Postdoctoral Researcher in Machine Learning with NLP and Computer Vision

Faculty/Services: Faculty of Science

Educational level: PhD

Function type: Academic Staff

Closing date: 1 May 2023

Vacancy number: 11428

Are you passionate about machine learning, natural language processing, or computer vision? We are seeking a postdoctoral researcher to join the research group led by Ivan Titov (http://ivan-titov.org/), part of the natural language processing group of the Institute for Logic, Language and Computation (ILLC).

What are you going to do?

The research focus will be primarily on two directions (or their intersections):

1. grounded language modeling: exploiting knowledge embedded in language and language models to help solve decision-making applications and produce generalizable and interpretable models for these tasks

2. learning and emergent communication: developing general technology to create learning agents which can communicate with humans, explain their predictions and decision strategies, and also learn from human feedback.

The research is funded by NWO (Dutch Science Foundation). The researchers will be employed by the University of Amsterdam and will be a member of the Institute for Logic, Language, and Computation and the Faculty of Science. The collaboration is envisaged with researchers across the University of Amsterdam (e.g., Efstratios Gavves, and Wilker Aziz), as well as with the University of Edinburgh (e.g., Edoardo Ponti, Hakan Bilen, Sidharth N., and Kenny Smith).

Your tasks and responsibilities:

• Carry out research as described in the project proposal

• Present and publish at key international conferences and in leading journals;

• Ccontribute your expertise to joint research projects within the research groups;

• Participate in and contribute to the organization of research activities and events at the ILLC, such as workshops and colloquia;

• Make a small contribution to the ILLC’s educational mission, by possibly taking part in teaching and student supervision activities in areas related to your expertise;

What do we require?

• A PhD degree (or equivalent qualification) in AI (e.g., machine learning, natural language processing or computer vision);

• A strong scientific track record, documented by publications at first-tier journals and conferences;

• Have excellent programming skills;

• Have strong mathematical skills (e.g., probability theory, statistics, calculus, and linear algebra);

• Have strong communication, presentation and writing skills;

• Show commitment, perseverance and a cooperative attitude;

• Enjoy working in a multidisciplinary research environment;

• Are highly motivated and creative;

• Have an excellent command of English;

Our offer

We offer a temporary employment contract for 38 hours per week for a period of 12 months. The initial employment contract will be for one year. Contingent on a positive performance evaluation the contract will be extended with up to 2 years. The preferred starting date is before December 2023.

The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week and dependent on relevant experience, ranges between € 2,960 to € 4,670 (scale 10). This does not include 8% holiday allowance and 8,3% year-end allowance. The UFO profile Researcher 4 is applicable. A favourable tax agreement, the ‘30% ruling’, may apply to non-Dutch applicants. The Collective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlands is applicable.

Besides the salary and a vibrant and challenging environment at Science Park we offer you multiple fringe benefits:

• 232 holiday hours per year (based on fulltime) and extra holidays between Christmas and 1 January;

• multiple courses to follow from our Teaching and Learning Centre;

• a complete educational program for PhD students;

• multiple courses on topics such as leadership for academic staff;

• multiple courses on topics such as time management, handling stress and an online learning platform with 100+ different courses;

• 7 weeks birth leave (partner leave) with 100% salary;

• partly paid parental leave;

• the possibility to set up a workplace at home;

• a pension at ABP for which UvA pays two third part of the contribution;

• the possibility to follow courses to learn Dutch;

• help with housing for a studio or small apartment when you’re moving from abroad.

Are you curious to read more about our extensive package of secondary employment benefits, take a look here.

About us

The Faculty of Science belongs to the University of Amsterdam (UvA), one of Europe’s most prominent research-led universities. It is a Top-100 university globally and one of Europe’s 15 best universities. With 35,000 students, 6,000 staff and 3,000 PhD candidates, the UvA is also one of the largest general research universities in Europe.

A prominent research area at the UvA is Artificial Intelligence. The UvA is part of the AI Technology for People initiative, where it teams up with several other key players within the Amsterdam region. Together they will invest 1 billion euros in the development of responsible AI technologies over the next ten years by setting up research programmes, attracting top scientists and educating students with state-of-the-art knowledge of AI. The UvA was selected by the European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) as an Excellence Centre for AI to help keep in Europe talent in machine learning and related AI research fields.

The Institute for Logic, Language and Computation (ILLC) is an interdisciplinary research institute at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) in which researchers from the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Humanities collaborate. Its 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, including computational linguistics, cognitive science, philosophy, computer science and artificial intelligence. ILLC offers an international research environment with world-class faculty in all of its areas of specialization. We are based in the beautiful city of Amsterdam, renowned for its historic system of canals, its laid-back cosmopolitan atmosphere, and its excellent connections to the rest of Europe and the world.

Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam.

Any questions?

Do you have any questions or do you require additional information? Please contact:

• Dr. Ivan Titov

Job application

If you feel the profile fits you, and you are interested in the job, we look forward to receiving your application. You can apply online via the button below. We accept applications until and including 01 May 2023.

Applications should include the following information (all files besides your cv should be submitted in one single pdf file):

• a detailed CV including the months (not just years) when referring to your education and work experience;

• a letter of motivation and research statement (at most 2 pages, describing the potential research project)

• a list of publications;

• the names and email addresses of two references who can provide letters of recommendation.

Only complete applications received within the response period via the link below will be considered.

The interviews will be held in May / June 2023.

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.

If you encounter Error GBB451, reach out to our HR Department directly. They will gladly help you continue your application.