Postdoc - Democratizing AI: Empowering Citizens through Transparent Decision-making

EURAXESS Ireland; Utrecht; Hybrid; EUR 38,000 - 45,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

8.3% annual benefit

Holiday allowance

Travel expenses

Career opportunities

Job summary

The University Medical Center Utrecht invites applications for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join the DECIDE project. The role combines advanced AI research with project integration and coordination across a broad consortium.

You will develop AI tools for interdisciplinary societal impact, including AI-DSS and AI-CSS, and contribute to governance and risk monitoring in a dynamic, international environment.

Qualifications

• PhD in AI, data science, computer science, health sciences or related fields, with interdisciplinary research experience.
• Proven experience with interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary research and/or education.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment with strong organizational skills.
• Excellent communication and writing skills in English, including proficiency at C2 level.

Responsibilities

• Advance scientific integration and outputs across WPs and use-cases.
• Organize cross‑WP integration sessions, research retreats and synthesis workshops.
• Co-author integrative publications and present findings at conferences and stakeholder events.
• Contribute to project governance and risk monitoring.

Skills

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Communication skills

Project coordination

Education

PhD in AI or related field

Job description

Organisation/Company University Medical Center Utrecht (UMC Utrecht) Research Field Computer science » Informatics Computer science » Programming Philosophy » Ethics Researcher Profile Recognised Researcher (R2) Application Deadline 16 Sep 2026 - 21:59 (UTC) Country Netherlands Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Not Applicable Hours Per Week 36.0 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

The DECIDE project is a large-scale, NWO-funded interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research initiative coordinated by the University of Twente. It brings together over 50 academic researchers and 30 societal partners to co-develop a new generation of transparent, citizen-empowering AI systems. The project spans domains such as healthcare, mobility, education, law, ethics, and public governance.

The position

We are seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Researcher to join the DECIDE project. The position combines unique scientific research with a central role in project integration and coordination across the consortium.

Your research focuses on the implementation of AI tools for interdisciplinary societal impact, in particular decision-support systems (AI-DSS) and citizen-support systems (AI-CSS), and on understanding why promising AI tools often fail to translate into robust, trusted instruments in real-world citizen empowerment contexts.

What you will deliver

This position integrates scientific and managerial responsibilities and ensures scientific integration across the different WPs and use-cases of the DECIDE project.

The research focuses on the co-design and implementation of AI tools for interdisciplinary societal impact, in particular the decision-support systems (AI-DSS) and citizen-support systems (AI-CSS), and on understanding why promising AI tools often fail to translate into robust, trusted instruments in real-world citizen empowerment contexts.

You will:

Advance scientific integration and outputs

• Act as a bridge between technical researchers (AI, data science) and societal researchers (philosophy, education, human factors, governance).
• Take part in, coordinate and monitor the co-design and implementation processes of AI-DSS and AI-CSS.
• Co-author integrative publications that reflect the project’s interdisciplinary nature.
• Contribute to international dissemination by presenting integrated findings at conferences and stakeholder events.

Strengthen coherence across WPs and use- cases

• Organize and lead cross-WP integration sessions, research retreats, and synthesis workshops.
• Facilitate structured cross-WP and cross-use-case dialogues to ensure that emerging findings inform each other in real time.

Support project governance and risk monitoring

• Contribute to project governance and management by monitoring scientific progress and identifying risks related to fragmentation or misalignment.
• A highly motivated, cooperative, flexible and pro-active researcher with a PhD in AI, data science, computer science, health sciences or related fields, and ideally a track record in interdisciplinary research.
• Proven experience with interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary research and/or education.
• The ability to work independently and collaboratively in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment, with good team spirit, excellent organizational skills, and a strong commitment to interdisciplinary research.
• Excellent communication and writing skills, both within academia and outside the academy, including English proficiency at C2 level.

Additional Information

The maximum salary for this position (36 - 36 hours) is € 3.724,00 gross per month based on full-time employment.

In addition, we offer an annual benefit of 8.3%, holiday allowance, travel expenses and career opportunities. The terms of employment are in accordance with the Cao University Medical Centers (UMC).