PhD (3 years) position available at the Radboud University Nijmegen.

Job description

The FP7 Marie Curie Initial Training Network 'BBfor2' (Bayesian Biometrics for Forensics) provides an opportunity for young researchers to study several biometric technologies in a forensic context.  The Network consists of 9 European research institutes and 3 associated partners.  The Network will provide regular workshops and Summer Schools, so that the 15 PhD students (Early Stage Researchers - ESRs) and PostDocs (Experienced Researchers - ERs) and senior researchers can exchange research experience, insights and ideas.   The main areas of research are Speaker Recognition, Face Recognition, Fingerprint Recognition, but also combinations of these techniques are studied.  The challenge of applying biometric techniques in a forensic context is to be able to deal with the uncontrolled quality of the evidence, and to provide calibrated likelihood scores.  The researchers in this Network will have the opportunity during their assignment to stay for some period at another Network institute and to get experience in an industrial or forensic laboratory. 

The PhD student will investigate automatic speaker recognition in the forensic environment.  The research will include theoretical aspects such as developing a general framework for evidence evaluation and reporting, and experimental aspects by conducting studies with automatic speaker recognition systems.   The candidate will collaborate with other PhD students and senior researchers in the Network, in a highly interdisciplinary environment.  Successful candidates have a Master Degree in Computer Science, Engineering or other relevant disciplines with a strong background in pattern recognition and / or signal processing, and excellent communication and writing skills in English. 

Requirements

Candidates should comply with the rules set forward by the FP7 Marie Curie ITNs:  Candidates should

-       be transferring from another country, i.e., not be of Dutch nationality, and not have resided more than 12 months in the last 3 years in The Netherlands.

-       be willing to work in at least one other country in the BBfor2 network.

-       have less than 4 years of research experience since their master degree, and not hold a PhD.

Organization

The project will be carried out within the Centre for Language and Speech Technology (CLST), a research unit within the Faculty of Arts of the Radboud University Nijmegen.  The CLST hosts a large international group of senior researchers and PhD students who do research at the frontier of science and develop innovative applications. 

Conditions of employment

The duration of the contract is 3 years. The PostDoc will receive an initial contract for the duration of one year, with the possibility of prolongation for another 2 years.  The salary is in accordance with the rules of the Marie Curie ITNs. The annual gross salary is EUR 25,000 in the first year and will grow to EUR 30,000 in the third year. In addition to the salary, travel allowances and career exploratory allowances are foreseen according to generous Marie Curie ITN provisions. The Radboud University is an equal opportunity employer. Female researchers are strongly encouraged to apply for this vacancy. 

Additional information

For further information about the position, please contact David van Leeuwen, d.vanleeuwen@let.ru.nl. 

Application

Letters of application, including extensive CVs, (with reference to the vacancy number 23.02.10 and preferably by e-mail) can be sent to: vacatures@let.ru.nl. Candiates can apply until August 15th, 2010.