PhD researcher on mobility and the future of cycling in Brussels

1 - Working at the VUB

For more than 50 years, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel has stood for freedom, equality and solidarity, and this is very much alive on our campuses among students and staff alike. 

At the VUB, you will find a diverse collection of personalities: innovators pur sang, but above all people who are 100% their authentic selves. With some 4,000 employees, we are the largest Dutch-speaking employer, in the private sector, in Brussels; an international city with which we are only too happy to connect and where (around) our 4 campuses are located. 

Add to this our principle of free research - in which self-reflection, a critical attitude and an open, creative mind around scientific and social issues are central - and you have a university that is fundamentally groundbreaking and pioneering in education and research. In short: the VUB all over again. 

Moreover, the VUB is a member of EUTOPIA, an alliance of like-minded European universities, all ready to reinvent themselves.

2 - Position description

The Faculty Social Sciences & Solvay Business School, Department Business Technology and Operations, Research Group House of Sustainable Transitions is looking for a PhD-student with a doctoral grant. 

More concretely your work package, for the preparation of a doctorate, contains: 

The PhD student will work within the research project “UNravelling dIfferent CYCLING futures.” This project is funded by INNOVIRIS – Prospective Research Brussels, runs for three years, and offers you the opportunity to obtain a PhD. The project is situated at the intersection of (active) mobility and futures research and is a collaboration between three research groups from two universities: PA&Health (UCLouvain), the Cosmopolis Centre for Urban Research, and the Mobilise Research Group (VUB).

As a PhD student, you will be part of an interdisciplinary team with three professors and two postdoctoral researchers, specialized in spatial planning, (active) mobility, and futures research. You will also work closely with another PhD student at UCLouvain.

The PhD candidate will carry out academic research in the fields of urban mobility and foresight.
In particular, he/she will:

• collect and analyze qualitative data (e.g. interviews, focus groups, content and discourse analysis) and quantitative data (e.g. surveys, travel behavior datasets);

• write academic publications and research reports;

• present research findings at workshops, academic conferences, and policy events;

• contribute to public outreach activities;

• supervise master’s students.

The project

The Brussels-Capital Region (BCR) faces a major challenge in limiting dependence on motorized transport. The Regional Mobility Plan (Good Move) aims to reduce the dominance of cars and promote public transport and active modes such as cycling, which provide physical, mental, and social benefits. Yet measures such as low-traffic neighborhoods encounter strong opposition, especially in densely built-up areas. The growth of cycling as a transport mode shows clear socio-economic and cultural differences between neighborhoods and between different communities.

The UNICYCLING project investigates future cycling scenarios in the BCR and aims to develop robust and equitable measures for cycling policy. It seeks to understand current cycling cultures, identify key factors influencing cycling, develop scenarios for 2050, and assess the impact of those scenarios on different socio-economic groups. Beyond infrastructure, the project focuses on meanings (norms, identities), competences (skills), and policy (laws and decrees) that influence cycling. Using a mix of methods — interviews, surveys, and policy analysis — the project will map relevant factors and develop scenarios through systems analysis and futures exploration. A diverse group of actors, including policymakers, civil servants, NGOs, and citizens, will be involved in UNICYCLING through a participatory process consisting of a series of workshops, outreach activities, media appearances, and a closing event.

Research team:

Principal investigators:

• prof. dr. Bas de Geus (UCL-PA&Health)
• prof. dr. Kobe Boussauw (VUB-Cosmopolis)
• prof. dr. Geert Te Boveldt (VUB-Mobilise)

Postdoctoral researchers:

• dr. Eva Van Eenoo (VUB-Cosmopolis)
• dr. Sara Tori (VUB-Mobilise)

Additional info:

In addition to this position at the VUB, we are also looking for a PhD candidate at UCLouvain; you can consult the vacanc here.

If you are preselected, you will be invited for an interview on Thursday 19 or Friday 20 February 2026.

In addition to your motivation letter, CV, and diplomas, please also submit a writing sample (such as your thesis) via the VUB online form at jobs.vub.be.

For this function, our Brussels Humanities, Sciences & Engineering Campus (Elsene) will serve as your home base. 

3 - Profile

What do we expect from you?

• You hold a Master’s degree in, for example, urban planning and spatial planning, geography, urban studies, economics, applied economics, social sciences, or movement sciences. You may also apply if you will obtain your degree in January 2026.

• You have a strong interest in factors influencing travel behavior, and in particular in the tension between transport modes in relation to socially inclusive and sustainable mobility in an urban context. You can demonstrate this through, for example, professional experience or the orientation of your thesis.

   

  You are eager to learn and interested in qualitative and/or quantitative research; you have organizational skills and enjoy working with people.

   

  You write fluently and have an excellent command of French and English. Good knowledge of Dutch is an asset.

   

  Relevant prior professional experience outside the university (e.g. consultancy, policy preparation, or applied research) and familiarity with the Brussels context are recommended (but not a strict requirement).

   

  You have a strong team spirit and are open to collaboration with colleagues.

• You have not performed any works in the execution of a mandate as an assistant, paid from operating resources, over a total (cumulated) period of more than 12 months.

• As a (non-)EEA national, meet the conditions for obtaining a valid permit for VUB and comply with the VUB residence requirements. More info here.

The VUB wants to be a reflection of the society where everyone's talent is valued, regardless of gender, age, religion, skin color, migration background, disability and neurodiversity.

4 - Offer

Are you going to be our new colleague?

You’ll be offered a full-time PhD-scholarship, for 12 months (extendable up to max. 48 months, on condition of the positive evaluation of the PhD activities), with planned starting date 01/04/2026. 

You’ll receive a grant linked to one of the scales set by the government.

IMPORTANT: The effective result of the doctorate scholarship is subject to the condition precedent of your enrolment as a doctorate student at the university.

At the VUB, you’re guaranteed an open, involved and diverse workplace where you are offered opportunities to (further) build on your career.

As well as this, you will also enjoy various other benefits:

• Extensive homeworking options, a telework allowance of 50 euros per month OR an internet fee of 20 euros per month;
• An open and informal working environment where attention is paid to work-life balance, and exceptional holiday arrangements with 35 days of leave (based on a fulltime contract), closure between Christmas and New Year and 3 extra leave days;
• Cost-free hospitalisation insurance;
• Full reimbursement of your home-to-work commute with public transport according to VUB-policy, and/or compensation if you come by bike; 
• A wide selection of meals in our campus restaurants at attractive prices;
• Excellent and affordable facilities for sport and exercise, a range of discounts via Benefits@Work (in  all kinds of shops, on flights, in petrol stations, amusement parks...) and Ecocheques; 
• Nursery near campus, discount on holiday camps; 
• The space to form your job content and to continuously learn through our VUB learning platforms and training courses;
• And finally: great colleagues with a healthy drive.

5 - Interested?

Is this the job you’ve been dreaming of?

Then apply, at the latest on 08/02/2026, via jobs.vub.be, and upload the following documents:

• an excerpt of your writing (such as your thesis);
• your CV;
• your motivation letter;
• your diploma (not applicable for VUB alumni).

Our application process is as follows (subject to change):

• step 1: an initial selection based on your application file; 
• step 2: a job interview.

Do you have questions about the job content? Contact Geert Te Boveldt at geert.te.boveldt@vub.be or on +32 (0) 2614829 or Kobe Boussauw via kobe.boussauw@vub.be.

Would you like to know what it’s like to work at the VUB? Go to jobs.vub.be, and find all there is to know about our campuses, benefits, strategic goals and your future colleagues.

Would you like more information about EUTOPIA? Go to eutopia-university.eu, and read more about the role of the VUB in the development of the EUTOPIA alliance.