PhD position - Legitimacy of Water-Management Models: Scrutinizing the model

Your job

Are you interested in how computer models in water management shape policy and vice versa? Do you want to contribute to societally relevant research in the field of water management for case studies across three countries? Do you want to be part of an interdisciplinary research team? Then we may have the perfect opportunity for you!

We are currently looking for a highly motivated PhD candidate to join our team (4 years, full time, fully funded) at the Hydrology and Environmental Hydraulics Group at Wageningen University to extensively scrutinize models that are used for decision support through sensitivity analysis.

Computer models facilitate anticipatory governance. But models are not neutral - they conceal value-laden choices, such as which processes and system boundaries are represented in the conceptual model,  the model approaches, data sets used, and model applications. This implies that certain perspectives are favored by the model. Since decisions based on such value-laden models have real-world consequences, it is essential to understand how these models obtained the legitimacy to serve as policy advisors and the different consequences of this for distinct groups in society and ecosystems. The LEGIT project aims to uncover the factors and processes through which water-management models acquire legitimacy to support decisions. This will be done with an interdisciplinary research team. 

In this PhD project, as part of the LEGIT project, you will investigate how water management models obtain the authority to serve as policy advisors for three different cases in which models are used to support water-management related decisions: one in the Netherlands, one in the US, and one in Australia. Your research will specifically investigate the models underlying these decisions. You will conduct an extensive sensitivity analysis of these models, where the factors to investigate are based on interviews with policy makers, modellers and other stakeholders (these interviews are, at least partly, done by other team-members). As such, you explore the model result space spanning sensible modeling choices, which may be much larger than the results that are formally used or explored for decision support.

You will be part of an interdisciplinary team, where other team members will focus on the social, political and institutional boundaries of model legitimacy, and on the modellers themselves. Intense collaboration within the team is foreseen, including conducting the fieldwork abroad.

For this position, we are looking for enthusiastic candidates who have strong technical skills to run highly complex water-management decision support models, and who at the same time can critically reflect on these models. Openness to interdisciplinarity and collaborating with social scientists is a must. Affinity or experience with hydrology or water management is a big plus. As a PhD candidate in our group, you will join the PhD program of the WIMEK graduate school. The selected candidate is expected to finish the 4 year project by writing a PhD thesis that contains a series of peer-reviewed journal articles. 

Your qualities

Specifically, you will:

• develop your own research proposal;
• investigate three different, highly complex, models that are used for decision support in the Netherlands, the United States and Australia;
• identify and prioritize the factors, parameters and components that are uncertain or susceptible to debate in these models based on interviews, which are at least partly done by other team-members
• conduct extensive sensitivity analysis on these models based on the identified priority list
• collaborate with other team members who have a social sciences background and who will focus on the social, political, and institutional factors influencing model legitimacy
• write scientific publications as part of your PhD dissertation;
• take part in (international) workshops and conferences, and engage in the organization of activities related to the research project, such as outreach to decision makers;
• engage actively in the activities and collaborations of the research team;
• spend up to 10% of your time on education and supervision of BSc/MSc students.

You have:

• a completed (or about to be completed) MSc degree, preferably but not necessarily with a link to Earth Sciences, physical geography, water management, or hydrology;
• strong technical skills, that allow you to run highly complex models. Experience with modelling and sensitivity analysis is a strong asset;
• a very strong motivation for interdisciplinary team-work, collaborating with social scientists and making advances through intense collaboration. This requires continuous reflexivity;
• a strong motivation to understand the role of computer models in decision making;
• motivation to plan and conduct fieldwork in the Netherlands and beyond;
• good organizational and communication skills.

For this position your command of the English language is expected to be at C1 level. Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found here.

We offer you

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• Partially paid parental leave;
• 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 / holiday hours by working more, up to 40 hours per week;
• 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 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will receive a fully funded PhD position and you will be offered a course program tailored to your needs and the research team.

The gross salary for the first year is € 2901,- per month rising to € 3707,-  in the fourth year in according to the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale P). This is based on a full-time working week of 38 hours. We offer a temporary contract for 18 months which will be extended for the duration of the project if you perform well.

There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a unique 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 19th 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.

Because we expect you to work and live in the Netherlands 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. We can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example helping your partner to find a job, housing, or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.

Do you want more information?

For more information about this position, please contact  Lieke Melsen, lieke.melsen@wur.nl

For more information about the procedure, please contact Noorien Abbas, corporate recruiter, noorien.abbas@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 6 January 2025. We hope to schedule the first job interviews in the week of 20 January 2025. The selected candidate can then start as soon as possible but no later than May 2025.

Welcome, safe, and valued
Wageningen University & Research (WUR) highly values diversity and inclusion because we believe that different insights lead to innovative solutions. We create a work environment where everyone feels welcome, safe, and appreciated, regardless of background, identity, or experience. Together, we are building a culture where everyone's unique contribution adds to the success of our organization.

We are

This position is based in the Hydrology and Environmental Hydraulics Group (HWM) at Wageningen University and Research but is shared with the Water Resources Management Group (WRM).

The research is embedded within the  Hydrology and Environmental Hydraulics Group (HWM), a dynamic and committed team of 14 academics, 5 support staff, 3 postdocs and 29 PhD researchers. Your supervisors will be Dr Lieke Melsen and Dr Ulrike Proske. The focus of this group is on hydrology and environmental hydraulics, which we combine to understand and quantify hydrological processes in catchments, aquifers, rivers and deltas.

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, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte) and 13,100 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 the video below 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.