In het kort
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Department
Faculty of Spatial Sciences
Organisation
Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, University of Groningen, V25.0256
Job description
This is a fixed-term position (under the supervision of Prof Dimitris Ballas, Dr Wander Jager and Dr Richard Rijnks) from 1 July 2025 until 31 May 2026 and will involve the development and application of spatial microsimulation and agent-based models in relation to the Horizon Europe project MOBI-TWIN (https://mobi-twin-project.eu).
ΜΟΒΙ-TWIN is a Horizon Europe project that investigates the mobility implications of the twin (Green and Digital) transition in the European Union. It builds on the idea that twin transition affects regional attractiveness - or otherwise, the drivers of human mobility- offering an opportunity to left-behind areas to attract new population based on characteristics related to living and environmental conditions and the changes it brings on job accessibility. It argues that this creates new spatial mobility patterns which tend to develop new equilibria between the different forms of mobility (permanent, circular, temporal), affecting both the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ sending and receiving regions. It uses big data and agent-based modelling to analyse the impact of those changing patterns of spatial mobility on EU regions and envisage policies to counterbalance their effects in terms of demographics, society, welfare system and labour market. The project has a four dimensional scope: (i) it will analyse the changing drivers of spatial mobility based on human mobility behaviour, encompassing the structural changes caused by twin transition in the definition of regional attractiveness; (ii) it will examine the new balance rising between the different forms of spatial mobility (permanent, circular, temporal) and their effects on EU regions following the changing nature of regional attractiveness; (iii) it will use agent-based modelling to capture and assess the impact of changing patterns of spatial mobility on EU regions in terms of demographics, society, welfare system and labour market; and (iv) it will use the insights to envisage place-based policies for harnessing the positive outcomes of twin transition. Specific attention will be placed on the ways in which the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 and Brexit have affected freedom of movement between EU regions. The post-doctoral researcher will contribute to the tasks involving the development and application of agent-based modelling.
The post-doctoral researcher will mostly work on tasks that are part of MOBI-TWIN work package 3 (Assessing the impact of spatial mobility on EU regions) led by Professor Dimitris Ballas and comprising an international team of researchers across Europe (and especially the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Polytechnic University of Milan, the University of Helsinki, the University of Barcelona and the Athens Regional Development Institute). In addition to Prof Dimitris Ballas, the University of Groningen team of researchers includes Dr Wander Jager, Dr Richard Rijnks, Dr Thanasis Ziogas and Sissal Dahl.
You will be based in the Faculty of Spatial Sciences and will be responsible for liaising with relevant partners and for collecting and analyzing suitable datasets as well as for developing spatial microsimulation models (and links to agent-based models that are also developed as part of this project). You will also take the lead in the analysis of model outputs and writing up the results as scientific manuscripts.
Organisation
The University of Groningen (founded 1614) is a research university with a global outlook and is currently in the top 100 universities worldwide on several influential ranking lists. The University creates and shares knowledge through its outstanding research, scholarship and education. With an academic tradition dating back to 1614 and a rich heritage, the University is a unique academic community with a strong sense of belonging and a culture of innovative education and research.
The Faculty of Spatial Sciences (FSS) focuses on high quality teaching and research in the fields of spatial planning, economic and cultural geography and demography. FSS is also well-embedded in a wider range of disciplines, such as social, political and technology sciences. Our vision is to spatially transform society to support wellbeing and innovation. Our mission as a faculty is to undertake and disseminate, via research and teaching, rigorous and distinctive research which helps to realize this vision. FSS employs around 100 academic staff members, over 100 PhD candidates, and serves about 1100 students. We are a cohesive Faculty committed to internationally-oriented, interdisciplinary research of high societal relevance with our new research programme Transformations, Communities, and Environments (TRACE), which encompasses socio-spatial transformations; wellbeing, equity, and resilience for people and places; and socio-spatial differences and sustainable development.
Requirements
We are looking for candidates who have
- a PhD in Economic Geography, Regional Science, Economics, or any other related discipline (with a strong quantitative social sciences component).
- a track record of working in suitable programming languages such as R (Experience with NetLogo is preferred but not essential).
- experience in the development and use of spatial microsimulation and a familiarity or willingness to learn agent-based modelling.
- experience with computational methods in social sciences.
- experience with spatial and regional data.
- experience with handling large datasets.
- experience with the use of social survey microdata.
- experience with micro-level analysis and related spatial analysis methods.
- excellent English for written and verbal communication.
Conditions of employment
Contract length: 24 months.
We offer you in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities
- A salary from a minimum of € 4,060 gross per month up to a maximum of € 5,331 gross per month (salary scale 10) based on a full-time position and dependent on qualification and work experience.
- Excluding 8% holiday allowance and an 8.3% year-end bonus, participation in a pension scheme for employees and excellent secondary benefits. We offer 232 holiday hours per calendar year for a full-time employment.
- An appointment on a temporary from 1 July 2025 until 31 May 2026 (1 FTE).
For more detailed information about working conditions and working for the University of Groningen, please check: https://www.rug.nl/about-us/work-with-us/
The appointee will ideally commence on 1 July, 2025
Job Application
Do you meet our qualification criteria? If yes, your application should include - A motivation letter stating your motivation to apply for the position and your key qualities relevant for this position [max 1 page]. - A brief, up-to-date curriculum vitae that focuses on aspects that are directly relevant to the position. - Contact information of two academic references. Please do not submit letters of reference. If necessary, we will contact the referees ourselves. You can submit your application until 6 May 2025 at 23:59. Dutch local time (CET) by means of the application form (click on "Apply" below on the advertisement on the university website). Interviews will be held in week 20/21 We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our University. We are committed to building a diverse faculty so you are encouraged to apply. Our selection procedure follows the guidelines of the Recruitment code (NVP), https://www.nvp-hrnetwerk.nl/sollicitatiecode/ and European Commission's European Code of Conduct for recruitment of researchers, https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/charter/code Unsolicited marketing is not appreciated.
Additional information
For additional information, please contact:
Prof. Dimitris Ballas
d.ballas@rug.nl
Dr Wander Jager
w.jager@rug.nl
Dr Richard Rijnks
r.h.rijnks@rug.nl
In your application, please always include the job opening ID V25.0256
