PhD opportunities in earth science in switzerland

Paul Scherrer Institut PSI is advertising a PhD position in electron transfer processes at clay minerals , within the SNSF-funded project “Electron transfer across the clay mineral-water interface” . The project investigates where, how, and why electron transfer occurs at iron-bearing clay minerals, with a focus on redox processes in the clay mineral-water interface and their role in environmental and geochemical systems. The PhD student will work in the Clay Systems Group and the Laboratory for...

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) is advertising a fully funded PhD position in Interpretable AI for Coupled Multiphysics of Geomaterials within the Data-Driven Mechanics Laboratory in Lausanne, Switzerland. The project sits at the intersection of interpretable artificial intelligence , computational mechanics , multiphysics of geomaterials , scientific machine learning , physics-informed modeling , and neurosymbolic AI . Research themes include discovering governing equations for ...

EPFL’s Data-Driven Mechanics Laboratory is advertising a fully funded PhD position in interpretable AI for coupled multiphysics of geomaterials . The project sits at the intersection of computational mechanics , multiphysics , granular materials , and machine learning , with a strong emphasis on discovering governing equations and constitutive relations from rich micro-mechanical and experimental data. The successful candidate will contribute to a next-generation data-driven framework for scient...

The Chair of Engineering Geology at ETH Zürich, led by Prof. Dr. Jordan Aaron, invites applications for a fully funded PhD position in Numerical Modelling of Debris Flows. This opportunity is ideal for candidates passionate about fluid mechanics, numerical modelling, and natural hazards. The research will focus on developing a novel coupled solid/fluid mechanics-based numerical model to simulate debris flow motion, integrating innovative field data collected globally to validate and enhance the ...

The Engineering Geology group at ETH Zürich, led by Prof. Jordan Aaron, is offering a fully funded PhD position focused on the application of computer vision to natural hazards, specifically debris flow mechanisms. The position is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and can commence as early as September 1st, 2026, with flexibility in the start date. This opportunity is ideal for candidates passionate about interdisciplinary research at the intersection of computer science and earth sciences. The rese...

Agroscope is advertising a PhD position in Agroecology for field-crop production within the SUSTAGRI project, an interdisciplinary study on how to reduce herbicide use and soil tillage for more sustainable agriculture. The project examines agronomic, environmental, and socio-economic impacts of alternative farming practices. The PhD student will work on a long-term field trial and contribute to field samplings, laboratory analyses, and data treatment. Research topics include plant yield , weed a...

PhD opportunity in AI , remote sensing , ecology , and mountain environmental science focused on the dynamics of the upper forest line (treeline) in the Swiss Alps. The project studies how climate change and land-use change affect forest treeline dynamics, with a strong applied component for forest management in alpine regions. The selected candidate will develop AI models to map treeline evolution from high-resolution remote sensing data , build predictive ecological models to project future tr...

ETH Zurich is advertising two fully funded PhD positions in the DEPOPLAND project, a highly interdisciplinary research initiative on social-ecological change in depopulating rural landscapes worldwide . Position 1: Doctoral position in landscape ecology and geospatial analysis This role focuses on assessing ecological change in shrinking and growing rural landscapes using large-scale population datasets, spatial analysis, remote sensing, and multiscale geospatial workflows. The work includes dev...

ETH Zurich is advertising a PhD in land use modeling within the Chair for Planning of Landscape and Urban Systems (PLUS) at the Institute for Spatial and Landscape Planning. The position is part of the NCCR CLIM+ program, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, and is embedded in a collaborative research environment involving ETH Zurich , WSL , and Agroscope . The project focuses on developing and applying the evoland-plus land use model, a pattern-based land use change model coupled wi...