PhD position for the EU project 'BioSecure' (0.8 - 1.0 FTE)

Job description
The continuous threat of outbreaks of notifiable infectious diseases such as Avian Influenza in poultry and African Swine Fever in pigs, and zoonotic infections such as Salmonella and Campylobacter, stresses that taking biosecurity measures is important in livestock farming to minimise the risk of infectious microorganisms entering, establishing or spreading within and between farms and to humans. We are searching for a PhD candidate or postdoc that would like to contribute to enhanced and cost-effective biosecurity measures and tools in livestock production, especially in pig and poultry farming. Do you share our ambition to help reduce animal disease and public health risks? Do you have a strong affinity to farm animal health, welfare and sustainability? And would you like to work in a multidisciplinary international team of nineteen European partners with close collaborations between knowledge institutes and stakeholders to achieve this? If the answer is yes to these questions, please look at the positions that we have to offer at Utrecht University for the Horizon Europe-funded 'BioSecure' project.

Given the multitude of interactions between animals, humans and production systems, a thorough understanding of infection transmission routes is key in designing good biosecurity measures. The overarching goal of the Horizon Europe-funded 'BioSecure' project is to improve the capacity for key actors and decision-makers in livestock farming to understand, prioritise and implement evidence-based, cost-effective and sustainable biosecurity management systems in current and future terrestrial livestock production chains. The postdoc, PhD candidate and the team from Utrecht University will contribute to this goal by:

collecting existing biosecurity intelligence throughout the livestock production chain and creating biosecurity risk maps at an EU level for improving future risk analysis;
investigating the impact of biosecurity practices through quantitative risk assessment and mathematical models as tools to quantify the probability of introduction and spread of pathogens at farm and sector level;
improving and extending biosecurity scoring tools for accurately measuring the level of biosecurity and providing adapted and science based advices;
evaluating and improving biosecurity measures through experiments and field studies.

To read more about 'BioSecure', see Researchportal.be.

For examples of other related projects by our group, see:

We aim to appoint one PhD candidate (~0.8 - 1.0 FTE for four years preferably starting in January 2023) and one postdoc (~0.7 - 1.0 FTE for two years, preferably starting in April 2023). Both will be appointed at the Department Population Health Sciences - Farm Animal Health Unit at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of Utrecht University. You will be part of the Veterinary Epidemiology group that closely collaborates with the Sustainable Poultry and Pig group. Together with senior researchers of this group, the PhD candidate and postdoc will collaborate to collect data on biosecurity in Dutch pig and poultry farms to use this in stochastic simulation models to study the effects of biosecurity measures on transmission of a selection of important infectious diseases. These will at least include Avian Influenza in poultry and African Swine Fever in pigs.

Qualifications
As PhD candidate you will be involved in data collection on biosecurity from literature, available data records on the contact structure and risk factors for specific diseases, and from discussions with stakeholders. Moreover, you will contribute to developing and evaluating tools and guidelines to improve biosecurity. On pig and poultry farms you will (help to) conduct surveys, and on poultry farms field studies, to assess the effects of biosecurity measuring tools and the coaching of farmers, will be done. The collected data will be used by the postdoc (in collaboration with the PhD candidate) and our international partners to construct risk maps, and as inputs for simulation models to assess the impact of specific measures on disease spread within- and between farms and at territorial level. A suitable PhD candidate:

is motivated to contribute to enhance biosecurity, especially on chicken and pig farms, to benefit animal and public health, welfare and sustainability of animal production;
has affinity to and/or experience in the field of poultry and/or pig production;
is eager to work in a multidisciplinary international team;
likes to engage with stakeholders, and collaborate with experts in quantitative veterinary epidemiology;
has excellent organisational skills and communication skills in English and preferably in Dutch;
is flexible and can easily adapt to different working environments and is preferably mobile (drivers licence).

Motivated candidates with a (pending) degree in Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science, or other Biomedical and Life science- associated studies are encouraged to apply. Field work on pig and mostly on poultry farms is envisaged for this project.

Offer
You will be offered a temporary position (0.8 - 1.0 FTE), initially for one year with an extension to a total of four years upon a successful assessment in the first year, and with the specific intent that it results in a doctorate within this period. The gross salary ranges between €2,541 in the first year and €3,247 in the fourth year of employment (scale P according to the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities) per month for a full-time employment. Salaries are supplemented with a holiday bonus of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3% per year.

In addition, Utrecht University offers excellent secondary conditions, including an attractive retirement scheme, (partly paid) parental leave and flexible employment conditions (multiple choice model). Furthermore, we are open to combinations with an existing employment in a relevant field, exchange opportunities with other partners in the project and/or including specific trainings or courses to facilitate development of the candidate in specific areas. For more information, please visit working at Utrecht University.

About the organization
A better future for everyone. This ambition motivates our scientists in executing their leading research and inspiring teaching. At Utrecht University, the various disciplines collaborate intensively towards major societal themes. Our focus is on Dynamics of Youth, Institutions for Open Societies, Life Sciences and Sustainability.

The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine has a unique position in the Netherlands. Not only is this the only institution where veterinarians are trained, researchers are also working together on innovative scientific research. In addition, the faculty provides specialist clinical care in the largest academic veterinary hospital in Europe. Thanks to this position, the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine is a point of contact for all veterinary matters, both nationally and increasingly internationally. The faculty employs approximately 900 veterinarians, scientists and support staff and counts 1.500 students.

The position will be at the Department Population Health Sciences-Farm Animal Health Unit. You will be part of the Veterinary Epidemiology group that closely collaborates with the Sustainable Poultry and Pig group, consisting of veterinarians, epidemiologists, infectious disease modellers, statisticians and economists. This combination allows for combining network and expertise in mathematical modelling, controlled and observational studies and transmission of infectious agents to study effects of risk factors, preventive and control measures in livestock farming in a One Health setting.

Utrecht is one of the oldest cities in the Netherlands and the fourth largest city in the Netherlands, with a charming old centre and an internationally oriented culture. The city with a population of nearly 360,000 is strongly influenced by its century-old university and forms a hub in the middle of the country. Its ancient city centre and its modern central station can easily be reached from the Utrecht Science Park by public transport or by a 15 minute bicycle ride. Utrecht boasts beautiful canals with extraordinary wharf cellars housing cafés and terraces by the water, as well as a broad variety of shops and boutiques.

Additional information
For more information about this position, please contact Francisca Velkers (Assistant Professor), via f.c.velkers@uu.nl or +31 30 253 12 48. Please do not send your application to this email address.

Note that international candidates needing a visa/work permit for the Netherlands require at least four months processing time after selection and acceptance. This will be arranged with help of the International Service Desk (ISD) of our university. Finding appropriate housing in or near Utrecht is your own responsibility, but the ISD may be able to advise you therewith. For general questions that you might have about working and living in The Netherlands, please consult the Dutch Mobility Portal where much information can be found.

Apply
Everyone deserves to feel at home at our university. We welcome employees with a wide variety of backgrounds and perspectives.

To apply, please send your Curriculum Vitae, including a letter of motivation via the 'apply' button.

There is flexibility in the worktime (FTE), depending on the applicants’ preferences, background and career plans. Applicants are expected to outline their plans and wishes in the application letter accordingly. Feel free to contact us when you are not able to meet the application deadline but are interested in the position. Interviews will most likely take place in the first weeks of January 2023.

The application deadline is

13/12/2022

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Universiteit Utrecht

PhD position for the EU project 'BioSecure' (0.8 - 1.0 FTE)

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Universiteit Utrecht

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