Your job
As a researcher in Roughage, Grass, and Grazing at Wageningen Livestock Research, you will work in the Animal Nutrition department. You will apply your knowledge of soil, roughage production, and feeding strategies. The aim is to mitigate climate change and nitrogen losses in dairy farming.
You will be involved in multidisciplinary research projects. These projects focus on grassland’s role in a sustainable dairy sector. Depending on your expertise and interests, you may work on various projects. These can include grazing management, roughage cultivation, or herb-rich grassland areas. An example of a research program you will be working on is the public-private collaboration Roughage, Soil, and Circular Agriculture. Sometimes research results will be presented in a confidential report, while in other projects, a scientific paper is the final outcome.
We work on projects for various clients. These include national and international companies in the dairy farming industry. The Dutch government, sector organizations, and NGOs are also among our clientele.
Your main responsibilities as researcher in Roughage, Grass, and Grazing are:
- Project leadership and involvement as a researcher
- Establishing and maintaining contacts with stakeholders in the sector
- Reporting and presenting results, for stakeholders in practice as well as in scientific publications
- Strategic development of the research area
Within the Animal Nutrition department (~40 people), you will collaborate with two fellow researchers who specialize in grass and grazing. You will work with colleagues from your own team and colleagues from other departments or research institutes. We operate from the Wageningen Campus. We also have research locations in Leeuwarden (Dairy Campus) and Hengelo Gld (De Marke).
Your qualities
You are a results-oriented and enthusiastic researcher with a passion for scientifically applied research. Your proactive attitude and good communication skills enable you to work across disciplines and foster connections.
Additionally, you possess:
- Experience as a researcher with expertise in grass, grazing, soil management, and roughage cultivation, with knowledge of the dairy farming industry
- A team-player mentality and the ability to connect people
- A relevant MSc, PhD, or DVM degree
- A network in the dairy sector
- Fluency in both English and Dutch.
In our international working environment there is an increasing amount of communication in English. For this position it is about language level C1. If you do not yet have this level, we will of course help you and you can go to our language center Wageningen in’to Language.
You can see that there are plenty of challenges ahead of you. These challenges can also be seen as development opportunities. So if you do not yet have the track-record required in the vacancy, but do have solid work experience, we would also like to invite you to apply.
We offer you
Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:
- working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
- the option to accrue additional compensation hours by working more, up to 40 hours per week;
- sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
- there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
- a fixed December bonus of 4%;
- excellent pension scheme.
In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. We offer, depending on your experience, a competitive gross salary of between € 3.527,- and € 6.229,- for a full-time working week of 36 hours, in accordance with the CLA Wageningen Research (scale 11-12). You will initially receive a one-year contract, which will be extended to an open-ended contract upon in mutual enthusiasm.
Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a multi-faceted position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.
You are going to work at the greenest and most innovative campus in Holland, and at a university that has been chosen as the “Best University” in the Netherlands for the 18th consecutive time.
Coming from abroad
Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.
Our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.
Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research’s International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, we can assist you with any additional advice and information about helping your partner to find a job, housing, schooling. For instance under the “30% rule”, certain categories of international staff can receive tax exemption on approximately 30% of their gross salary.
Do you want more information?
For more information about this position, please contact Roselinde Goselink, Wageningen Livestock Research/Animal Nutrition, by e-mail: roselinde.goselink@wur.nl. or Cindy Klootwijk, Researcher Grass and Grazing, by e-mail: cindy.klootwijk@wur.nl.
For more information about the procedure, please contact , Ine van ‘t Land, Recruiter, by e-mail: recruitment.asg@wur.nl
Do you want to apply?
You can apply directly using the apply button on the vacancy page on our website which will allow us to process your personal information with your approval.
This vacancy will be listed up to and including July 17, 2023.
Equal opportunities
Wageningen University & Research (WUR) employs a large number of people with very different backgrounds and qualities, who inspire and motivate each other. We want every talent to feel at home in our organisation and be offered the same career opportunities. We therefore especially welcome applications from people who are underrepresented at WUR. A good example of how WUR deals with inclusiveness can be read on the page working at WUR with a functional impairment.
We are
Wageningen University & Research
The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,200 employees (6,400 fte) and 13,200 students and over 150.000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.
Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch this video to get an idea of our green campus!
We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.