Research Assistant (m/w/d) for the XR Laboratory Health

HAWK is a state university in Lower Saxony with more than 6,000 students. The university is regionally anchored and, in addition, is well connected nationally and internationally. A basis for this is certainly also their roots, which, for example, at the site Holzminden up to the 19. to date. At the HAWK University of Applied Sciences Hildesheim/Holzminden/Göttingen, the Faculty of Social Work and Health in the Department of Health at the Hildesheim site on 01.07.2025 is to occupy the following temporary position until 31.01.2029: Senior Consultant (m/w/d) (E 13 TV-L, full time) As part of the HAWK’s “Vision 2050” project, innovation laboratories are being implemented for future-oriented solutions that interdisciplinaryly drive research, teaching and transfer in the future-relevant areas of health, green engineering and education. The project is located in the HAWK’s research area “Health, Technology and Digitization”.

A four-side CAVE and a series of head-mounted displays (HMDs) are to be put into operation and tested in the XR laboratory at HAWK/Location Hildesheim. Experimental applications are to be developed, tested and evaluated for the projector-driven Cave and the HMDs, both for the development of innovative interventions in the therapy professions (ergotherapy, speech therapy, physiotherapy) and in teaching scenarios. In the field of teaching, collective VR experiences are to be made possible, for example the detailed visualization of anatomical structures and therapeutic processes or the simulation of therapeutic measures. Furthermore, therapy modules for individual or group-based virtual reality therapy applications are to be developed for patients with various health problems and simulations for their use in curation and rehabilitation. These may be innovative therapeutic approaches for the treatment of chronic pain in people with amputations. Our cooperation with the Orthobionic study programme of HAWK and the Central Institute of Mental Health (ZI) Mannheim enables practical and interprofessional implementation.

Start-up of the XR laboratory at the Hildesheim site Development, testing and evaluation of VR therapy applications in therapy professions (Ergotherapie, Logopädie/Sprachtherapie, Physiotherapie) Development of teaching/learning scenarios for therapy professions in the context of the XR laboratory Developing project ideas and third-party applications Support for teaching research projects in the XR laboratory

Complete university studies (Master/Diplom) in the therapy sciences (e.g. physiotherapy, logopaedia/language therapy, ergotherapy), medical technology, medical informatics, neuroscience, psychology or in a technical-designed subject (e.g. Interaction Design, Game Development, mechanical engineering, physics, electrical engineering) with strong interest in and related to therapeutic interventions Ability to work into the programming of the Python-based software WorldViz Vizard, 3D design software (e.g. Blender, Autodesk 3ds Max) and possibly other game development solutions (e.g. Unity 3D) Ability to work on questions of therapy Remarkable Experience in the acquisition of third-party funds, publication experience, programming knowledge (Python, C), experiences with planning, carrying out and evaluating experiments with subjects

Professional and personal development opportunities in an interdisciplinary research and teaching environment Possibility to participate in the professional and disciplinary development of therapy professions in an innovative project Possibility of promotion Support in the publication of scientific articles The HAWK sees itself as a place of opportunity. Therefore, the person who exercises the job is also required to treat the college and the students in a way that is oriented towards the same position and that is easy for diversity. As a multi-faceted university, we also want employees who bring different backgrounds to life. Therefore, people from underrepresented groups are particularly encouraged to apply. Our university promotes the reconciliation of family and occupation, among other things, through very flexible working time models. The Equal Opportunities Office and the Staff Council will be happy to provide you with information on these issues. Persons with severe disability are preferably taken into account with the same suitability, competence and professional performance in accordance with the relevant regulations. To safeguard your interests, please let us know in the application whether there is a serious disability/equality. JOBV1_EN