JOB OPENING

Master/PhD Student Position in Computer Science

What are we searching for?

Master/PhD Student Position in Computer Science

We are looking for a student to work towards his/her master or doctoral degree focused on blockchain technologies to facilitate the work of Collaborative Economy communities. Expectations will be adapted depending if the student seeks a masters or a PhD degree. 

What is P2P Models?

P2P Models is a research project to build decentralized, democratic & economically sustainable Collaborative Economy organizations, using decentralized technologies such as blockchain. The project is a 5 year-long (2018-2022), EU-funded (ERC grant of 1.5M€), based at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Spain), with Principal Investigator and advisors from the Berkman Klein Center at Harvard University. 

The project follows a practical approach, aiming to maximize our social impact through both our socio-technical research and the building of free/open-source software co-designed with communities. Thus, this is an interdisciplinary research project integrated by computer scientists, social scientists, digital designers, and communication specialists. We hold a critical stance towards blockchain while exploring its potential for commons-oriented communities. You can see more info on our values in the About page, on the project approach in this tweet thread, and more on our research questions in this other tweet thread.

Expectations

As part of the team you will:

  • Develop and deploy software using cutting-edge technologies both for blockchain (Ethereum’s Solidity, IPFS, Aragon) and the web (React JS, Node.js) in an agile and free/open-source context
  • Participate in research activities and experimentation within a multidisciplinary team (social researchers, data scientists, designers, computer scientists)
  • Collaborate with our case-study communities to build pilots and experiments. Our case studies are currently the largest European co-op, the largest subtitle creation community and our spin-off Decentralized Science
  • Present your work in international conferences, and publish in leading research journals

What we offer

  • Flexible working-hours
    • You may work remotely, with regular face to face meetings (when the pandemic allows)
    • We work with a goal-oriented approach
    • We believe in family life & work balance, placing life in the centre
  • Opportunities to 
    • Visibilize your work internationally
    • Collaborate with our international network of leading researchers and developers in the field (e.g. Harvard, MIT, Aragon, Protocol Labs)
    • Compete for prestigious academic scholarships
  • Joining a team that 
    • Values diversity and nice interpersonal relationships
    • Strives to have flat, inclusive, and feminist processes
  • Training & Education: we provide funding for visiting fellowships, conferences,  hackathons, and training to improve professional skills

 

See more of the Culture, Perks and Work Conditions at P2P Models

Minimum requirements

  •  The student needs to have one of these academic prerequisites, in areas related to Computer Science:
    • Completed Masters degree, in order to start his/her PhD within this position
    • Completed undergrad degree, and a Masters in progress, or at the very least expectation of enrollment in 2021. Within this position, the student will finish their master studies and develop a Master thesis. 
    • A 5-year undergrad degree (or 300 ECTS), as an alternative path to start the PhD (https://edoctorado.ucm.es/acceso)
  • Strong interest in some of these areas: blockchain, peer-to-peer systems, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), free/open-source software, online communities, social movements, collaborative economy 
  • Fluency in English
  • Be based in Madrid (Spain) and/or available for face to face meetings once a week, when the current pandemic allows
  • Ability to work in multidisciplinary teams, autonomy, critical thinking

Bonus points for any combination of these

  • Experience contributing to free/open-source projects
  • Experience in social movements, activism, commons-oriented initiatives, co-ops, and/or open collaborative communities
  • Knowledge of decentralized technologies (e.g. Ethereum, IPFS, federated systems) or JavaScript frameworks (e.g. Vue, Angular, React).
  • Research experience
  • Fluency in Spanish
  • Experience with agile methodologies
  • Teamwork and interpersonal skills, including collaboration, empathy, and adaptation
  • Underrepresented demographics in the blockchain field to increase the team diversity

Salary Range

25.000-35.000 € (gross annual salary) depending on experience.

Application Instructions

Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible, maximum by 5 May 2021, in order to start asap. The position will run for at least one year with opportunity to renewal depending on mutual interests and funds availability. In the case of PhD students, it is possible to guarantee funding for a 3-year research plan. 

If you didn’t, please check out more on our Culture, Perks  and Work conditions.