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Gepubliceerd op 25-08-2020

Maastricht University Research Assistant Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Department Literature & Art

Applicants are invited for a 34 months research assistant position within the project “PURE3D: An Infrastructure for the Publication and Preservation of 3D Scholarship”. The project is funded by The Platform Digitale Infrastructuur Social Sciences & Humanities, awarded to the principal investigator, dr. Costas Papadopoulos.

Research project

3D scholarship has reached a tipping point. This is an exciting opportunity to join a dynamic research team and collaborate with diverse stakeholders in the Netherlands and beyond to develop the first ever infrastructure for 3D scholarship.

Three-dimensional modelling and reconstructions have been used in the last thirty years across many fields in the humanities and social sciences, however, we still lack the necessary infrastructure to support this form of knowledge production. PURE3D will fill this gap through four key deliverables: 1) the development of an access infrastructure for viewing interactive 3D models (from single objects to virtual worlds) within the context of a scholarly publication format (3D Scholarly Editions); 2) a preservation repository to deposit raw files, which, due to their size, format, lack of standards etc., are typically inaccessible to researchers beyond the original creators; 3) a conceptual and methodological framework for valorising and evaluating 3D scholarship; and, 4) a centre of excellence for researchers embarking on 3D scholarship. The infrastructure will address the challenges of long-term preservation and access by archiving models and making the associated data FAIR (in collaboration with DANS) and by developing the infrastructure based on the existing CLARIAH infrastructure. Six pilot projects will be used as test beds:

  • Vlooienburg Jewish neighbourhood, Amsterdam (4D research Lab/UvA)
  • Rembrandt’s Birthplace, Leiden (Erfgoed Leiden en Omstreken)
  • Maastricht 1748 (Gemeente Maastricht)
  • Battle of Mount Street Bridge, Ireland (UM)
  • Collection of mining lamps (Nederlands Mijnmuseum)
  • Collection of modern art (Museum van Bommel van Dam)

Job description

We are looking for a research assistant to join a dynamic research team to contribute to the development of the first-ever infrastructure for 3D scholarship. The successful candidate will have a Master’s degree in digital humanities (broadly conceived) or related fields and have experience in stakeholder engagement, outreach and communications, and user requirements. The candidate should be an enthusiastic and self-motivated team player to assist the PURE 3D project team in planning and conducting outreach events, training sessions, surveys and user evaluations, gathering user requirements, and co-authoring e.g. reports and guidelines. Depending on the background of the individual there will also be opportunities to contribute to other aspects of the project, such as 3D digitisation and interface design.

This is a 0,8 FTE appointment for 34 months consisting only of research on the project (4 days a week) with a potential to be turned into a full-time appointment (1FTE) after a positive evaluation.

CLARIAH

The Common Lab Research Infrastructure for the Arts and Humanities (CLARIAH) is a distributed research infrastructure for the humanities and social sciences. The CLARIAH infrastructure aims to provide researchers with access to large collections of digital data and to innovative and user-friendly applications for the processing of these data. The data and applications are managed and developed in a sustainable manner so that they can also be useful in the future for researchers: from literary researchers, historians and archaeologists to linguists, speech technologists and media scientists.

DANS

DANS (Data Archiving and Networked Services) is the Netherlands Institute for permanent access to digital research resources. DANS encourages researchers to make their digital research data and related outputs Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable. It provides expert advice and certified services. Its core services are: DataverseNL for short-term data management, EASY for long-term archiving, and NARCIS, the national portal for research information. By participating in (inter)national projects, networks and research, DANS contributes to continued innovation of the global scientific data infrastructure. Open if possible, protected where necessary. DANS is an institute of the Dutch Academy KNAW and funding organisation NWO.

Requirements

Suitable candidates will have:

Essential:

  • A Master’s in digital humanities (archaeology, history, heritage etc.), digital cultures, media studies, or a related discipline;
  • Excellent organizational skills, plus an open and effective working style;
  • Experience in communicating with project partners and various stakeholders to arrange face to face and/or virtual meetings and coordinate activities related to outreach and dissemination;
  • Experience in designing surveys and other feedback mechanisms;
  • Experience in communicating events in print-based and electronic media, including websites and social media, such as Twitter and Facebook;
  • Ability to communicate and troubleshoot issues as they arise;
  • Excellent written and spoken command of English (Cambridge English Proficiency, level C2, oral and written.

Desirable

  • Experience in working with a diverse and inter/multi – disciplinary teams and stakeholders from different fields;
  • Experience in planning, co-ordinating, and conducting outreach and stakeholder engagement events;
  • Experience in writing up reports (e.g. project reports, results of surveys, evaluations etc.);
  • Skills in producing visualisations by means of 3D digitisation (photogrammetry/structure from motion) and/or 3D computer graphics (modelling/reconstruction);

Conditions of employment

We offer a dynamic and challenging job in an internationally-oriented organisation where young people receive an advanced education and scholars conduct exciting research. You will be part of an international network of top universities and renowned scholars within the field.

  •  0,8 FTE appointment as research assistant for 34 months (First year probation period. After a positive assessment the position will be extended for the remaining 22 months. A positive evaluation may also result in a full-time appointment (1fte/5 days a week).
  •  Remuneration will be according to standard salary levels, depending on education and relevant work experience. Placement will be in scale 7 of the VSNU CLA ranging from €2329 to €3144.
  • Each year the standard salary is supplemented with a holiday allowance of 8% and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.

The university’s relocation policy stipulates that the selected candidate must move to (the vicinity of) Maastricht. If not already living in Maastricht (or its direct surroundings), s/he will be eligible for an allowance for moving costs or for an allowance for alternative housing. Other secondary conditions include e.g. a pension scheme and partially paid parental leave as well as a shared office space and a PC.

The terms of employment of Maastricht University are set out in the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities (CAO). Furthermore, local UM provisions also apply. For more information look at the website http://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl > Support > UM employees.

Starting date: Not later than 4th of January

Employer

Maastricht University
Maastricht University is renowned for its unique, innovative, problem-based learning system, which is characterized by a small-scale and student-oriented approach. Research at UM is characterized by a multidisciplinary and thematic approach, and is concentrated in research institutes and schools. Maastricht University has around 18,000 students and 4,400 employees. Reflecting the university’s strong international profile, a fair amount of both students and staff are from abroad. The university hosts 6 faculties: Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Faculty of Law, School of Business and Economics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience.

Additional information
Further information on the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences is available on our website: http://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/fasos.

Any inquiries about the position or the project may be addressed to the PI, dr. Costas Papadopoulos: k.papadopoulos@maastrichtuniversity.nl

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