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KU Leuven

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PhD in AI and Multimodal Digital Liver Pathology KU Leuven in Belgium

Degree Level

PhD

Field of study

Computer Science

Funding

Full-time PhD position funded for a total of four years, initially for one year and extendable after positive evaluation. Remuneration follows KU Leuven scholarship conditions.

Deadline

Nov 17, 2026

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Country

Belgium

University

KU Leuven

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Keywords

Computer Science
Biomedical Engineering
Deep Learning
Biology
Artificial Intelligence
Hepatology
Radiomics
Medical Science
Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Multimodal Analysis
Digital Pathology
Statistics
Bioinformatic
ML

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About this position

KU Leuven is advertising a full-time PhD position in AI and multimodal digital liver pathology at the Department of Imaging & Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, based in Leuven, Belgium. The project sits in the Govaere Research Group and is closely linked with pathology, hepatology, oncology, radiology, molecular biology, and biomedical AI. The work is supervised by Prof. Olivier Govaere, with collaboration from Prof. Jeroen Dekervel and co-supervision by Prof. Asier Antoranz.

The research focuses on artificial intelligence, computational pathology, deep learning, self-supervised learning, foundation models, multiple-instance learning, and multimodal biomedical data integration. The aim is to combine digitised whole-slide histopathology with molecular datasets, and where appropriate MRI-derived information, to predict biologically and clinically relevant features of chronic liver disease and liver cancer. Disease areas mentioned include MASH, ASH, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Typical tasks include curation and quality control of whole-slide images and linked clinical/molecular data, development of machine-learning workflows, integration of image-derived features with transcriptomic, spatial-omics, genomic, proteomic, or radiological data, and interpretation/visualisation of model predictions. The position also involves collaboration with multidisciplinary experts and preparation of manuscripts and presentations.

Eligibility highlights: a master’s degree in computer science, AI, bioinformatics, computational biology, statistics, or a related field; strong Python skills; solid grounding in machine learning/deep learning/statistics/data science; excellent English; and the ability to work independently in a multidisciplinary team. Experience in digital pathology, computer vision, multimodal learning, image-omics integration, radiomics, or MRI analysis is desirable. The post also notes that being eligible for an FWO PhD fellowship is an advantage.

Funding: the PhD is funded for four years total, starting with a one-year appointment that can be extended after positive evaluation. Remuneration follows KU Leuven scholarship conditions.

Application deadline: 17 November 2026 at 23:59 CET. Apply via the KU Leuven online application tool. For more information, contact Prof. Olivier Govaere at [email protected].

Funding details

Full-time PhD position funded for a total of four years, initially for one year and extendable after positive evaluation. Remuneration follows KU Leuven scholarship conditions.

What's required

Applicants must hold a master's degree in computer science, artificial intelligence, bioinformatics, computational biology, statistics, or a closely related field. Strong programming skills, preferably in Python, are required; R is an additional asset. A solid foundation in machine learning, deep learning, statistics, or data science is expected. Candidates should be motivated to work at the interface of AI, pathology, and translational liver research, committed to completing a doctorate within four years, and able to communicate fluently in spoken and written English. Experience in computer vision, digital pathology, whole-slide image analysis, self-supervised learning, foundation models, multiple-instance learning, image-omics integration, explainable AI, molecular/spatial-omics, radiomics, MRI analysis, pathology, chronic liver disease, or cancer biology is desirable but not required. Eligibility to apply for an FWO PhD fellowship is also mentioned as desirable.

How to apply

Apply online through the KU Leuven application tool no later than 17 November 2026 at 23:59 CET. For questions about the position, contact Prof. Olivier Govaere by email. For questions about the online application procedure, use the KU Leuven contact email provided in the post.

More information can be found here

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