size calculations, selection of statistical procedure) and more advanced statistical data analysis methods such as meta-analysis/-regression, linear mixed effect modelling, Monte Carlo simulation, machine learning, and methods for the analysis of '-omics' data.

We ask

• A PhD degree in biostatistics or a similar field. 
• Demonstrable affinity with, and expertise in the field of life sciences (e.g. a BSc degree in biology or medical biology).
• Demonstrable experience in developing educational materials and teaching statistics and/or mathematics at BSc or MSc level.
• Expertise in statistical consulting or a willingness to acquire this.
• Familiarity with and programming skills in statistics software such as R, JASP, and SPSS.
• Good communication skills in written and spoken English.
• Excellent teamwork skills and the ability to work in a multidisciplinary team with colleagues from different biological disciplines and with different statistical/mathematical backgrounds.

We are

You will work at the Institute for Water and Wetland Research (IWWR), part of the Faculty of Science . The Faculty of Science is a complete science faculty in which the IWWR is a major research institute. IWWR research encompasses three major groups of organisms (microorganisms, plants, and animals) and spans nearly all levels of biological organisation. Our general aim is to understand the response of the natural environment to human impact and investigate stress and adaptation processes in organisms, populations and ecosystems. IWWR comprises eleven chair groups organised in three clusters: Microbiology, Ecology and Physiology, and Environmental Science. All chair groups participate in the overarching research theme 'Towards Healthy Ecosystems', and contribute to the teaching programmes. Our institute is dedicated to providing excellent education to its students in BSc, MSc and PhD programmes in Biology/Medical Biology. The English-taught Bachelor's programme in Biology attracts approx. 150 enrolments each year (of which a considerable number of international students) and offers a challenging and broad bioscience curriculum. In total approx. 500 students are enrolled in our Biology BSc programme, and 200 and 400 students in our Biology and Medical Biology MSc programmes, respectively.

Radboud University

We want to get the best out of science, others and ourselves. Why? Because this is what the world around us desperately needs. Leading research and education make an indispensable contribution to a healthy, free world with equal opportunities for all. This is what unites the more than 22,000 students and 5,000 employees at Radboud University. And this requires even more talent, collaboration and lifelong learning. You have a part to play!

We offer

• Employment: 0.5 FTE.
• The gross monthly salary amounts to a minimum of € 2,836 and a maximum of € 4,474 based on a 38-hour working week, depending on previous education and number of years of relevant work experience (salary scale 10 ).
• In addition to the salary: an 8% holiday allowance and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus.
• Duration of the contract: 3 years.
• The intended start date is as soon as possible.
• You will be able to use our Dual Career and Family Care Services . Our Dual Career and Family Care Officer can assist you with family-related support, help your partner or spouse prepare for the local labour market, provide customized support in their search for employment  and help your family settle in Nijmegen.

Additional employment conditions
Work and science require good employment practices. This is reflected in Radboud University's primary and secondary employment conditions . You can make arrangements for the best possible work-life balance with flexible working hours, various leave arrangements and working from home. You are also able to compose part of your employment conditions yourself, for example, exchange income for extra leave days and receive a reimbursement for your sports subscription. And of course, we offer a good pension plan. You are given plenty of room and responsibility to develop your talents and realise your ambitions. Therefore, we provide various training and development schemes.

Would you like more information?

For more information about this vacancy, please contact:
Peter Klaren, Assistant Professor Organismal Animal Physiology
Email: [email protected]

Mark Huijbregts, Professor of Environmental Science, Director of IWWR
Email: [email protected]

Apply directly

Please address your application to Peter Klaren and submit it, using the application button, no later than 15 August 2021, 23:59 Amsterdam Time Zone.   

Your application should include the following attachments:

The interviews will be held in the week of 23 August.

We drafted this vacancy to find and hire our new colleague ourselves. Recruitment agencies are kindly requested to refrain from responding.