PhD: Environmental Exposures and Early Onset Breast Cancer (HER-Care, MSCDN DN)

HER-CARE (Hereditary & Early-Onset Breast Cancer: Comprehensive Personalized Assessment, early Risk Evaluation and clinical management) is a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Doctoral Network (MSCDN) uniting leading European universities, hospitals, research institutes and industry partners. It trains 15 PhD candidates in an interdisciplinary programme covering genetics, epidemiology, molecular biology, data science and environmental health. Your research within this network focuses on the exposome: the full range of environmental exposures across the life course and their role in cancer risk.

Your job

At Utrecht University's Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, you will investigate how environmental and lifestyle factors contribute to the risk of early-onset breast cancer. Specifically, you will:

• link high-resolution exposome surfaces (from projects such as EXPANSE and EXPOSOME-NL) to large population cohorts, including the ESCALATION study on early-onset breast cancer;
• apply advanced statistical, and machine-learning methods to identify and validate environmental determinants of breast cancer risk;
• integrate external (environmental) and internal (biological) exposome data to build a more complete understanding of environmental contributions to cancer;
• spend 4 months on secondment in collaboration with the lab of Jana Klanova at RECETOX in Brno, Czech republic. Here you will quantify the internal exposome using high-resolution mass-spectrometry for analysis of 500 case-control pairs in the ESCALATION study;
• spend another 4 months on secondment in collaboration with Prof. Carla van Gils at KWF Dutch Cancer Society. Here you will aid in the translation of the research into public health policy recommendations for breast cancer prevention and surveillance strategies;
• collaborate closely with other HER-CARE PhD candidates and partner institutes across Europe;
• disseminate your results through scientific publications and international conferences.

Your qualities

You are a motivated and curious researcher with a strong interest in environmental and health research, and the ambition to work in a multidisciplinary and international environment. You have solid quantitative and analytical skills, along with good communication skills and proficiency in written and spoken English. Experience or interest in cancer research is not required, but is considered an advantage. Additionally, you bring:

• a Master’s degree in Epidemiology, Environmental Health, Data Science, or a related field;
• experience with statistical programming (e.g. R, Python, or comparable tools for data analysis);
• experience with, or a clear interest in, environmental and health research, including spatial data analysis and exposome science;
• working knowledge of, or affinity with, bioinformatics and epidemiological methods;
• experience with analysing molecular data (such as metabolomics or proteomics, preferably using mass spectrometry) is not required, but would be an advantage.

For this unique position, there are additional eligibility requirements dictated by the MSCDN Doctoral Network:

• You must have a Master’s degree or equivalent at the start of the PhD contract.
• You should have no PhD degree at the date of starting the PhD contract.
• You can be of any nationality.
• You need to comply with the mobility rule: you must not have lived, worked or studied in The Netherlands for more than 12 months in the 36 months prior to recruitment. Any nationality is eligible, provided the mobility rule is met.
• A mobility declaration form must be completed before any offer of employment can be made.
• All eligibility requirements must be substantiated with evidence (for example municipal registration, rental contract, invoices, diplomas etc.) 

Only those who fulfill these requirements will be considered for the position. 

Our offer

• A position for one year, extended to four years upon a positive evaluation after the first year according to the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO NU).
• A fulltime working week and a gross monthly salary between €2,901 and €3,707 (salary scale P under CAO NU).
• 8% holiday pay, 8.3% year-end bonus.
• Opportunities to attend international conferences, workshops, and PhD training programmes within the Exposome-NL and TNO networks.
• A dynamic research environment with strong collaboration between Utrecht University and TNO, combining academic depth with applied impact.
• A pension scheme, partially paid parental leave and flexible terms of employment based on the CAO NU.

In addition to the terms of employment laid down in the CAO NU, Utrecht University also offers a range of its own schemes for employees. This includes arrangements for professional development, various types of leave, and options for sports and cultural activities. You can also tailor your employment conditions through our Terms of Employment Options Model. In this way, we encourage you to keep investing in your personal and professional development. For more information, please visit Working at Utrecht University.

About us

A better future for everyone. This ambition motivates our scientists in executing their leading research and inspiring teaching. At Utrecht University, the various disciplines collaborate intensively towards major strategic themes. Our focus is on Dynamics of Youth, Institutions for Open Societies, Life Sciences and Pathways to Sustainability. Sharing science, shaping tomorrow.

At the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine we train the veterinarians and researchers of the future, provide care for animals and conduct leading and societal relevant research. That is what we are good at. We see that the health and welfare of animals, humans and the environment are interconnected. By sharing our knowledge and working together, we make positive impact, both nationally and internationally. Our 1,500 students and 950 staff members inspire and strengthen each other. Our engagement connects us. The drive to, from an integral perspective, make the world a better place.

You will be based at the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences (IRAS). IRAS is an interfaculty research institute spanning the Faculties of Veterinary Medicine  and Medicine. It is dedicated to education and research on the human and environmental health risks associated with exposure to potentially harmful agents. Our research is structured around three core domains: Toxicology, Environmental Epidemiology, and Veterinary Public Health.

You will be working within the One Health Chemical research line, led by Professor Roel Vermeulen. This multidisciplinary research line brings together several interconnected groups, including Occupational Health, Environmental Health, Planetary Health, Data Science & Exposome Group, and Exposure Science.

More information

For questions about this position, please contact Professor Roel Vermeulen at r.c.h.vermeulen@uu.nl or Martijn Kolijn at p.m.kolijn@uu.nl.

Apply now

At Utrecht University, we want to be a home for everyone. We value staff with diverse backgrounds, perspectives and identities, including cultural, religious or ethnic background, gender, sexual orientation, disability or age. We strive to create a safe and inclusive environment in which everyone can flourish and contribute. 

If you are enthusiastic about this position, apply via the 'apply now' button. Please enclose:

• your motivation letter;
• your curriculum vitae;
• the names, telephone numbers, and email addresses of at least two referees.

The intended start date of the position is flexible, but at the latest August 1, 2026

Each application is independently evaluated by two reviewers. Not every reviewer evaluates every candidate, which supports fairness and workload balance. To identify the most suitable candidate, the reviewers will use a merit based selection procedure using predefined and consistently applied criteria. Considered will be the candidates' scientific skills, the relevance of their research experience, motivation and interests, the potential impact of the proposed training on their career, the candidates understanding of the interdisciplinary aspects of the position and the overall suitability. A ranked list is generated based on the average reviewer scores. Per position, we aim to invite up to five candidates to the first interview round. There may be multiple rounds of interviews before a decision will be made.

The application deadline is 30 April 2026.