Postdoctoral Research Position (1fte, 2 years) Opens external

Postdoctoral Research Position (1fte, 2 years)
Postdoctoral Research Position (1fte, 2 years)

Published	Deadline	Location
27 Mar	today	Rotterdam

Postdoctoral Research Position (1fte, 2 years) on Applied AI Ethics and Algorithmic Fairness, Erasmus School of Philosophy
Job description
We are looking for a post-doctoral researcher who has expertise in applying AI ethics and algorithmic fairness to shape industry and an interest in cross-cultural AI ethics and the future of work. They must come with a strong publication record. The position entails fundamental and applied research for the Horizon Europe project, FINDHR (Fairness and Intersectional Non-Discrimination in Human Recommendation). FINDHR is an interdisciplinary project to fight discrimination in the deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) in digital recruitment. This is a full-time, 2-year position at the Erasmus School of Philosophy, Erasmus University Rotterdam. The position will create opportunities to work with members of the FINDHR research team, major organizations outside of academia, and with researchers across disciplines. Research topics will include the ethics of creating semi-synthetic datasets to reduce bias. There is a possibility to take on a leadership role in conducting masterclasses for the recruitment industry and to contribute to societal impact in shaping recruitment tools for future fair hiring practices.
The Postdoctoral researcher
The postdoc's primary responsibility will be to conduct both fundamental and applied research and publish in top tier peer reviewed journals. The postdoc should also contribute to the acquirement of new research opportunities, such as by giving scholarly presentations and organizing educational activities. Furthermore, the postdoc will become part of a large and diverse community of international researchers on AI in hiring, to attend meetings with other FINDHR colleagues, and to contribute to the growth of FINDHR. This position comes with novel opportunities to build relationships with organizations outside of academia in the human resources sector.
About FINDR
FINDHR (Fairness and Intersectional Non-Discrimination in Human Recommendation) is a Horizon Europe EU-funded research project (grant agreement No 101070212) coordinated by Dr. Carlos Castillo, ICREA Research Professor at Universitat Pompeu Fabra. It aims to develop methods, algorithms, and training for anti-discriminatory AI, which are contextualized within the technical, legal, and ethical problems of algorithmic hiring, yet are applicable to a broad class of applications involving human recommendation.
In this 3-year project, the researcher will provide an ethical review of major deliverables. For instance, they will provide ethical considerations and guidance to computer scientists at UPF, University of Amsterdam (UVA), University of Pisa (UNIPI), and the Max-Planck Institute on Security and Privacy (MPI-SP) to develop privacy-preserving methods for discrimination risk monitoring, as well as methods to create fairness-aware interpretable rankings, to create datasets for algorithmic fairness research. Interdisciplinary collaborations are at the core of the project, so the postdoc researcher will provide ethical insights in the development of an impact assessment and auditing framework together with legal scholars from Radboud University Nijmegen (RU), researchers from AlgorithmWatch, experts from ETICAS Research and Consulting, and advocacy representatives from Women in Development Europe, Praksis, and the European Trade Union Confederation.
Finally, the postdoc researcher will contribute to the creation of a new training program on algorithmic fairness, which will be coordinated by UNIPI, and to participate in communication actions aimed at multiple stakeholders in this domain, including jobseekers and recruiters.
Specifications

• max. 40 hours per week
• €3974—€5439 per month
• Rotterdam View on Google Maps

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR)

Requirements
Requirements
We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher who satisfies the following requirements:

• Completed PhD in philosophy, or related degree with demonstrable expertise in AI ethics, algorithmic fairness, and the future of work.
• Knowledge/awareness of existing 'non-discrimination' tooling (IBM Fairness 360) or other bias dashboarding techniques related to fairness metrics and interest in exploring feminist and intersectional approaches to machine learning.
• Familiarity with regulatory requirements (current and new developments) such as the AI Act and the AI Liability Directive. Demonstrable experience in AI enabled recruitment systems or other work platforms is desirable.
• A strong, promising track-record in terms of publications, as evidenced by CV.
• Excellent speaking and writing skills in English (C1), demonstrated by published academic work.
• Strong presentation skills with experience with organizations outside academia a plus.
• An entrepreneurial and team player attitude is crucial to make FINDHR flourish.
• Ability to contribute to development and acquisition of externally funded projects.
• Conceptual capacity with planning, organizing, and monitoring skills.

Conditions of employment
An internationally oriented and varied job in an enthusiastic team, with good working conditions in accordance with the Collective Labor Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO NU).
The start date of this position is 1 July 2023 and you will be based at the Campus Woudestein - Rotterdam, located at Erasmus School of Philosophy (ESPhil). The position is for 1 fte. The salary is dependent on your experience and knowledge and ranges from a minimum of € 3.974 to a maximum of € 5.439 gross per month on a fulltime basis, in accordance with Scale 11 of the CAO-NU. In addition, we offer an 8% holiday allowance, an end-of-year payment of 8.3%, and a very generous paid leave scheme. Furthermore, EUR is affiliated with ABP for the pension provision, and we offer partially paid parental leave, fully paid extended birth leave for partners, a personal career budget, work-life balance coaches, discounted collective health insurance, and more. As an employee, you can also use EUR facilities such as the University library and receive a discount on subscriptions for the Erasmus sports center.
Erasmus University Rotterdam offers a Dual Career Programme (DCP) to assist the life partners of new academic staff (on payroll) in finding employment in The Netherlands. The programme is offered in close cooperation with the nearby universities of Delft and Leiden.
Erasmus University Rotterdam aspires to be an equitable and inclusive community. We nurture an open culture, where everyone is supported to fulfill their full potential. We see inclusivity of talent as the basis of our successes, and the diversity of perspectives and people as a highly valued outcome. EUR provides equal opportunities to all employees and applicants regardless of gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, neurodiversity, functional impairment, citizenship, or any other aspect which makes them unique. We look forward to welcoming you to our community.
Employer
Erasmus University Rotterdam
Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) is an internationally oriented university with a strong social orientation in its education and research, as expressed in our mission 'Creating positive societal impact'. EUR is home to 3.700 academics and professionals and almost 33.000 students from more than 140 countries. Everything we do, we do under the credo The Erasmian Way - Making Minds Matter. We're global citizens, connecting, entrepreneurial, open-minded, and socially involved. These Erasmian Values function as our internal compass and create EUR's distinctive and recognizable profile. From these values, with a broad perspective and with an eye for diversity, different backgrounds and opinions, our employees work closely together to solve societal challenges from the dynamic and cosmopolitan city of Rotterdam. Thanks to the high quality and positive societal impact of our research and education, EUR can compete with the top European universities. www.eur.nl .
Erasmus School of Philosophy (ESPhil)
Erasmus School of Philosophy is a leading research and teaching institution of Erasmus University Rotterdam. The faculty is one of the two independent faculties of philosophy in the Netherlands. ESPhil has a broad international orientation, with many international students (total number of students is currently about 800), PhDs (about 15), and staff members (about 30), and has excellent connections with universities abroad.
The FINDHR Project
The FINDHR (Fairness and Intersectional Non-Discrimination in Human Recommendation) project started in November 2023 and aims to create new ways to ascertain discrimination risk, produce less biased outcomes, and meaningfully incorporate human expertise. Algorithmic hiring is the usage of tools based on Artificial intelligence (AI) for finding and selecting job candidates. Like other applications of AI, it is vulnerable to perpetuating discrimination. Considering technological, legal, and ethical aspects, the EU-funded FINDHR project will facilitate the prevention, detection, and management of discrimination in algorithmic hiring and closely related areas involving human recommendation. The project is funded by the European Union and unites computer scientists, legal scholars, advocates, and researchers from different European countries (Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Greece, and Switzerland). More detailed information about the project can be found here: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101070212 or on the website: www.findhr.eu
Additional information
Additional information about the vacancy can be obtained from Prof. dr. Payal Arora: [email protected]
Making minds matter

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) is a highly ranked, international university, based in the dynamic and diverse city of Rotterdam, with its port acting as a gateway to the world.

Read more about Erasmus University Rotterdam

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Application procedure
You can apply for this position until April 15, 2023. Please include the following documents with your application.

• CV
• A one-page motivation letter that explains how your research fits with the themes of the project.
• Writing sample in English. This should ideally be work of recently published work on the topic of the project.

The application procedure consists of 2 interviews.
First Interviews will take place online in the second week of May.
Applicants will be notified by the last week of April whether they are selected for the interviews. Interviews will be held online via Microsoft Teams.