Uni postdoctoral Mathematics

The Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Vienna is the largest Austrian institution of mathematical research and tertiary education in the mathematical sciences. It consists of active research groups in a wide range of fields, starting from logical foundations, bridging all classical core subjects, and up to concrete applications in industry. As part of the Faculty, the Institute of Mathematics represents the entire discipline of mathematics in research and teaching, without making an arbitrary separation into pure and applied fields.

We are looking for an open, innovative, and productive colleague who enjoys working in an international and interdisciplinary environment. Does that sound like something for you? Apply to join our team!

Your professional field of activity:

We're excited to invite applications for a University Assistant (Postdoc) to join the research team led by Univ. Prof. Olga Mula. Our group’s work sits at the forefront of numerical analysis for Partial Differential Equations, enriched with data-driven methodologies -- a powerful combination that’s redefining what’s possible in computational science, and is playing a crucial role in tackling some of today’s scientific and societal challenges.

The candidate will join a research project on the Fokker-Planck equation—also known as the Kolmogorov forward equation— which is a fundamental Partial Differential Equation (PDE) that captures the time evolution of probability distributions in systems driven by stochastic processes with Brownian motion. It plays a crucial role across a wide range of fields, from physics and biology to finance and engineering. But there's a catch: in most real-world scenarios, this equation lives in very high-dimensional spaces, making its numerical solution a serious computational challenge. This project aims to tackle that head-on by developing adaptive numerical schemes powered by advanced nonlinear approximations—like Gaussian mixtures and neural networks. The key challenge? Designing robust and stable numerical schemes that remain efficient even in high dimensions, effectively pushing back against the curse of dimensionality.

The ideal candidate will have prior exposure to modern developments in at least one of these fields: numerical analysis of PDEs (with deterministic and/or stochastic methods), Gaussian Random Fields, mathematical foundations of deep learning, functional analysis and measure theory. You can find more information about our research area and our team on the website: http://www.olgamula.com. As a team, we understand the importance of a positive, inclusive, and respectful working environment, and we regularly exchange ideas about current topics and projects in our group meetings.

The starting date of the contract is negotiable, but it should take place between the 1st of September 2025 and the 1st of February 2026. The employment period is for 4 years from the beginning of the contract.

Your future tasks:

Active participation in research, teaching & administration, which means:

• Collaboration and research in the field of Computational Partial Differential Equations:

           o Development of own solutions as part of the research group of Prof. Olga Mula.
 

• Interdisciplinary collaboration:

           o Willingness to participate in conferences and congresses.

• Collaboration in teaching and administration:

           o Participation in the administration of the institute, teaching, and research.   
           o Holding courses and examinations in accordance with the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement.

           o Willingness to (co-)supervise students.

Required Qualifications/Position Requirement: 

• Completed doctorate in mathematics before the contract starts.
• Emphasis in one or more of the following areas: numerical analysis of PDEs (with deterministic and/or stochastic methods), Gaussian Random Fields, mathematical foundations of deep learning, functional analysis and measure theory.
• Research competence & initiative demonstrated through international publications in peer relevant media.
• Excellent command of English, both written and spoken
• You are goal-oriented and have a high motivation to strive for scientific excellence.
• You are not entitled to compensation for travel and accommodation expenses incurred in connection with the admission process.

What we offer:

• Work-life balance: The compatibility of work and private life or work and study is a particularly important concern for us. In consultation with the team and team management, you can therefore organize your working hours flexibly and in a family-friendly manner within the framework of the current flexible and family-friendly working hours and also work partially in a home office. Inspiring working atmosphere: You are part of an international team with excellent research infrastructure in a relaxed working environment.
• Good public transport connections: Your new workplace is easily accessible by public transport.
• Climate neutrality - sustainability: The University of Vienna contributes to the achievement of climate goals by means of an adopted sustainability strategy and aimes to achieve climate neutrality by 2030 through the reduction of resource consumption, resource-saving and sustainable procurements.
• Fixed-term contract and adequate salary: The basic salary corresponds to the collective agreement for employees of the universities according to § 48 VwGr. B1 lit b basic level (postdoc): EUR 4,932.90 on a full-time basis (14 times per year). The actual salary is finally determined depending on professional experience and qualification. The gross salary covers all benefits of the employee in quantitative and qualitative terms (= all-in payment).
• Internal training and coaching: We offer you ongoing opportunities to deepen your skills. Choose from an extensive range of courses free of charge.
• Benefits: The University of Vienna also offers you numerous benefits, such as a company pension fund, travel allowances, low-cost parking, discounted IT (hardware and software), special rates for language courses offered by the university language center, advancement of women, diversity management and specific career advancement, inclusion, Papamonat, Flexible childcare, vacation care for children, health care, vaccination campaigns and fitness offers (special rates for USI sports courses) as well as discounts for employees at various companies.
• Equal opportunities for all: We welcome every additional personality to the team!

Is your interest in this attractive and varied field of activity with autonomous areas of responsibility now aroused? Would you like to take on this new challenge? To
actively contribute to the current and future major scientific issues of the research team around Prof. Mula and, above all, to become even better at what you can already do?

Then we are looking forward to you and your meaningful application:

• with your letter of motivation,
• a scientific CV, including a list of publications, talks, third-party funding, and teaching activities (if applicable),
• Bachelor and Master degree certificates,
• your certificate of a completed PhD programme (required before the start of the contract) and
• contact details of 2 persons for reference, to be sent directly to olga.mula.hernandez@univie.ac.at referencing the job ad ID 3516

either:

• via our job portal by clicking on "Create Profile - Login & Logout" in the header on the upper right, or
• directly in this job posting by clicking the "Apply now" - Button on the bottom right side.