Post-doctoral researcher at the Centre of Excellence in Social Sciences

The project entails analyzing information selection online and on social media, the impact of algorithms and user predispositions on information selection, and the impact of communication on political attitudes using computational methods and advanced quantitative analysis. 

You will:

1. co-design and program innovative online experiments combining random assignment, content selection and online behavioural data;
2. develop mock social media platforms for their adaptation in experimental settings
3. co-design and oversee online field experiment/s on social media platforms;
4. develop open source software extensions for social media platforms (for experimentation and on-platform behavior tracking);
5. use advanced statistical models to test hypotheses using large amounts of data; 
6. write papers to be submitted to high-impact international conferences and journals;
7. present findings in international high-impact conferences and academic gatherings.

Requirements: 

• a doctoral degree in computer and information sciences, social communication and media studies, political and administrative sciences, or sociology (or outside of these disciplines if it is an area related to the thematic scope of the project)
• proven expertise in NLP, LLMs, PyTorch, Huggingface Transformers API, BERT, scikit-learn.  
• experience implementing Machine Learning / Deep Learning Pipelines using Python;
• expertise in web scraping and automation (using Selenium, Puppeteer, OpenWPM, etc) for large-scale data collection
• experience with quantitative methods (e.g., advanced statistical analyses, data visualization); 
• experience working in Python (experience with R for data analysis a plus);
• good written and spoken English skills;
• interest in social science and computational social science (i.e., answering relevant social questions using computation skills);
• track-record of publications on international journals on at least some of the substantive and/or methodological areas of interest to the project;
• meeting the conditions set out in Art. 113 of the Act of 20 July 2018 - Law on Higher Education and Science ( Journal of Laws of 2022, item 574 as amended) and the Statute of the University of Warsaw (Resolution No. 443 of the Senate of the University of Warsaw, from 26 June 2019, Monitor item 190).

Additional assets:

• high communication and organisational skills,
• proactivity, reliability, and independence when conducting research;
• teamworking skills.

The opportunity to be part of a high-impact ERC-funded research project that uses state-of-the art data and methods (i.e. online trace data and machine learning models) to address crucial societal issues. We also offer you the opportunity to present your work in top academic conferences, increase your professional network, and submit work to top academic journals and proceedings.

In addition, we offer:

• access to a wide range of training courses;
• access to infrastructure (office space, library, IT resources, sports infrastructure);
• work in an enthusiastic and international team with external collaborators in a research environment at one of the best universities in Central and Eastern Europe, with developed international cooperations;
• the opportunity to present your work at top conferences, increase your professional network and submit to top academic journals;
• the possibility of obtaining funds to conduct your own research;
• international research trips for field work and project meetings;
• some possibility to work remotely (to be arranged).

To work at the University of Warsaw is to work in a discerning, independent, creative, innovative and international climate characterised by an open atmosphere and a genuine engagement with the city of Warsaw and society.

Requirements: 

• a doctoral degree in computer and information sciences, social communication and media studies, political and administrative sciences, or sociology (or outside of these disciplines if it is an area related to the thematic scope of the project)
• proven expertise in NLP, LLMs, PyTorch, Huggingface Transformers API, BERT, scikit-learn.  
• experience implementing Machine Learning / Deep Learning Pipelines using Python;
• expertise in web scraping and automation (using Selenium, Puppeteer, OpenWPM, etc) for large-scale data collection
• experience with quantitative methods (e.g., advanced statistical analyses, data visualization); 
• experience working in Python (experience with R for data analysis a plus);
• good written and spoken English skills;
• interest in social science and computational social science (i.e., answering relevant social questions using computation skills);
• track-record of publications on international journals on at least some of the substantive and/or methodological areas of interest to the project;
• meeting the conditions set out in Art. 113 of the Act of 20 July 2018 - Law on Higher Education and Science ( Journal of Laws of 2022, item 574 as amended) and the Statute of the University of Warsaw (Resolution No. 443 of the Senate of the University of Warsaw, from 26 June 2019, Monitor item 190).

Apply by email to cess@uw.edu.pl with the title “OBM-NA-HEERC-1.2”.

Application - obligatory documents:

• a CV detailing the candidate's education and experience, the most important publications, an overview of previous activities and academic achievements (e.g., visits to conferences, courses, awards), data analysis skills, a link to your Google Scholar and GitHub profile.
• a cover letter presenting the candidate's profile, in accordance with the requirements stated in the announcement and the motivation to apply for the offered job,
• a scan of the document confirming the holding of a doctoral degree,
• a sample of scientific work in English (e.g., journal article, doctoral dissertation),
• a list of 3 individuals who could be consulted as references for the candidate (reference letters are not required),
• a statement in which the candidate signs a confirmation of having read and accepted the rules of conducting competitions, as set out in Ordinance No. 106 of the Rector of the University of Warsaw from 27 September 2019, on specifying the detailed rules and procedures for conducting a competition for the position of an academic teacher at the University of Warsaw,
• a signed declaration (scan) of consent to the processing of personal data, attached to this announcement.
• a signed and completed questionnaire for the applicant for employment (https://bsp.adm.uw.edu.pl/wp-content/uploads/sites/18/2020/07/Kwestionariusz-osobowy_kandydat_11_2019.docx)

The competition is the first stage of the recruitment procedure for the position of an academic teacher, as specified in the Statute of the University of Warsaw, and its positive outcome is the basis for further proceedings. 

The selection committee will perform a preliminary evaluation of applications prior to the full evaluation of applicants.  

After the initial evaluation of the submitted applications, selected candidates will be contacted for the interview.

The University of Warsaw reserves the right to close the competition without stating the reason.

Please direct your questions to wojcieszak@ucdavis.edu.