Junior researcher, Machine Learning, Data Mining, IR

The German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF) is a national center for educational research and educational information located in Frankfurt (Main) and Berlin. As a member of the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Association of Sciences, it is jointly financed by the federal government (Bund) and the federal states (Länder). The newly established research group for "Knowledge Mining & Assessment" at the Information Center for Education, DIPF, is looking for a

Junior researcher (Full time, initially limited to two years, EG13 TV-H) in the field of Machine Learning, Data Mining, and Information Retrieval

The holder will be working in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

At the DIPF, the research group for "Knowledge Mining & Assessment" is chaired by Professor Ulf Brefeld; it is concerned with machine learning/data mining for educational research, e.g. personalized computer-based questionnaires or dynamic selection and generation of test items. We will collaborate closely with the Technology-Based Assessment group and other information processing groups at the DIPF and with the Computer Science Department at TU Darmstadt. The group will be part of the newly established knowledge processing network at the DIPF and TU Darmstadt.

The successful applicant should:

• have completed their scientific higher education with distinction, preferably in computer science, mathematics, physics or a related discipline
• be highly trained in mathematics;
• possess profound knowledge and practical experience in machine learning, data mining and information retrieval. Experience with kernel methods, structured input and output spaces, graphical models, probabilistic inference, message-passing algorithms, natural language processing, and large-scale training procedures would be desire
• possess sound programming skills (e.g. MATLAB, Python, Java);
• show an interest in educational research;
• demonstrate very good English language skills (written and spoken).

Women are expressly invited to submit their application. According to the pursuant legal requirements, applicants with disabilities will be preferably treated in the appointment procedure. The applicant will initially have a two-year contract, renewal being possible depending on requirements. Furthermore, the holder will be given an opportunity to prepare a doctoral thesis.

_Contact_:
Please submit your application, including standard documents, in electronic form quoting reference no. IZB 2012-08 to brefeld@dipf.de (The deadline is October 27, 2012).

For further information please e-mail Ulf Brefeld: brefeld@dipf.de

or write to

German Institute for International Educational Research, Professor Dr. Ulf Brefeld, P.O. Box 900270, 60442 Frankfurt am Main, Germany.