---------------------------------------------------------------------- 2 postdoc positions and 2 PhD student positions

in Model-Driven Engineering, Domain-Specific Languages, and Software Evolution

at Delft University of Technology ----------------------------------------------------------------------

The Delft Software Engineering Group has openings for two postdoctoral researchers and two PhD students in the area of model-driven engineering, domain-specific languages, and software evolution. The positions are available in the

Model-Driven Software Evolution (MoDSE)

project, which is funded by the Dutch Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) in its software engineering program JACQUARD (http://www.jacquard.nl).

http://swerl.tudelft.nl/bin/view/MoDSE

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Research Description ----------------------------------------------------------------------

The promise of model-driven engineering (MDE) is that the development and maintenance effort can be reduced by working at the model instead of the code level. Models define what is variable in a system, and code generators produce the functionality that is common in the application domain.

The problem with model-driven engineering is that it can lead to a lock-in in the abstractions and generator technology adopted at project initiation. Software systems need to evolve, and systems built using model-driven approaches are no exception. What complicates model-driven engineering is that it requires multiple dimensions of evolution. In regular evolution, the modeling language is used to make the changes. In meta-model evolution, changes are required to the modeling notation. In platform evolution, the code generators and application framework change to reflect new requirements on the target platform. Finally, in abstraction evolution, new modeling languages are added to the set of (modeling) languages to reflect increased understanding of a technical or business domain. While MDE has been optimized for regular evolution, presently little or no support exists for metamodel, platform and abstraction evolution. It is this gap that this project proposes to address.

The first fundamental premise of this proposal is that evolution should be a continuous process. Software development is a continuous search for recurring patterns, which can be captured using domain-specific modeling languages. After developing a number of systems using a particular meta-model, new patterns may be recognized that can be captured in a higher-level or richer meta-model. The second premise is that reengineering of legacy systems to the model-driven paradigm should be a special case of this continuous evolution, and should be performed incrementally.

The goal of this project is to develop a systematic approach to model-driven software evolution. This approach includes methods, techniques, and underlying tool support. We will develop a prototype programming environment that assists software engineers with the introduction, development, and maintenance of models and domain-specific languages.

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Context ----------------------------------------------------------------------

The project will be conducted in the Software Engineering Research Group at Delft University of Technology, in particular its Software Evolution Research Lab, which has a expertise in the following areas

* program analysis * reverse engineering * software transformation * software generation * domain-specific languages * grammar engineering

The project will build on previous work in these areas, in particular on the program transformation work in the Stratego/XT project. See also the following websites.

* http://www.se.ewi.tudelft.nl * http://swerl.tudelft.nl * http://www.stratego-language.org

The full proposal is available on request.

---------------------------------------------------------------------- The Job ----------------------------------------------------------------------

The funding is for two post-doc positions of three years and two PhD student positions for four years.

Appointment as a post-doc requires a completed PhD thesis and experience in one or more of the topics relevant to the project, as witnessed by refereed publications in conference proceedings or journals. You will be employed by Delft University of Technology for a period of three years. Salary depends on prior experience, and will be in one of the salary scales 10 to 12 (with maximum salary at 4605 euros a month) as stipulated by the Collective Labour Agreement for the Dutch Universities (see www.vsnu.nl).

Appointment as a PhD student requires a completed MsC thesis in Computer Science, preferably in a topic related to the TFA project (software engineering and programming languages). You will be employed by Delft University of Technology for a period of four years. The estimated starting monthly PhD salary is 1,956 euro gross, with a maximum of 2,502 euro gross in the fourth year. The position is expected to lead to a dissertation in the fourth year. Benefits and other employment conditions are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (www.vsnu.nl). For further details about conditions of employment, please consult the website of Delft University of Technology (www.tudelft.nl).

For more information, please contact

* dr. E. Visser, Associate Professor (project leader) email: E.Visser@tudelft.nl * prof. dr. Arie van Deursen, Full Professor (promotor, principal investigator) email: Arie.van.Deursen@tudelft.nl * http://swerl.tudelft.nl/bin/view/MoDSE

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Application ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Send your letter of application, together with a comprehensive curriculum vitae, a list of your publications and a list of your academic results (preferably by e-mail) to:

dr. Eelco Visser Software Engineering Research Group Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science (EWI) Department of Software Technology Delft University of Technology Mekelweg 4 2628 CD Delft The Netherlands

E-mail: E.Visser@tudelft.nl

The positions will be filled as soon as suitable candidates are found.