Scientific project assistant postdoc Universität Wien

Job description:

At the University of Vienna, almost 11,000 people work together on the big questions of the future. Approximately 7,700 of them are academic staff members. These are individuals who, with their curiosity and their continuous pursuit of excellence, engage in international cutting-edge research and teaching. With us, you will also find space to unfold your potential. We are looking for a/an ...

Scientific project assistant postdoc

The University of Vienna is one of Europe’s leading research universities, committed to excellence in research and teaching. The Faculty of Business, Economics and Statistics offers a vibrant, international research environment with strong expertise in empirical economics, innovation studies, and data science.

We are seeking to appoint a Postdoctoral Researcher to join the ERC Synergy Grant project SUSTECH – Accelerating Sustainable Technological Trajectories with Computational Chemistry and Machine Learning.

Where you will be:

The position is hosted by the research group Technology and Innovation Management (TIM) at the Faculty of Business, Economics and Statistics.

About the project
SUSTECH investigates how technological trajectories in chemistry and pharmaceuticals evolve, with a particular focus on the selection of hazardous versus sustainable innovations. The project combines large-scale data on chemical compounds and patents with computational chemistry and machine learning to generate novel insights into innovation processes and policy design.
The Theory Testing Lab at the University of Vienna focuses on empirical analyses of pharmaceutical innovation, developing and leveraging large-scale datasets (e.g., patents, clinical trials, molecular data) to study how innovation trajectories emerge and are shaped.
The position offers the opportunity to contribute to internationally visible, frontier research. You will have the chance to help build and shape a high-impact interdisciplinary research group while working on your own research. The group is led by Prof. Stefan Wagner, who publishes in leading international journals and serves as Associate Editor at Management Science.

Your responsibilities:

As a Postdoctoral Research you will:

• Conduct independent and collaborative empirical research on pharmaceutical innovation and technological trajectories
• Build, manage, and analyse large-scale datasets (e.g., patent data, clinical trials, molecular and firm-level data)
• Apply advanced econometric methods to study innovation processes and selection mechanisms
• Contribgute to and lead academic publications in top-tier journals
• Collaborate closely with an international, interdisciplinary research team across Europe and the US
• Support project-related activities and administrative tasks within the ERC project
• You may contribute to teaching activities depending on interest and availability, in which case you participate in evaluation measures and in quality assurance.

Your profile:

• Completed PhD in economics, management, data science, or a closely related field
• Strong background in econometrics and empirical research methods
• Experience with large-scale data work and data integration
• Programming skills in Python, R, Stata, and SQL
• Interest in pharmaceutical innovation, patents, and the science of science
• Experience with machine learning methods is an advantage
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in an international research environment
• Excellent command of English (working language of the project) - at the very least C1(written and spoken)

What we offer:

• Integration into a high-profile ERC Synergy Grant project with strong international visibility
• Access to unique, large-scale datasets and cutting-edge research infrastructure
• Close collaboration with leading researchers in innovation economics, computational chemistry, and machine learning
• A dynamic and interdisciplinary research environment at the University of Vienna
• Opportunities for career development and international networking
• Fixed-term contract and fair salary: The basic salary of EUR 5.014,30 (14 times a year) for a period of 3 years, with the possibility of extension up to 6 years (6 years representing the maximum contract duration possible).

Application documents:

Please apply by submitting:

• Letter of motivation
• Academic CV (including a publication list)
• Job market paper or representative research work
• Doctoral Degree 
• Contact details of at least two referees
• Via our job portal/ Apply now -  button

If you have any questions, please contact:

Stefan Wagner  

stefan.wagner@univie.ac.at

We look forward to new personalities in our team! 
The University of Vienna has an anti-discriminatory employment policy and attaches great importance to equal opportunities, the advancement of women and diversity. We place particular emphasis on enhancing women’s representation among the academic and general university staff, particularly in leadership roles, and therefore expressly encourage qualified women to apply. Given equal qualifications, preference will be given to female candidates.

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​Application deadline: 05/17/2026 

Apply now