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<p>Dear all,</p>
<p>There is currently a PhD position available at Radboud University
Nijmegen (the Netherlands) in the topic <i>Higher-order Term
Rewriting for Program Equivalence</i>. The position is for four
years, and comes with a competitive salary and very attractive
employment conditions.</p>
<p>Interested students who either already hold a Masters' degree in
computer science, mathematics, or a related area, or who will
complete such a degree before September, are encouraged to apply.
The initial application deadline is 20 June, but will be extended
if no suitable candidate is found by that time.</p>
<p><b>The project</b><br>
</p>
<p>As a PhD candidate, you will conduct research into higher-order
term rewriting systems with logical constraints. This project
brings together two different areas of theoretical computer
science: <i>higher-order term rewriting</i> and <i>program
equivalence analysis</i>.</p>
<p><i>Term rewriting</i> is a formal system that can be used to
specify algorithms. Its simple, rigorous definition makes it very
suitable for formal analysis, and as a result, its properties are
well studied. Higher-order term rewriting extends standard term
rewriting with anonymous functions and binders as in the
lambda-calculus, thus providing a highly liberal class of systems.</p>
<p>Term rewriting can be combined with a logical theory and logical
constraints; for example, integer numbers and conditions such as x
>= 1 /\ y != x. With this approach, it Is possible to model
programs in common programming languages; higher-order term
rewriting systems in particular offer a natural model to analyse
functional and object-oriented programming languages.</p>
<p><i>Program equivalence analysis</i> is the study of whether two
systems of program code have the same result, given the same
input. This is a challenging field with many applications both in
business practice and in other areas of computing science.<br>
</p>
<p>In this project, your task will be to develop techniques for
program equivalence analysis, by analysing in particular
higher-order term rewriting systems with logical constraints,
which encode realistic programs. The majority of the project is
the development of theory, but since it is a goal to develop
automatable techniques, you will also implement some of your
techniques in a prototype analysis tool.</p>
<p>You will be supervised by Dr Cynthia Kop. If you wish to learn
more, feel free to send an e-mail to <a
class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:C.Kop@cs.ru.nl">C.Kop@cs.ru.nl</a>.
<br>
</p>
<p class="vac"><b>Work environment</b></p>
<p class="Aansluitend">Strategically located in Europe, Radboud
University is one of the leading academic communities in the
Netherlands. It is a place with a personal touch, where top-notch
education and research take place on a beautiful green campus, in
modern buildings with state-of-the-art facilities. <br>
<br>
The position is available in the Software Science group of the
Institute for Computing and Information Sciences (iCIS) at Radboud
University. Research at iCIS focuses on software science, digital
security and data science. During recent evaluations, iCIS has
been consistently ranked as the No. 1 Computing Science department
in the Netherlands. Evaluation committees praised our flat and
open organisational structure, our ability to attract external
funding, our strong ties to other disciplines, and our solid
contacts with government and industrial partners. The Software
Science group is well known for its contributions to the
mathematical foundations of software, formal methods, and
functional programming. </p>
<p class="vac"><b>What we expect from you</b></p>
<ul class="Aansluitend portal">
<li class="">you will be able to start at some time between the
end of August and the end of November;<br>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>you hold an Msc or equivalent degree in computer science,
mathematics or a closely related field -- or will graduate
from such a field before starting the PhD position;<br>
</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>you are able to work both independently and as part of a
team;</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>you are proficient in English (knowledge of Dutch is not
required);</p>
</li>
<li class="">you have some programming experience.<br>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Note that prior knowledge of term rewriting or implicit
complexity is not required.<br>
</p>
<p class="vac"><b>What we have to offer</b></p>
<ul class="">
<li class="">
<p>employment: 1.0 FTE;</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>a maximum gross monthly salary of € 2,972 based on a 38-hour
working week;</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>the gross starting salary amounts to €2,325 per month, and
will increase to €2,972 in the fourth year;</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>in addition to the salary: an 8% holiday allowance and an
8.3% end-of-year bonus;</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>duration of the contract: 4 years;</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>your performance will be evaluated after 18 months. If the
evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2.5
years;</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>you will be classified as a PhD Candidate (promovendus) in
the Dutch university job-ranking system (UFO);</p>
</li>
<li class="">
<p>you will be able to make use of our dual career service ( <a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.ru.nl/english/working-at/why-work-at-radboud-university-0/our-way-working-personal-approach/dual-career-service/">https://www.ru.nl/english/working-at/why-work-at-radboud-university-0/our-way-working-personal-approach/dual-career-service/</a>
) where our Dual Career Officer will assist with family
related support, such as child care, and help your partner
prepare for the local labour market and with finding an
occupation;</p>
</li>
<li class="">For our employment conditions, see <a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.ru.nl/english/working-at/why-work-at-radboud-university-0/terms-employment/">https://www.ru.nl/english/working-at/why-work-at-radboud-university-0/terms-employment/</a>
.</li>
</ul>
<p><b>How to apply</b><br>
</p>
<p>Submit a motivation letter, your CV, and a list of courses taken
and grades obtained by e-mail to <a
class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:C.Kop@cs.ru.nl">C.Kop@cs.ru.nl</a>
(you will receive a notification confirming when it has arrived).<br>
</p>
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