University assistant predoctoral Universität Wien

Job description:

The University of Vienna is a community of almost 11,000 individuals, including approximately 7,700 academic staff members, who passionately pursue answers to the profound questions that shape our future. They represent individuals driven by curiosity and a relentless pursuit of excellence. With us, they find the space to try things out and unfold their potential. Are you inspired by their passion and determination? We are currently seeking a/an

University assistant predoctoral

Do you have an interest in experimental aerosol physics? Are you fascinated by lab-scale fundamental studies connecting to urgent environmental problems such as climate change and air pollution? Are you interested in measuring and analyzing newly formed clusters to characterize building blocks of new particle formation and quantify nanoparticle dynamics? If yes, then we invite you to join the Aerosol Physics and Environmental Physics Group.

Your personal sphere of influence:

As a university assistant (praedoc) in this 4-year position, you will be part of the Nanoparticle Dynamics Team around Professor Paul Winkler, and you will be focusing on research topics in aerosol nanoparticle dynamics.

Our research aims at fundamental process understanding in aerosol physics and practical applications in environmental settings. Examples include mass spectrometric applications for particle chemical characterization as well as chamber-based experiments for studies of new particle formation of atmospheric relevance as well as instrumentation development.

Our Team is part of the Aerosol Physics and Environmental Physics group of the Faculty of Physics.

We are member of the recently founded Environment and Climate Research Hub of the University of Vienna offering ample opportunities for cross-discipline interaction within the University of Vienna. Our participation at the CLOUD experiment at CERN provides a large network of leading international scientists in the field.

You will also benefit from being fellow of the Vienna Doctoral School in Physics (VDSP), connecting PhD students at the Faculty of Physics from all disciplines.

The research team led by Paul Winkler is an international team of innovative scientists on all levels (Master, PhD and Postdoc). Our expertise lies in experimental aerosol nanoparticle dynamics.

Your future tasks:

You actively participate in research, teaching & administration, which means:

• You are involved in a fully funded research project addressing nanoparticle detection, characterization and growth analysis.
• You will present your research plan to the faculty and complete a dissertation agreement within 12-18 months. This will be reviewed and adapted on an annual basis.
• You will work on your dissertation and towards its completion in time. We expect a large degree of independence paired with a high level of social awareness as the goal will only be achieved in a team.
• You will contribute to teaching (lab courses, exercise classes) within the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement.
• You will fill some administrative tasks, contributing to the success and self-organization of the group for research, teaching and administration.
• You will participate in international measurement campaigns which may include substantial travel.
• You will continuously stay informed about the state of the art in your field.
• You contribute to outreach by publications, conference presentations and public activities.

This is part of your personality:

• You have completed your Master's degree or Diploma in physics and/or aerosol related topics such as atmospheric sciences or aerosol chemistry.
• You have experience in academic writing.
• You come with a background in general aerosol physics and chemistry.
• Ideally, you should have experience with the usual techniques for aerosol detection and characterization (CPC, DMA, mass spectrometry) and programing (e.g. Mathematica/Python/Matlab).
• You have an excellent command of written and spoken English.

What we offer:

Inspiring working atmosphere: You are a part of an international academic team in a healthy and fair working environment.

Good public transport connections: Your workplace in the center of beauftiful Vienna is easily accessible by public transport.

Potential for development: Success in life depends on what you make of it, but if you are ambitious and successful, there are plenty of opportunities to connect you to many relevant top research groups in the world.

Internal further training & Coaching: Opportunity to deepen your skills on an ongoing basis. There are over 600 courses to choose from – free of charge.

Fair salary: The basic salary of EUR 3.776,10 (40h, 14x p.a.) increases if we can credit professional experience. The duration of employment is 4 years. Initially limited to 1.5 years, the employment relationship is automatically extended to 4 years if the employer does not terminate it within the first 12 months by submitting a non-extension declaration.

Equal opportunities for all: We welcome every additional/new personality to the team!

It is that easy to apply:

• With your scientific curriculum vitae
• A summary of your previous academic and research achievements.
• A short statement on your research interests for the future.
• Your Bachelor’s and Master‘s degree: an excellent academic degree is a good entrance statement for this position. Note, that while a Master’s degree is the usual legal prerequisite for a PhD position at the University of Vienna, we can consider Bachelors (preferentially with Honor’s) in exceptional cases, too.

If you have any questions, please contact:

Paul Winkler  

paul.winkler@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.

University of Vienna. Space for personalities. Since 1365.

Data protection
​Application deadline: 06/28/2026 

Apply now