PhD Opening in Sensor-in-the-Loop Human-Robot Interaction at Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University in United States

The SYMBIO-X Lab at Vanderbilt University, led by Assistant Professor Yayun Du, is recruiting one PhD student for Fall 2026 (with the option to start in Summer 2026). The research focuses on sensor-in-the-loop human-robot interaction, integrating multimodal physiological sensing with robotic control and reinforcement learning to enable safe and efficient human-in-the-loop autonomy. The lab is seeking candidates with strong quantitative skills and backgrounds in Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering/Robotics, Computer Science, or Biomedical Engineering.

Preferred qualifications include experience with ROS2, hands-on work with robotic arms (such as Franka, UR, xArm), and expertise in controls, reinforcement learning, or machine learning (PyTorch). Applicants should submit a CV, a short paragraph describing their interests, and optionally links to their GitHub or publications.

The position is based at Vanderbilt University in the United States. Funding details are not specified, but PhD positions at Vanderbilt are typically fully funded. Interested candidates should contact Yayun Du directly via email and indicate their preferred start date.