Fully Funded Doctoral Researcher position in Robotics

The Department of Computing at the University of Turku is looking for 1 fixed-term Doctoral Researcher (PhD student) in Robotics. The assignment begins in August 1, 2026, or upon mutual agreement. The position is fixed-term and will last until April 30, 2028.

Job description

The position is based in the Turku Intelligent Embedded and Robotic Systems (TIERS) lab in the Robotics and Autonomous Systems unit at the Department of Computing. TIERS is globally connected and focuses on integrating robotics and artificial intelligence across diverse fields. The core focus lies in developing heterogeneous, multifunctional robotic fleets for various applications within industrial and environmental settings. TIERS has a significant external project portfolio at both national and international levels.

The position is part of the Digital Waters (DIWA) flagship (end date April 30, 2028). DIWA enables a transition towards the digital representation of real-world water systems (Digital Twin). DIWA integrates cutting-edge research in robotics, machine learning, and sustainable engineering to enhance the safety, efficiency, and sustainability of autonomous systems. More information about DIWA can be found at .

Who we are looking for

We invite applications from highly motivated master's degree students with a strong interest in mobile robotics and machine learning. Examples of areas of interest include communication-aware navigation towards complex and unstructured environments, cooperative control and distributed learning for multi-robot system. We value a background in areas such as robotics, machine learning, communication technology, computer science or related fields, and eagerness to deploy real-world robotic systems (aerial, ground or surface robotics). Possible application fields include, for example, environmental monitoring, search and rescue, mobile ad-hoc network as well as agriculture and forestry.

Required qualifications and experience:

Master's degree in compu