Professor (m/f/d) (W2 with tenure track to W3) of Human-Centered Robotics
Technische Universität Nürnberg

Temporary

Full Time

Apply by: 2025-09-15

Published: 2025-08-18

Nürnberg

I am interested

The University of Technology Nuremberg (UTN), founded in 2021, is a living laboratory for the university of the future – adapted to the age of artificial intelligence and to constant technological, economic, and social change. Aiming to become a leading international institution with a focus on artificial intelligence, UTN is equally committed to excellence in research, teaching, and transfer. Its lean governance structure supports an agile and efficient implementation of its vision. Its sustainable, 37-hectare and partly residential campus will form the heart of a new district in Nuremberg, not far from the historic old town. On its campus, around 6,000 students will learn from and work with around 200 professors and numerous academic and administrative staff. The academic organization of UTN is based on Departments as central structural units. The Departments of Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence and of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences are already established. Three further Departments are in development: Biological Engineering, Mechatronic Engineering, and Natural Sciences. Departments at UTN are characterized by flat hierarchies and offer exciting opportunities for challenging and rewarding career paths. UTN attaches great importance to interdisciplinary cooperation, such as interdisciplinary research on themes for which research outputs can bring about major benefits to our society and its economy. Most degree programs at UTN are offered in English. German and English are the languages of work in administration, teaching, and research, while the official and legal language is German. Digital technologies, AI, and innovative applications are used in a targeted manner to improve university life and work experience for everyone. UTN is characterized by an open and inclusive culture where everyone feels welcome. Diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences of staff, students, and stakeholders help to achieve excellence and develop talent. The Nuremberg Metropolitan Region is one of the most innovative regions in the EU. It impresses with affordable living costs, a high quality of life, and an urban culture close to nature. It also offers an excellent regional transport network and optimal connections to European travel routes and international transport hubs in Germany.

The University of Technology Nuremberg is looking to fill, at the earliest possible date, a position as a

Professor (m/f/d) (W2 with tenure track to W3) of Human-Centered Robotics

at the Department of Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence (CSAI).

Your tasks:

You represent the field of Human-Centered Robotics in research and teaching. You will play a key role in establishing the first departmental focus on robotics and artificial intelligence, working together with excellent international researchers from the fields of robotics, machine learning, data science, natural language processing, and computer vision, among others. The interdisciplinary exchange with humanities, social, and natural scientists in the Department of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences is another goal. Close cooperation with the Department of Mechatronic Engineering, which is to be established in the coming years, is expected.

Your profile:

This position is particularly intended for early-career researchers who show great potential for scientific development.

You have excellent scientific qualifications in the field of Human-Centered Robotics. Your research focuses on the development of innovative methods for Human-Centered Robotics, preferably but not exclusively in at least one of the following areas: Motor Skill Learning and Control, Prosthetics, Movement Augmentation, Social Robotics, Robot Companions, Human-Robot Collaboration, Human-Aware Perception and Navigation, Human Motion Analysis and Modeling, Wearable Robots, etc.

You can demonstrate your excellence in this field through outstanding, thematically relevant publications in leading international conferences and journals, and are open to interdisciplinary research. You should be able to demonstrate the relevance of your research to practical applications and your willingness to contribute to the Department's focus on “Robotics and AI”.

Initial experience in scientific leadership roles and/or involvement in scientific committees or networks is an advantage.

Teaching experience, ideally in interdisciplinary contexts, is desired. We expect your participation in all teaching activities at the Department, including study course planning and engagement in the development of innovative digital teaching and learning concepts, as well as cooperation within and across departments.

The legal hiring criteria according to Article 57 Paragraph 1 and Article 60 Paragraph 3 BayHIG apply. Accordingly, the call for applications is aimed at people with a university degree and pedagogical aptitude who have proven their special aptitude for academic work, usually through a doctorate, and who can also demonstrate additional academic achievements.

Our offer

The position is a fixed-term (six-year) professorship (W2). At the end of this fixed-term period, in case of a positive tenure evaluation, the position will be converted to a permanent professorship (W3). The tenure-track statutes of UTN (from April 20, 2023) apply.

The University of Technology Nuremberg is rethinking the university on all levels. We offer a motivated and excellent international team in which you can contribute with all your ideas and competencies. You will be able to experience and develop new, interdisciplinary forms of research collaboration as well as teaching and learning, and help us shape them.

We will make sure that you are able to fully focus on your work with our modern, service-oriented administrative units. We see diversity as an asset. The University of Technology Nuremberg is a place that offers knowledge and equal opportunities to people regardless of gender, age, sexual orientation, ideology, religion, origin, or disability. The position is suitable to be filled by severely disabled persons. Severely disabled applicants will be given preference if their suitability, qualification, and professional performance are otherwise essentially equal. We see family-friendliness as the basis for achieving equal opportunities for men and women in science. Therefore, we offer flexible ways of working, family-friendly times for events and meetings, as well as dual-career options. The University of Technology Nuremberg aims at increasing the proportion of women in research and teaching and therefore strongly encourages women to apply.

Interested?

Please refer to the reference number PF-2025-04 in your application. Please apply by 15.09.2025 in English and with all relevant application documents (letter of motivation, CV including externally funded projects and awards, list of publications, research statement, teaching statement, high school and relevant university diplomas (e.g., degree certificates, doctoral certificate (if applicable), etc.) exclusively via our application portal.

Please observe our guidelines for the preparation of the teaching statement, which can be found under the following links:

Questions?

If you have any administrative questions, please contact the Appointments Team, appointments@utn.de.
If you have questions regarding the profile of the position, contact the Founding Chair of the Department of Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence, Prof. Dr. Wolfram Burgard, wolfram.burgard@utn.de.

You can find more information on our data privacy policy at https://www.utn.de/en/privacy/.

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