PhD 'Flows in the Construction Sector'

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 of Engineering, Department Architectural Engineering, is looking for two PhD-students with a doctoral grant to conduct research on the Brussels construction sector as an urban-environmental system undergirded by flows of people, materials, and capital. These two positions are part of the interdisciplinary research project ‘Flows in the Construction Sector. Urban-Environmental Histories of Labour, Materials, and Money’, which investigates how labour, materials, and money have shaped the construction of Brussels, and how these intertwined flows continue to influence the city today.

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

Within this project, several  PhD trajectories are possible. Candidates are invited to indicate in their research proposal which trajectory best matches their profile, interests,  methodological expertise and ambition. Each trajectory can be approached from different disciplinary backgrounds and will be jointly supervised by supervisors from at least two of the participating research groups, with expertise in construction history, social history, material histories, and building culture (Architectural Engineering Research Group – AE; Prof. Stephanie Van de Voorde and Ine Wouters), financial geography, circular economy, global production networks, urban metabolism and just transition (Cosmopolis Centre for Urban Research – COSM; prof. David Bassens and Fabio Vanin), environmental history, social-economic history, urban and migration history, history of social policy and gender history (Social History of Capitalism – SHOC; prof. Bob Pierik and Anne Winter). Candidates are not expected to master all these perspectives at the start of the research. We are looking for researchers who can formulate a strong proposal from their own expertise, and who are willing to develop their research in dialogue with other disciplines. The final research focus will be developed in dialogue with the supervisors and the wider interdisciplinary team.

Possible PhD trajectories

The three trajectories below should be understood as possible entry points into the broader project. All trajectories are situated within the long-term development of the Brussels construction sector, from the nineteenth century to the present. Candidates are not expected to cover this entire period, but are encouraged to define a focused and feasible research scope, for example around a specific period, transition, actor group, material flow, spatial configuration, or set of cases.

1. Mobility, migration, and entrepreneurship: who builds the city?

This trajectory examines the people, firms, and networks involved in the construction of Brussels, from the nineteenth century to the present. It may focus on labour mobility, migration, access to work and technical knowledge, construction entrepreneurship, subcontracting, or the spatial organisation and infrastructure of building-related activities. The aim is to understand the construction sector as both a space of opportunity and a site where social inequalities, dependencies, and forms of exclusion are produced.

2. Risk, precarity, and responsibility: under what conditions is the city built?

This trajectory investigates how social, economic, technical, and material risks are organised and distributed in the construction sector. Possible themes include workplace accidents, occupational health and safety, liability, insurance, labour conflicts, financial uncertainty, subcontracting, delays, material shortages, or the management of uncertainty on building sites. The trajectory connects the everyday realities of construction work with broader questions of regulation, responsibility, protection, and vulnerability.

3. Extraction, circulation, and sustainability: where do building materials come from, how do they circulate and at what cost?

This trajectory follows building materials through their wider networks of extraction, production, transport, use, reuse, and disposal. It may focus on specific materials, infrastructures, trade networks, construction and demolition practices, reuse circuits, or moments of scarcity, transition, and transformation. By studying materials as technical, economic, social, and ecological carriers, the trajectory contributes to a better understanding of the construction sector as a material system with impacts that extend far beyond the building site.

Across the three trajectories, the development of a shared interdisciplinary framework is central. Rather than treating labour, materials, and capital as separate domains, the project will examine how these dimensions interact in concrete building practices, institutional arrangements, markets, regulations, and spatial configurations. The PhD projects will therefore not be carried out in isolation, but in close collaboration with the wider interdisciplinary team, with shared attention to historical sources, spatial analysis, case studies, and theoretical reflection.

More concretely, your work, in preparation of a doctoral dissertation, will include the following:

• You will conduct research with the aim of obtaining a doctoral degree within an interdisciplinary project involving Architectural Engineering Research Group, Cosmopolis Centre for Urban Research, and Social History of Capitalism;
• You will develop your own research proposal within the broader framework of the Interdisciplinaiy Research Project ‘Flows in the Construction Sector’, with Brussels as the central case;
• Depending on your research proposal and profile, you will work with historical, spatial, material, and/or quantitative sources. These may include archival material, company archives, population and labour data, policy documents, cartographic material, material inventories, interviews, technical building documentation, or other relevant datasets. You do not need to be familiar with all these source types at the start of the PhD; methodological deepening and exchange are part of the trajectory;
• You will contribute to the joint development of an interdisciplinary framework around urban building regimes, in dialogue with the other researchers within the project;
• You will present your research at international conferences, build an international network of experts in the field, and publish the research results in academic and scientific journals;
• You will support teaching within the relevant department(s). You will organise and coordinate exercises, practicals, and student projects (max 10%). The language of instruction is Dutch and English. Your specific teaching and research assignment will be determined annually in consultation with you;
• You will actively contribute to the general operation and practical organisation of the research group(s) and department(s) involved, participate in promotional activities for the study programme(s), and assist in the daily management of the department by joining councils and/or committees.

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

3 - Profile

What do we expect from you?

• At the start of the appointment, you hold a master’s degree (with at least distinction) in a relevant field, such as a MA in Architecture, (Economic) History, Sociology or Heritage Studies, a MSc in Architectural Engineering, Geography, Urban Studies, Urban Planning and Spatial Planning, or an equivalent degree.

• You are motivated to conduct research and complete a PhD within a 4-year timeframe;
• You are able to formulate a clear research proposal from your own disciplinary background and are willing to further develop this proposal in dialogue with other disciplines;
• You have an interest in the history and/or contemporary functioning of the construction sector, urban development, labour, migration, material flows, circularity, financial geography, environmental history, or social and economic history. You do not need to be a specialist in all these domains at the start. We do expect curiosity, analytical sharpness, and a willingness to learn across disciplinary boundaries;
• You can work independently, but also function well in a team;
• You have strong analytical and writing skills;
• You are proficient in English, both written and spoken. Knowledge of Dutch and French, at least for reading sources, is an important asset;
• Experience with archival research, GIS, spatial analysis, quantitative methods, oral history, material research, or historical research on Brussels is an asset;
• A good knowledge of construction history, urban history, social history, economic geography, circular economy, or the Brussels construction sector is an important asset.

In your research vision, we ask you to:

• start from your own disciplinary background, expertise, and interests;
• indicate which of the three possible PhD trajectories your proposal best connects to;
• explain how your research could connect labour/migration, material flows, and/or capital/finance, and how it relates to the broader timeframe from the nineteenth century to the present;
• briefly outline, where relevant, which research questions, sources, methods, or cases you might want to develop.

Your proposal does not need to be a fully developed PhD project. We will use it primarily to gain insight into your research potential, your way of thinking, and the way in which you can bring your own expertise into dialogue with the broader project.

Do you have questions about this position? Contact [email protected]  Architectural Engineering Research Group), David Bassens (Cosmopolis Centre for Urban Research - COSM), or Anne Winter (Social History of Capitalism - SHOC) (Cosmopolis).

This vacancy specifically targets recent graduates willing and eligible to apply for externally funded research grants (such as FWO fellowships or other schemes). Candidates should therefore meet the relevant eligibility criteria, including requirements regarding time since graduation and previous paid scientific research experience.

• 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 01/11/2026. 

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 08/07/2026, via jobs.vub.be, and upload the following documents:

• 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 Stephanie Van de Voorde at [email protected] or on 0486 76 84 57.

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.