At the Science, Engineering and Technology Group, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering of KU Leuven in the Department of Microbial and Molecular Systems (M2S), there is a full-time academic vacancy in the area of food chemistry at the Centre for Food and Microbial Technology. The KU Leuven Centre for Food and Microbial Technology research groups focus on raw materials and their constituents, microorganisms and processes that are relevant to biological and biochemical industries in general and to food industries in particular. They generate and disseminate scientific knowledge and apply it in food process innovations with a focus on chemical and microbiological safety, organoleptic properties, shelf life, and nutritional and health aspects. The research activities span the continuum of raw material over production of foods and ingredients to digestion and require multidisciplinary and integrated approaches at molecular, mesoscale and macroscopic scale level. The Centre has a solid research infrastructure, an extensive international network, connections with companies and non-profit organisations, a stable offer of highly talented PhD students and a supportive work environment.
Duties
Research
- You will develop a food chemistry research program embedded in the Centre that addresses reactions and interactions of food components throughout the food chain from raw materials to finished products, covering aspects of processing, storage and/or consumption of foods.
- You will develop and introduce state-of-the-art analytical methods for identifying and quantifying food constituents and their conversions throughout the food chain.
- You will acquire funding for fundamental and applied research.
- You will strive for excellence in research.
- You will collaborate with other academic staff members of the Centre, the Department M2S, and/or the Leuven Food Science and Nutrition Research Centre (LFoRCe) and beyond.
- You will become involved in the regional, national and international activities of the Centre.
- You will publish at the domain-specific highest scientific level.
Education
- You will ensure high-quality education within the food science area, with a clear commitment to the quality of the program as a whole. The assignment will cover bachelor and/or master level education (e.g. Master of Science in Bioscience Engineering: Food Technology).
- You will supervise MSc and PhD students.
- You will develop your teaching in accordance with KU Leuven’s vision on activating and research-based education and make use of the possibilities for the educationalist professionalisation offered by the faculty and the university.
Service
- You will enthusiastically engage yourself in working groups and committees within the Centre, the Department M2S, LFoRCe, the faculty and the university.
- You are prepared to provide scientific, social and internal services.
Profile
You have a PhD degree in Bioscience engineering, Engineering, Science or an equivalent diploma in a domain that guarantees an excellent starting position for the teaching and research program.
You have a strong research profile as proven by publications in international leading journals in the domain.
You possess organisational and leadership skills and are able to collaborate.
Further you preferably have prior international and teaching experience, or you can demonstrate qualities related to academic education.
Proficiency in English is required. KU Leuven provides courses in academic English.
The official administrative language used at KU Leuven is Dutch. If you do not speak Dutch (or do not speak it well) at the start of employment, KU Leuven will provide language training to enable you to take part in administrative meetings.
Before teaching courses in Dutch or English, you will be given the opportunity to learn Dutch resp. English to the required standard.
Offer
We offer full-time employment in an intellectually challenging environment. KU Leuven is research-intensive, internationally oriented and carries out both fundamental and applied scientific research. It is highly inter- and multi-disciplinarily focused and strives for international excellence. In this regard, it actively works together with research partners in Belgium and abroad. It provides academic education that is based on high-quality scientific research.
You will work in Leuven, a historic, dynamic and lively city located in the heart of Belgium, within 20 minutes from Brussels, the capital of the European Union, and two hours from Paris, London and Amsterdam.
Depending on your record and qualifications, you will be appointed to or tenured in one of the grades of the senior academic staff: assistant professor, associate professor, professor or full professor. In principle, junior researchers are appointed as assistant professor on the tenure track for a period of 5 years. After this period and provided a positive evaluation is given, they are permanently appointed (or tenured) as associate professor.
Interested?
For more information please contact Prof. dr. ir. Dirk De Vos, tel.: +32 16 32 16 39, mail: dirk.devos@kuleuven.be or Prof. dr. ir. Chris Michiels, tel.: +32 16 32 15 78, mail: chris.michiels@kuleuven.be.For problems with online applying, please contact solliciteren@kuleuven.be.
Please include a research statement (no more than 4 pages), demonstrating your added value for food research at KU Leuven, in your motivation letter. In addition, please outline your vision of academic education in a teaching statement (no more than 2 pages).
You can apply for this job no later than February 28, 2019 via the online application tool
KU Leuven seeks to foster an environment where all talents can flourish, regardless of gender, age, cultural background, nationality or impairments. If you have any questions relating to accessibility or support, please contact us at diversiteit.HR@kuleuven.be.