PhD position on Critical approaches to Designing for Belonging University of Twente in Netherlands

University of Twente is offering a 4-year PhD position in Critical approaches to Designing for Belonging, based in a joint appointment with the Human-Media Interaction Group at the University of Twente and the Computer Science Department at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The project is part of the Building 4 Belonging (B4B) consortium, which brings together researchers, schools, autism advocacy partners, and other stakeholders to address loneliness and belonging among neurodiverse youth in secondary education.

The PhD project sits at the intersection of human-computer interaction, industrial/interaction design, speculative and critical design, feminist HCI, participatory design, and embodied interaction. The successful candidate will co-create with students, teachers, autistic professionals, parents, policymakers, and researchers to design technological and spatial interventions that respond to school loneliness and stigma. The work explicitly shifts attention away from “fixing” individuals and instead investigates how school environments, social systems, and built spaces shape experiences of belonging and exclusion.

Research methods in the project include qualitative, quantitative, and sensor-based approaches, together with participatory workshops, co-design activities, prototyping, and evaluation of speculative design interventions for school environments. The PhD student will contribute to interdisciplinary collaboration across design, technology, education, and social science, and will be expected to publish in leading HCI, design research, and related venues.

Applicants should have a Master’s degree in Industrial Design, Interaction Design, HCI, or a closely related field, along with strong design and prototyping skills demonstrated through a portfolio. Interest or experience in speculative design, critical design, feminist HCI, participatory design, tangible/embodied interaction, user studies, or co-design with neurodiverse communities is highly relevant. Excellent English is required; Dutch is beneficial for fieldwork in schools.

The position is full-time for four years with a qualifier in the first year. The salary follows the Dutch university collective labour agreement and is listed from €3,059 gross per month in year 1 to €3,881 gross per month in year 4, plus a holiday allowance, end-of-year bonus, pension, and parental leave provisions. The daily office space is at VU Amsterdam, with regular time at University of Twente in Enschede. The expected start date is October 2026.

Applications must be submitted via the Apply now button by 2026-08-23 23:59 (Europe/Amsterdam). Required documents include a CV, cover letter, design portfolio, transcript of grades, and contact details for at least two academic references. Interviews are planned for the week of August 24, 2026.