Postdoctoral Researcher - GRAPHIA Project (Generations and Gender Programme - NIDI-KNAW - The Hague)

The Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI) invites applications for a Postdoctoral Researcher position within the Generations and Gender Programme (GGP) as part of the GRAPHIA project. This project contributes to the development of a Social Sciences and Humanities Knowledge Graph and AI-powered tools that improve how research data is found, connected, and used. The position focuses on integrating and interpreting cross-national survey data within this emerging technological framework.

Introduction / project description

The GGP is a cross-national research infrastructure that provides high-quality, open-access data on population and family dynamics. Its core component is the Generations and Gender Survey (GGS), a longitudinal study on life courses and family structures across countries.

The GGP Central Coordination Team is located at the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI) in The Hague and is responsible for the coordination, data processing, and scientific support of the programme.

This position is part of the EU-funded GRAPHIA project in which the GGP participates. The aim of GRAPHIA is to transform social science and humanities data into a more machine-readable and actionable format, significantly improving SSH data visualisation and analysis capacities. Within this project, GGP contributes domain expertise, data integration, and user-oriented development. In particular, the aim is to test the integration of the GGP data and metadata into the GRAPHIA knowledge graph.

What you will be doing

As a Postdoctoral Researcher, you will work at the intersection of survey data, research infrastructure, and emerging technologies. You will contribute to GGP’s role in the GRAPHIA project while supporting the activities of the GGP Central Hub.

• Support the selection and use of GGP datasets, documentation, and related materials for GRAPHIA activities.
• Help ensure that GGP data is correctly understood and used within GRAPHIA project workflows.
• Contribute to the development, testing, and evaluation of use cases, pilots, and demonstrators.
• Participate in GRAPHIA project meetings and follow developments across work packages.
• Support the day-to-day operations of the GGP Central Hub where needed.

What you will be contributing

• Hold a PhD in Sociology, Demography, or a related social science, or have equivalent experience.
• Have experience with survey research, longitudinal data, or population studies.
• Are able to interpret and communicate research data to different audiences.
• Are curious about how research data can be structured, connected, and made more accessible, for example through metadata, knowledge graphs, or AI tools.
• Are motivated to work at the interface of social science and data technologies.
• Are well-organised, detail-oriented, and able to manage multiple tasks.
• Have excellent communication skills in English, written and spoken.
• Enjoy working in an international and collaborative environment.

What do we offer?

We offer a postdoctoral researcher position at the heart of an internationally connected research infrastructure. As part of the GGP Central Hub and the GRAPHIA project, you will contribute to work that directly shapes how survey data is found, interpreted, and used across disciplines and countries.

You will work at the intersection of social science data and emerging technologies, including AI and knowledge graphs, and gain hands-on experience in a collaborative European research project. The role offers exposure to a wide range of activities, from data documentation and quality assurance to user-facing pilots and dissemination.

The initial appointment will be until 31.12.2027. Any extension will be contingent on performance, availability of funds, and the human resource needs of the infrastructure. Dutch law stipulates a maximum of 4 years in total for a temporary research-based contract.

Your workplace

The work climate is based on mutual respect, openness, and collaboration. The institute consists of about 80 employees of different levels of seniority.

NIDI comprises five thematic groups: (1) Families & gender, (2) Migrants & migration, (3) Demographic change and the labour market, (4) Health, ageing and mortality, (5) Data infrastructure and open science. Each group has approximately 10-15 members.

About NIDI

The Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI) is a leading European demographic research institute. NIDI is part of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and affiliated with the University of Groningen. It is located in the center of The Hague, providing a unique and stimulating research environment in the broad field of population studies.

Currently the staff of the institute consists of about 65 employees of different levels of seniority and is organized in a rather horizontal structure within five thematic research groups. The working environment is highly international and NIDI provides ample opportunities for training and development.

Applying for a Certificate of Good Conduct can be part of the employment procedure.