The Department of Forest Economics and Sustainable Land-use Planning is recruiting a
PhD student (f/m/d)
to work on the DFG-funded Research Unit FOR5903 “Sustainable Rurbanity - Resources, Society, and Regulatory Systems”.
The position is to be filled by October 1, 2025 and will be funded until for four years The salary is based on the German public service grade TVL-E13 (65% of a regular working week, corresponding to 25,87 hours per week).
FOR5903 is a DFG Research unit (FOR) with a wide interdisciplinary and international scope, covering diverse dimensions of global urbanisation processes under the novel framework of “Sustainable Rurbanity”. In the context of this project, a doctoral position is available in subproject A02 addressing “Synergies and trade-offs of soil functions in rurban spaces”. Project A02 addresses the role of tree-based land-use diversification in enhancing or mitigating trade-offs between soil functions in the rurban social-ecological systems of Morocco. The position is based in Göttingen, but field work will be done in Morocco.
What we offer
We offer an interdisciplinary Ph.D. opportunity at the interface of forest and agricultural economics, social-ecological modeling, and soil science.
An inspiring research environment within an international and interdisciplinary research consortium partnered with organizations in Morocco, India, and Ghana.
This Ph.D. position focuses on developing a risk-sensitive bioeconomic and multi-criteria farm and landscape model, which incorporates the effects of tree-based systems and land-use diversification on soil functions. It shall contribute to a better understanding of the role of tree-based systems on soil functions and farm resilience in rural-urban transformation processes.
The specific work packages will involve farm surveys using participatory research methods in Morocco, combined with farm-level simulation-optimization approaches towards land-use allocation for trade-off analysis.
The candidate will be carrying out interdisciplinary research and will be in charge of coordinating and communicating methods and results within the Research Unit and our international partners.
Your profile
Master’s degree in the field of Forest or Agricultural Sciences or Economics (rated with at least a “good” result)
In-depth knowledge of forest and/or agricultural economics and/or first experiences in social-ecological modeling
First experiences with “R” and/or another current programming language for data science
First experiences with socio-economic fieldwork, surveys, participatory research methods, and data analyses is a plus
Willingness to carry out fieldwork in Morocco for several weeks each year
High personal commitment to working in an international and intercultural environment in Germany and Morocco
Spoken and written proficiency in English is a prerequisite
The University of Göttingen is an equal opportunity employer and places particular emphasis on fostering career opportunities for women. Qualified women are therefore strongly encouraged to apply as they are underrepresented in the field. The university has committed itself to being a family-friendly institution and supports its employees in balancing work and family life. The university is particularly committed to the professional participation of severely disabled employees and therefore welcomes applications from severely disabled persons. In the case of equal qualifications, preference is given to applications from people with severe disabilities. A disability or equality is to be included in the application in order to protect the interests. The job is generally suitable for part-time work.
Please send your application (a letter of motivation with the usual documents in English or German) in electronic form as one compiled pdf document to felap@uni-goettingen.de by 31.07.2025. For further information refer to the project website www.uni-kassel.de/go/for-5903
For further inquiries, please contact Prof. Dr. Carola Paul (phone: 0551 39-26762, carola.paul@uni-goettingen.de )
With the submission of your application, you accept the processing of your applicant data in accordance with the data-protection law. Further information on the applicable law and data usage is provided here: www.uni-goettingen.de/hinweisdsgvo.
