Doctoral scholarship holder in Product Development

Department: Product Development
Regime Full-time

Let’s shape the future – University of Antwerp

The University of Antwerp  is a dynamic, forward-thinking, European university. We offer an innovative academic education to more than 20000 students, conduct pioneering scientific research and play an important service-providing role in society. We are one of the largest, most international and most innovative employers in the region. With more than 6000 employees from 100 different countries, we are helping to build tomorrow’s world every day. Through top scientific research, we push back boundaries and set a course for the future – a future that you can help to shape. 

The Department of Product Development in the Faculty of Design Sciences is looking for a full-time doctoral scholarship holder in the field of Product Development.

Position

• You will work actively on the preparation and defence of a PhD thesis in the field of Product Development. The title of the project is Design for Embodied Mediation.
• The goal of this research project is to gain fundamental insights into how interactive products affect user behavior in the long run. You do this through the iterative design and testing of an interactive product in a specific context. An interactive product is any product that contains both a physical and a digital component. Examples of interactive products are digital cameras, washing machines, TV and audio sets, pocket calculators, electrical bikes, electronic toys, etc. In fact, a fair share of all domestic and leisure appliances, digital devices for professional end users and public devices are interactive products. For clarification, we give an example that illustrates the different concepts from this research. The smartphone is an interactive product. It has a physical component: the physical object itself, and a digital component: the applications that run on it. Apple launched the first iPhone in 2007 as a product that was way more versatile and intuitive than the cell phones at that time. This versatility is the smartphone’s functionality, the intuitiveness forms its usability. Today, we know that the smartphone is not only a convenient and handy device. When it has taken its place in the user’s daily life, it shows its intrusive side, and is possibly addictive. This “silent force” that is part of the smartphone, forms its mediation. Through this mediation, the smartphone influences the behavior of the user in the long run. Therefore the smartphone, although it is only an object, possesses a moral value, to which we refer as its material morality. In retrospect, two questions rise. Could Apple have estimated this mediation before it launched its iPhone? And if so, is it possible to design a smartphone that is less intrusive and addictive? We believe the answer to both questions is “yes”. This research seeks to provide insights in how to design the mediation of interactive products. The specific focus of this research is embodied interaction. Through a Research through Design approach, you investigate how the physical and the digital components of the interactive product affect its mediation. The practical context is the conception and testing of an interactive product that aims to counter the isolation and feeling of loneliness of elderly people over 70, by connecting these people with their close family and friends.
• You will publish scientific articles related to the research project.
• You will carry out a limited number of teaching and research support tasks for Product Development: design for user experience, design for interaction.

Profile

• You hold a Master degree in industrial design or you will have obtained it by the time you start work.
• Your teaching competences are in line with the University of Antwerp’s educational vision .
• Your research qualities are in line with the faculty and university research policies .
• You act with attention to quality, integrity, creativity and cooperation.
• Experience as a designer in a professional design context (design consultancy, R&D department of a company) is a plus.
• Since the research involves several user tests with Flemish elderly people, knowledge of Dutch is a plus.

What we offer

• We offer a doctoral scholarship for a period of two years. Following a positive evaluation, the scholarship can be renewed for another two-year period.
• The planned start date is 1 March 2023 or as soon as possible after that date.
• Your monthly scholarship amount is calculated according to the scholarship amounts  for doctoral scholarship holders on the pay scales for Contract Research Staff (Dutch: Bijzonder Academisch Personeel, BAP).
• You will receive ecocheques, Internet-connectivity allowance, and a bicycle allowance or a full reimbursement of public transport costs for commuting.
• You will do most of your work at Campus Mutsaard in a dynamic and stimulating working environment.
• Find out more about working at the University of Antwerp here .

Want to apply?

• You can apply for this vacancy through the University of Antwerp’s online job application platform up to and including 14 November 2022 (by midnight Brussels time). Click on the ‘Apply’ button, complete the online application form and be sure to include the following attachments: portfolio, motivation letter and CV.
• The selection committee will review all of the applications as soon as possible after the application deadline. As soon as a decision has been made, we will inform you about the next steps in the selection procedure. The interviews will take place in December 2022 – January 2023.
• If you have any questions about the online application form, please check the frequently asked questions  or send an email to [email protected] . If you have any questions about the job itself, please contact the promotor, Lukas Van Campenhout ([email protected] ).

The University of Antwerp received the European Commission’s HR Excellence in Research Award  for its HR policy. We are a sustainable, family-friendly organisation which invests in its employees’ growth. We encourage diversity  and attach great importance to an inclusive working environment and equal opportunities, regardless of gender identity, disability, race, ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation or age. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds and with diverse characteristics to apply.