PhD Opportunities in Biology in Netherlands

The University of Amsterdam’s Faculty of Science is recruiting multiple PhD candidates for a project on symmetries and their breaking in deep learning , supported by a Simons Foundation grant. The positions are based in the Amsterdam Machine Learning Lab (AMLab), in a new research group led by Associate Professor Nabil Iqbal at the intersection of deep learning and physics. The project seeks mathematically principled explanations for how modern neural networks develop complex capabilities from s...

This PhD project investigates how the resident virome of insects shapes immune responses and fitness, and how this in turn influences interactions with incoming virus infections. You will work on fundamental questions in insect virology using lepidopteran species as the study system. The project focuses on defining virome composition, testing how resident viral communities affect insect life-history traits and responses to infection, and examining vertical transmission of the virome across gener...

This PhD project investigates how forest carbon uptake is changing worldwide under climate change and disturbance. The successful candidate will combine atmospheric CO₂ observations, Earth Observation products, and numerical models to quantify how the global forest carbon sink varies across continents and over time. The work focuses on integrating multiple data streams into an existing prototype modelling framework and extending its data assimilation capacity so it can use large Earth Observatio...

The Amsterdam Leukodystrophy Center at Amsterdam UMC is offering a four-year PhD position on Vanishing White Matter (VWM), a severe inherited disorder that affects the brain’s white matter. The project is embedded in a highly specialized, internationally recognized research environment focused on leukodystrophies, with expertise spanning clinical symptoms, neuropsychological effects, MRI, genetics, neuropathology, and molecular and cellular disease mechanisms. The doctoral researcher will work o...

This PhD project at Amsterdam UMC focuses on improving glucose regulation for women with type 1 diabetes during the menopausal transition. The research is part of the DAME-APersonal project and brings together clinical research, data analysis, and technology development to create a more personalized approach to diabetes care for this group. You will investigate how menopause-related factors, such as hot flushes and changes in heart rate, affect glucose levels in women with and without diabetes. ...

This PhD opening is for an arts-onderzoeker at Amsterdam UMC within the Lung Center and the Department of Experimental Immunology. The project focuses on interstitial lung diseases (ILD) and progressive pulmonary fibrosis, with the aim of improving earlier recognition and treatment through clinical and translational research . The doctoral project builds on the prospective P4O2 ILD cohort . You will study patients with interstitial lung disease to identify risk factors and biomarkers linked to c...

This PhD project at Leiden University explores a new approach to building biocatalytic nanofactories by packaging biocatalysts inside lipid vesicles during bacterial expression. The work sits at the intersection of synthetic cells , biotechnology , and enzyme engineering, with the aim of creating ready-to-use liposome-encapsulated systems for cascade reactions. You will work on optimising and applying a technology that confines biocatalysts in vesicles while they are produced in bacteria, a stra...

PhD research at Leiden University’s Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML) focuses on developing validated and tangible key performance indicators for biodiversity improvements in agriculture and horticulture. The project is part of the NWO-KIC RISE project, Resilient Integrated Systems for Ecosystem restoration , and is carried out in collaboration with Eindhoven University of Technology and Wageningen University and Research. You will work at the intersection of innovation science, system d...

This PhD project at the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences (IRAS) at Utrecht University focuses on how interventions and broader societal transitions affect air quality in the Netherlands. The research sits within the NWA-ORC project ExpACT, which examines the health effects of air pollution and develops improved monitoring technologies and methods for understanding changing pollution levels and sources. You will investigate how real-world interventions change air pollution in a series of pr...