Fully-funded PhD position in Explanations for Combinatorial Optimization
KU Leuven is offering a fully funded PhD position in
Explanations for Combinatorial Optimization
within Bart Bogaerts’ research group on Knowledge Representation and Combinatorial Optimization, part of the Declarative Languages and Artificial Intelligence (DTAI) section of the Department of Computer Science.
The project sits at the intersection of combinatorial optimization, logic, and trustworthy AI. The research team studies how high-level, human-readable problem specifications are translated into solver-ready forms, and how to provide stronger guarantees that the solver has correctly addressed the original problem. A central theme is the development of explanation methods for decisions made by combinatorial optimizers: explaining infeasibility, optimality, uniqueness, and how a user could have inferred a result. The position will contribute specifically to this explanation-focused research line, with possible directions including the relationship between proofs and explanations, abstraction levels for explanations, solver modifications that make explanations easier to extract, and domain-specific explanation methods.
The posting highlights the relevance of proof logging, auditability, debugging, and accountability in high-impact applications, including compliance with requirements such as GDPR-style accountability for AI systems affecting people’s lives. The research environment is highly academic and method-oriented, with references to the CertiFOX project and ZebraTutor examples as inspiration.
This is a
PhD opening
, not a postdoc or master’s position. The successful candidate must hold an MSc degree in computer science or a closely related field such as mathematics before the start date. Applicants should be genuinely interested in declarative problem solving, combinatorial optimization, knowledge representation, and/or logic-based methods, and should have strong scientific curiosity, solid programming skills, and English proficiency. The position is
fully funded
for an expected duration of four years, with scholarship funding competitive with Belgian salaries and a travel budget for conferences, workshops, and summer schools.
The expected start is around the beginning of 2027, though this is negotiable. The application deadline is
2026-09-30
. For further information, contact
Prof. dr. Bart Bogaerts
at
[email protected]
and apply through the KU Leuven job application link.
