Postdoc position for Amsterdam Social Networks, Health and Resiliency project

Your job

Are you interested in working with Amsterdam community groups on social cohesion, urban food systems, and resiliency? Would you like to work as part of an interdisciplinary team working on systems perspectives in health promotion?  If yes, then we have the perfect opportunity for you! 

The Health & Society Group at Wageningen University is offering a two-year Postdoc position as part of the project, “The Amsterdam Social Network Interventions for Health Simulator (HANS): Building the evidence base to improve the resiliency and health of Amsterdam residents”.

In this role, you will collaborate with Amsterdam community groups as well as researchers at WUR and the University Medical Center Amsterdam.

Your main responsibility will be to undertake community-based, mixed-methods research that tackles the challenge of community participation and intervention approaches. Findings will inform your own work and contribute to the development of a simulation model for community network interventions. More specifically, as a Postdoc researcher, you will help lead the community-based research and co-design process for understanding how social networks inform community actions to improve the diets, health, and resiliency of Amsterdam residents. (Participatory) community-based research is central to health promotion, and this Postdoc will allow you to gain this important experience, in collaboration with stakeholders and citizens in Amsterdam.

As a Postdoc researcher, you will be responsible for (1) leading the community-based research process, (2) co-creating with community groups a typology and set of best practices for community network activities in the Netherlands, and (3) communicate and publish research findings within and outside the project. 

You will work here
The Health and Society group is part of the Department of Social Sciences at Wageningen University & Research. Our research focuses on the sociological study of public health, health promotion and health protection, in resource poor and research rich contexts, with emphasis on (1) the social, natural and built environment, and (2) the role of actors and social institutions in advancing health and wellbeing.
You will be supervised by Prof.dr. Spencer Moore , Chair of Health and Society group, dr. Kristina Thompson and Prof. dr. ir Annemarie Wagemakers .

Your qualities

You have:

• (nearly) completed a PhD in the field of social sciences, health promotion, community psychology, or another relevant science;
• a penchant for participatory research and an interest in complex systems thinking;
• experience in social science research, qualitative and quantitative;
• passion for research and also enjoy working with community groups;
• good communication and collaboration skills;
• skills to function as a team player who dares to make decisions and bear responsibilities;
• good oral and written communication skills in English and Dutch; fluency in Dutch is required for conducting community work.

In our international working environment there is an increasing amount of communication in English. For

this position your command of the English language is expected to be at C1 level . Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found here .
We offer you

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

• partially paid parental leave;
• 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 / holiday hours by working more,  per week;
• 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. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between € 3.226 and € 5.090 for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the

Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU)

(scale 10). Additionally, a contract for 0.75 FTE can be discussed.

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 unique 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 at a university that has been chosen as the “Best University ” in the Netherlands for the 19th consecutive time.

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.

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.

Do you want more information?

For more information about this position, please contact prof. dr. Spencer Moore, chair Health and Society, by email: [email protected]

For more information about the procedure, please contact Noorien Abbas, corporate recruiter, by email: [email protected]

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 1 April 2024. We hope to schedule the first job interviews on Wednesday 10 April 2024, 9.00-12.00 am and Friday 12 April, 11.00 am -15.00 pm.

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 .

We are

Wageningen University & Research
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 this video 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.