PhD Position (full-time, 4 years) Epistemic inclusion in cancer research

Effective treatment options are limited when cancer reaches its metastatic state and spreads to other organs. Immunotherapy represents a promising breakthrough for cancer treatment by activating the body’s own immune system while also raising a number of ethical, epistemological and societal questions. Mac4Me adopts an ambitious approach by integrating methods of participatory research and knowledge sharing (epistemic inclusion), actively involving patients and their relatives, care takers and medical practitioners, from the very beginning of the project.

The candidate's primary responsibility will be to conduct research resulting in a PhD thesis in the context of Mac4Me as an EU-funded Marie Skłodowska Curie Doctoral Network, which involves secondments and collaborations with other partners besides participation activities and programs of the Erasmus School of Philosophy (ESPhil).

Job description
Objectives of the project
Harvest results of previous projects. Build a knowledge coalition to develop a holistic, inclusive approach to metastatic disease that incorporates the priorities, knowledge, and experience of researchers, patients, caretakers, to make research more responsive to values and priorities of end users and develop realistic scenarios (responsible expectation management). Contribute to methodology development in participatory research for responsible innovation.

Expected Results:
Our aspiration to involve knowledge, priorities and values of end-users in metastasis research aims to strengthen the positive societal impact of knowledge development and contributes to a broader movement of efforts to develop a interactive, holistic and inclusive approach to research (building on approaches such as ELSA, RRI and PPI). Our work aims to bridge the gap between lab and lifeworld via a holistic inclusive approach consisting of mutual learning exercises, facilitating and empowering interaction between research consortium and future users (patients, patient organizations, physicians, nurses, clinicians, family members, journalists), fostering trust in science by making research more responsive to societal priorities. We also aim to contribute to methodology development for participatory research.

The PhD candidate will become part of a large and diverse community of PhD candidates, and is expected to contribute as a junior lecturer to the Erasmus School of Philosophy’s (ESPhil) educational programme.

The PhD-position is offered by the Erasmus School of Philosophy (ESPhil) and the researcher actively contributes to and participates in Mac4Me as an international, interdisciplinary research endeavour aspiring to build a knowledge coalition via mutual learning across research fields. The PhD candidate will be jointly supervised by Prof. Dr. Hub Zwart and Dr. Katharina Bauer at Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR)

Requirements:

We are looking for a motivated PhD candidate with the following background and skills:

• MA in philosophy with coursework or thesis project in research ethics, science and technology studies, (social) epistemology, philosophy of science, philosophy of social science, feminist philosophy, applied ethics, and/or other relevant subfields
• Keen interest in the ethical and epistemological challenges emerging in life sciences research
• Motivation to engage in transdisciplinary research, combining philosophy and the life sciences, and combining conceptual and empirical research
• Excellent speaking and writing skills in English and willingness to learn Dutch
• Capacity for conceptual work, presenting, planning, and organizing
• An interest to work in teams, build local and international networks, and co-organize research workshops and public events.
• An interest to work with diverse societal groups, such as patients and their families, patient groups, nurses, clinicians, journalists

In accordance with the mobility rules for Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Doctoral Networks, the applicant should not have been a resident (for studies or work) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months in the 36 months before the recruitment date.

Salary Benefits:

We offer you an internationally oriented and varied job in an enthusiastic team, with excellent working conditions in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU).

The start date of this position is as soon as possible and you will be based in Erasmus School of Philosophy (ESPhil). This position is for 1 fte. The salary ranges from a minimum of € 2.872 to a maximum of € 3.670 gross per month Scale PhD on a fulltime basis (38 hours), in accordance with the CAO-NU. The contract is entered into for the duration of in total 4 years.

Everything else we offer you, you can find below!

• Everything you need for a good work-life balance: the option to work from home in consultation with your manager, 41 days of paid leave with a 40 hour contract, 8% holiday pay and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus, and a significant discount on a subscription for our on-campus sports centre!
• Sustainable, inclusive and diverse work environment with an open culture, where you can be yourself and we pay attention to each other and to the world around us. Make the most of our bicycle budget, or join networks such as Young@EUR, FAME or QuEUR.
• Time and space for your development in the broadest sense: development days and a personal career budget and free access to our university library.
• Good pension with ABP that EUR contributes 2/3rds towards, discounts on various collective insurances with Zilveren Kruis Achmea, Loyalis, and Allianz, and compensation for travel, working from home and home internet use.
• Are you currently combining your job with parenthood, or do you want to do so in the future? EUR offers partially paid parental leave and fully paid additional birth leave for partners, and our campus features a daycare (daycare not paid for by EUR).
• Moving to the Netherlands for your job with EUR? Then you may be eligible for the 30%-ruling if you meet the requirements of the Belastingdienst (Dutch tax agency), and with our Dual Career Programme we will also help your partner find the right job for them.

40 hours per week

Burgemeester Oudlaan 50