Assistant Professor of Evolving Design Practices (AI)

Location: Delft, Netherlands; relocation to the Netherlands is expected where applicable. The role allows working partly from home.

Salary: €4,728–€6,433 per month, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities.

Company

hirify.global is an international university focused on engineering education and research addressing societal challenges including digitalisation, artificial intelligence, energy, climate, and smart mobility.

What you will do

• Conduct research on design processes, methods, and practices in relation to emerging technologies such as AI.
• Investigate how designers generate, develop, and evaluate ideas amid technological uncertainty and complexity.
• Collaborate with designers, engineers, economists, social scientists, and external partners across industry, government, and civil society.
• Contribute to Bachelor’s and Master’s teaching in design processes, methodologies, creativity, strategic design, and service design.
• Supervise BSc and MSc projects and support the development of strategic, reflective, and creative designers.
• Contribute to research acquisition, programme development, academic service, and grant activities.

Requirements

• PhD in a design-related field, or in engineering, psychology, human-computer interaction, or social sciences with demonstrated engagement in design research, practice, and education.
• Strong research profile in design processes, design methods and methodology, and AI in design, evidenced by peer-reviewed publications.
• Ability to work across disciplinary boundaries and engage with academic, industry, government, and societal stakeholders.
• Higher-education teaching experience, particularly in project-based courses such as design studios.
• Excellent written and spoken English is required.
• Willingness to relocate to the Netherlands where necessary and to learn Dutch if not already proficient.

Nice to have

• Expertise in creativity, design cognition, strategic design, or service design.
• University Teaching Qualification.
• Experience in grant writing and grant acquisition.
• Proficiency in Dutch.

Culture & Benefits

• Interdisciplinary work within the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering and across hirify.global.
• Academic Career Track with development opportunities in education, research, societal impact and innovation, and leadership.
• Temporary contract converted to a permanent contract no later than 12–18 months after a positive evaluation.
• Flexible work schedules and the option to work partly from home.
• Customisable compensation package, health-insurance discounts, and a monthly work-cost contribution.
• Relocation guidance, housing and school support, settling-in events, and a Dual Career Programme for accompanying partners.

Hiring process

• Submit a cover letter, detailed CV with publication and funding information, research statement, education statement, and any other relevant materials.
• Applications must be submitted online by 31 August 2026; applications by email or post are not processed.
• A knowledge-security risk assessment takes place during the final stages of recruitment.