1 - Working at the VUB

For more than 50 years, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel has stood for freedom, equality and solidarity, and this is very much alive on our campuses among students and staff alike. 

At the VUB, you will find a diverse collection of personalities: innovators pur sang, but above all people who are 100% their authentic selves. With some 4,000 employees, we are the largest Dutch-speaking employer, in the private sector, in Brussels; an international city with which we are only too happy to connect and where (around) our 4 campuses are located. 

Add to this our principle of free research - in which self-reflection, a critical attitude and an open, creative mind around scientific and social issues are central - and you have a university that is fundamentally groundbreaking and pioneering in education and research. In short: the VUB all over again. 

Moreover, the VUB is a member of EUTOPIA, an alliance of like-minded European universities, all ready to reinvent themselves.

2 - Position description

The Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences, Department of Computer Science, is looking for a full-time professor. 

More concretely your work package contains: 

Education and Research domain:

Artificial Intelligence, with a focus that is related to but complements the current expertise of the artificial intelligence laboratory.

Education tasks:

• Your teaching load includes teaching general Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence courses at the bachelor’s level as well as specialized, research-related courses at the master’s level;
• The average teaching load is 4 courses of 6 ECTS a year, which includes an advanced (optional) course related to the specialization of the applicant. For all mandatory courses TA assistance is provided;
• You are also expected to contribute to the development of our new Bachelor’s programme in Artificial Intelligence.
   

Research tasks:

• You are expected to reinforce the research of the Computer Science Department by conducting research in artificial intelligence that is related but complementary to the current research lines: multi-agent systems, knowledge representation, combinatorial optimization, emergent communication and language, computational creativity, and machine learning at the Artificial Intelligence Lab to which you will be affiliated;

• Other research groups in the department are the Software Languages Lab (with main focus on programming languages, frameworks and tools for distributed data intensive systems) and the Web & Information Systems Engineering Lab (with main focus on human-data interaction).
   
   

Other tasks:

You are expected to contribute to the general duties and growth of the department as specified by the university for the given grade, including the supervision of Ph.D. and M.Sc. students as well as the launching and seeking of funding for new research projects.

For this function, our Brussels Humanities, Sciences & Engineering Campus (Elsene) will serve as your home base. 

3 - Profile

What do we expect from you?

• As a formal minimum requirement, you must hold a PhD in the area of Computer Science or of Artificial Intelligence awarded on the basis of an original thesis.

• You must have strong academic credentials and a strong publication record that demonstrate your expertise in the field. You will publish at the highest scientific level. Expected publication venues include AAAI, IJCAI, AAMAS, ECAI, AIJ, JAIR, JSAT, Constraints, TPLP, SAT , CP, KR, NeurIPS, ICML, ECML, ICLR, JMLR, JACL, ACL, Cognitive Science, Trends in Cognitive Science, Cognitive Computation, Autonomous Systems and Robotics;
• For the level of Assistant Professor, you have experience of supervision of Ph.D. and M.Sc. students and of research management. The track record of the applicant also must demonstrate potential for launching and seeking financing for new research projects.
  For the level of Associate Professor, you have proven experience of independent supervision of Ph.D. and M.Sc. students  and with managing research. You must have a track record on project acquisition. 
   

• You subscribe to the university’s vision of education. The full text in relation to this is available on the university website.

• Every first appointment is dependent upon the successful delivery of a teaching session.  

• Language regulations:

A member of the academic staff who is entrusted with a teaching assignment must also be able to demonstrate that the language of instruction is known at ERK level C1 through a qualification certificate or through an adequate diploma. The VUB also provides courses in, for example, academic English.

The administrative language of the VUB is Dutch. In case of insufficient knowledge of Dutch, the VUB will provide an integration course. After a maximum of five years, a member of the academic staff must demonstrate adequate knowledge of the administrative language (ERK level B2).

For a complete overview, please consult the complete language regulations on https://jobs.vub.be/content/Regulations-concerning-language-proficiency/. 

Certificates demonstrating knowledge of the language can already be added to the application. 

The VUB wants to be a reflection of the society where everyone's talent is valued, regardless of gender, age, religion, skin color, migration background, disability and neurodiversity.

4 - Offer

Are you going to be our new colleague?

You’ll be offered an appointment as full-time professor, with planned starting date 01/10/2024. 

• If the recruitment is in the rank of lecturer, you'll be offered a tenure track appointment, which implies an initial appointment as lecturer for a period of 5 years, with eligibility for tenure in the rank of senior lecturer by the end of this initial period. 

• If the recruitment is in another academic rank, you'll be offered an appointment for 3 years, with eligibility for tenure in the same rank by the end of this initial period.
   

You’ll receive a salary linked to one of the scales set by the government.

At the VUB, you’re guaranteed an open, involved and diverse workplace where you are offered opportunities to (further) build on your career.

As well as this, you will also enjoy various other benefits:

• Extensive homeworking options, a telework allowance of 50 euros per month OR an internet fee of 20 euros per month;
• An open and informal working environment where attention is paid to work-life balance, and exceptional holiday arrangements with 35 days of leave (based on a fulltime contract), closure between Christmas and New Year and 3 extra leave days;
• Cost-free hospitalisation insurance;
• Full reimbursement of your home-to-work commute with public transport according to VUB-policy, and/or compensation if you come by bike; 
• A wide selection of meals in our campus restaurants at attractive prices;
• Excellent and affordable facilities for sport and exercise, a range of discounts via Benefits@Work (in  all kinds of shops, on flights, in petrol stations, amusement parks...) and Ecocheques; 
• Nursery near campus, discount on holiday camps; 
• The space to form your job content and to continuously learn through our VUB learning platforms and training courses;
• And finally: great colleagues with a healthy drive.

5 - Interested?

Is this the job you’ve been dreaming of?

Then apply, at the latest on 21/06/2024, via jobs.vub.be, and upload the following documents:

• your motivation letter, including your vision on education and research, and an explanation about the development of your future research;
• your curriculum vitae, including your academic dossier and the names and contact data of three references;
• your diploma (not applicable for VUB alumni) and language certificates.

Do you have questions about the job content? Contact Prof. Dr. Ann Nowé at Ann.Nowe@vub.be.

Would you like to know what it’s like to work at the VUB? Go to jobs.vub.be, and find all there is to know about our campuses, benefits, strategic goals and your future colleagues.

Would you like more information about EUTOPIA? Go to eutopia-university.eu, and read more about the role of the VUB in the development of the EUTOPIA alliance.