PhD position at the Institute for Logic, Language and Computation

The Faculty of Humanities invites applications for a PhD position at the Institute for Logic, Language and Computation (ILLC), tenable from 1 September 2021.

What are you going to do?

Tasks will include:

• completion and defence of a PhD thesis within the contract period;
• regular presentation of intermediate research results at workshops and conferences;
• publication of results in journals and/or conference proceedings;
• participation in the Faculty of Humanities PhD training programme / the soft skills courses offered by the ILLC PhD Programme;;
• participation in the organisation of research activities and events at ILLC, such as conferences, workshops and joint publications;
• teaching courses at BA-level and/or teaching assistant in Master courses in the 2^nd and 3^rd year of the contract (0,2 FTE per year).

What do we ask of you?

• A completed Master’s degree in a field relevant to the proposed PhD project and the research areas of ILLC. You may apply if you have not yet completed your Master's degree only if you provide a signed letter from your supervisor stating that you will graduate before 1 September 2021;
• excellent command of English;
• excellent research skills;
• good social and organizational skills.

NB. If you already hold a Dutch doctorate (or foreign equivalent, such as a PhD) or are working towards obtaining a similar degree elsewhere, you will not be admitted to a doctoral programme at the UvA.

Our offer

The PhD candidate at the Faculty of Humanities will be employed within ILLC. The employment contract will be for 4 years for 38 hours per week (1 FTE,  which is including 0,2 teaching in the second and third years of the employment contract) under the terms of employment currently valid for the Faculty. Initially, a contract will be given for 16 months, with an extension for the following 32 months on the basis of a positive evaluation after 12 months. The starting date of the contract is 1 September 2021.

The salary for the position (based on a full-time contract) will be €2,395 during the first year (gross per month) and will reach €3,061 during the fourth year, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities. 

The PhD candidate receives a tuition fee waiver and has free access to courses offered by the Graduate School of the Faculty of Humanities and the Dutch National Research Schools.

Further information

For further information, please contact:

• Floris Roelofsen
  or
• Jenny Batson

About the Faculty and the Institute for Logic, Language and Computation

The ILLC is a renowned research institute at the University of Amsterdam, in which researchers from the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Science collaborate. ILLC’s central research area is the study of fundamental principles of encoding, transmission and comprehension of information. Research at ILLC is interdisciplinary, and aims at bringing together insights from various disciplines concerned with information and information processing, such as (computational) linguistics, logic, mathematics, computer science, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, musicology and philosophy.

At the Faculty of Humanities, each of the five research schools/institutes that fall under the aegis of the Amsterdam Institute for Humanities Research., as well as the ILLC, covers an important research area within the faculty and has its own research programme. Research schools/institute are also the home base for PhD candidates, who interact with each other and with senior members in the research groups that make up the research school.

Job application

The UvA is an equal-opportunity employer. We prioritise diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for everyone. We value a spirit of enquiry and perseverance, provide the space to keep asking questions, and promote a culture of curiosity and creativity.

Your application should include the following:

1. Your curriculum vitae, listing at least:
   • full address and contact details
   • previous education
   • professional information (previous university (or relevant) employment)
   • language proficiency
   • grants/honours
   • conference presentations and publications, if applicable
2. A list of grades (transcript) obtained for your Master (or equivalent) programme; at this stage a certified document is not yet necessary
3. A research proposal of no more than 800 words with the following elements:
   • an outline of central issue/problem/question (why)
   • object(s) of research (what)
   • methodology (how)
   • how your research fits the programme of ILLC (eg. specific research groups or centres within ILLC)
4. Motivation for doing PhD research (no more than 200 words)
5. The name of a potential supervisor for your PhD project who is a staff member of ILLC. You are encouraged to contact the staff member whom you have listed as your prospective supervisor to discuss your plans before applying formally
6. The name and contact details of one or two academic referees
7. A writing sample, such as a project paper or chapter of a master’s thesis, of up to 10,000 words maximum

Please supply this information in the order given above and submit your full application as one PDF file (please do not send multiple attachments), using your initials and surname as a file name, via the link below. Please note that your application will not be taken into consideration if you send multiple files, and/or if your application is late and/or incomplete.

The deadline for applications is 31 March 2021.

Selection procedure

The applications will be evaluated by a selection committee composed of representatives of the academic staff and a PhD researcher of ILLC. Committee members may not vote in cases of involvement with applicants. The committee will make a selection of candidates to invite for an (online) interview. The final selection will be made immediately following the interviews; the most promising candidate will be selected.

31 March 2021 - Deadline submission applications

1 April - Applications are checked for completeness

Mid-April - Applicants are informed whether they are invited for an interview

Early/Mid-May - Interviews with candidates

End of May - Applicants informed about the result

1 September 2021 - Applicants start PhD projects

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