PhD computational toxicology

13 Mar 2024
Job Information

Organisation/Company

Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM)

Research Field

Physics
Medical sciences
Other

Researcher Profile

Recognised Researcher (R2)
First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

Netherlands

Application Deadline

24 Mar 2024 - 22:59 (UTC)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Not Applicable

Hours Per Week

36.0

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by an EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

Endocrine disrupting chemicals

There is a societal and regulatory urge to get a better grip on substances of possible concern. Specifically endocrine disrupting chemicals have received a lot of attention. These are chemicals found in industrial chemical substances, plant protection products, biocides, consumer safety, nanotechnology and genetic modification. However, we lack experimental test data of many substances in order to conclude whether they can disrupt the endocrine system. As experiments are expensive and consuming animals, there is an increased need to identify those substances for which additional testing is necessary.

Purpose of your role

Within this PhD project you will develop predictive models to identify potential endocrine disrupting chemicals. The project will focus on so-called ligand-based models using in vitro data and developing machine learning algorithms, and structure-based models by using state-of-the-art approaches like Alphafold. An important part of your work is data curation and evaluation, as well as programming, validation and analysis of model performance. You will work on these topics together with an interdisciplinary team of 25 committed and experienced scientists and risk assessors at RIVM and Leiden University.

You core tasks:

• You develop and transform research questions into a detailed approach;
• You analyze and validate the performance of models that you develop;
• You discuss and present research questions and obtained results to the project team, your department and at international conferences;
• You write and contribute to scientific publications and reports;
• You oversee and apply relevant scientific developments.

Why choose this position

In this position at the RIVM you will be confronted with unique, innovative and challenging research questions in a time of significant technological innovation. Due to the independent and scientific position of the RIVM, you find yourself between the academic and regulatory framework and you come into contact with the ministries and the European Chemicals Agency. This means you get ample opportunities to further develop yourself and your career. In addition, the products to be developed can be applied directly within risk assessment and thus does your work have a direct impact on the regulation of chemical substances.

This year the RIVM is still on our green campus in Bilthoven, where rabbits walk the grounds and you are located next to the forest for a walk during your lunch. Mid-2025, we will move to a completely new building at the Utrecht Science Park, built especially for RIVM.

Working for the government also means that you will get a contract with a thirteenth month, a good pension scheme and, of course, travel allowance. Do you need more vacation days because you want to stay a little longer on vacation this year? Through your personal plan, you can ‘buy’ extra days at an affordable price.

Finally, hybrid working and flexible working hours are also the new normal for us, where we would like to see you in the office at least twice a week. We like to stay connected that way.

Details of the project

You will be appointed at the Centre for Safety of Substances and Products at RIVM and you will also work at Leiden University at the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research in the Computational Drug Discovery group. You will defend your thesis at Leiden University.

Your contract is for the duration of the project. Initially, this is for 12 months and after a positive evaluation, it is extended for another 36 months. Because this is a promotion program, there will be a salary increase after the first year, and your salary will increase annually to the maximum pay in the fourth year of the project.

The departments at RIVM and Leiden University

The core mission of the Centre for Safety of Substances and Products at RIVM is to offer structural support and advise on the management of the risks of chemical substances, products and gene technology in order to promote the health and safety of people and the ecosystem. We advise the government on the development and implementation of policy and regulations. We also develop new methods and guidelines, for example for risk assessments, test strategies, socio-economic analyses and risk reduction.

The Faculty of Science at Leiden University is a world-class faculty where staff and students work together in a dynamic international environment. The research carried out is very diverse, ranging from mathematics, information science, astronomy, physics, chemistry and bio-pharmaceutical sciences to biology and environmental sciences. We are located at the heart of Leiden’s Bio Science Park, one of Europe’s biggest science parks, where university and business life come together.

Requirements
Specific Requirements

Skills and experience

For this role it is important that you are strong at analytical thinking, you analyze issues from different angles. You form your opinion based on information, arguments and considerations. This also requires creative thinking, at times you have to come up with new possibilities in your work and have a proactive attitude.

As you are working in a team, you have to be able to learn from your own experiences and you are able to communicate specialist know-how in an understandable and convincing way to colleagues and external professionals. You are responsible for the progress of your own work and make timely adjustments.

Further, we ask:

• You have a relevant university qualification at Master’s degree in toxicology, pharmacology, drug discovery, biomedical sciences, (bio)informatics, or a comparable scientific education. You are familiar with the basic principles of toxicology and the endocrine system;
• You have demonstrable experience and have affinity with the use of programming languages, we use R and Python;
• Experience with model development and evaluation is a plus. If you don’t have this experience, you can learn it on the job.

Additional Information
Benefits

Salarisomschrijving: The salary corresponds to the OIO salary scale according to the working conditions.

You will be employed on the basis of a 36-hour week. The appointment is temporary for the duration of 4 years. Your salary € 2.945,77 gross per month (based on 36 hours a week) in the first year, ascending to € 3.662,77 gross per month in the fourth year.

In addition the RIVM has many attractive employee-conditions, such as personal development, study facilities, an individual employee conditions choice system (IKB) and a commuter’s allowance (based on public transport).

• Dienstverband: Arbeidsovereenkomst voor bepaalde tijd
• Contractduur: 48 months
• Minimaal aantal uren per week: 32
• Maximaal aantal uren per week: 36

Selection process

Bijzonderheden

We would like to receive your letter and CV in a Word or PDF file via the digital application form. If you claim a priority position, please also enclose a copy of that notification.

We are curious about your motivation for this position and would like to see an explanation of this in your application letter. In addition, we ask you to describe your activities in detail in your CV, so that we can make a correct assessment of your experience.

After the closing date, Marcht 25th, the vacancy text will no longer be visible online. We therefore recommend that you download and save the text after you have applied.

Solliciteren?

Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM) nodigt je uit op hun site te solliciteren. Via onderstaande knop verlaat je deze site ga je direct naar het sollicitatieformulier. Het Rijk hecht waarde aan een diverse en inclusieve organisatie. Werken in divers samengestelde teams maakt ons effectiever, innovatiever en het werk leuker. Eenieder wordt daarom uitgenodigd te solliciteren.

Additional comments

Information

Are you interested in this position, but do you first have some questions? Feel free to reach out to colleague Pim Wassenaar (06-1554 1024) for questions about the content of the job, he will be happy to answer your questions. You can reach out to department manager Maikel de Potter (06-2966 1019) for questions about the process.

Bijzonderheden

We would like to receive your letter and CV in a Word or PDF file via the digital application form. If you claim a priority position, please also enclose a copy of that notification.

We are curious about your motivation for this position and would like to see an explanation of this in your application letter. In addition, we ask you to describe your activities in detail in your CV, so that we can make a correct assessment of your experience.

After the closing date, Marcht 25th, the vacancy text will no longer be visible online. We therefore recommend that you download and save the text after you have applied.

Solliciteren?

Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM) nodigt je uit op hun site te solliciteren. Via onderstaande knop verlaat je deze site ga je direct naar het sollicitatieformulier. Het Rijk hecht waarde aan een diverse en inclusieve organisatie. Werken in divers samengestelde teams maakt ons effectiever, innovatiever en het werk leuker. Eenieder wordt daarom uitgenodigd te solliciteren.

Website for additional job details

https://www.academictransfer.com/338912/

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM)

Country

Netherlands

City

Bilthoven

Postal Code

3721 MA

Street

Antonie van Leeuwenhoeklaan 9

Geofield

Where to apply

Website

https://www.academictransfer.com/en/338912/phd-computational-toxicology/apply/#…

Contact

City

Bilthoven

Website

https://www.rivm.nl/

Street

Antonie van Leeuwenhoeklaan 9

Postal Code

3721 MA

STATUS: EXPIRED