Research Assistant (f/m/d) / PhD Candidate – Software Architectures for Cyber-physical Systems

Weitere Informationen

The successful candidate will be employed under a regular employment contract.
The position is to be filled at the earliest possible date and offered for a fixed term of 3 years.
The fixed-term employment is possible as it constitutes one of the fixed-term options of the Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz (German Act on Fixed-term Scientific Contracts).
This is a full-time position.
The successful candidate has the opportunity to pursue a doctoral degree in this position.
The salary is based on the German public service salary scale (TV-L).
The position corresponds to a pay grade of EG 13 TV-L.

Unser Profil

The Software Architecture Research has been newly founded at the Faculty of Computer Science at RWTH Aachen University in April 2026. We are a group with close links to the Chair of Software Engineering at RWTH, investigating modern software architectures for different application domains with a special focus on cyber-physical systems. Our research combines classical software engineering and architecture concepts with modern, practical approaches related to architecture decision making and knowledge management, microservices architectures, business processes, information systems, domain-driven design, DevOps, and generative AI/LLM assistance.

We develop practical applications and prototypes of software architectures in the fields of cyber-physical systems and Internet of Things including sensors, different forms of actuators, robots and manufacturing/production stations. You will work on designing and developing software architectures and a laboratory infrastructure in these fields with a special focus software-intensive cyber-physical systems and systems of systems. Opportunities for pursuing a PhD in this field are available.

Ihr Profil

• Education: University degree (Master’s or equivalent) in Computer Science
• Methodological/conceptual Knowledge: Strong understanding and background in software architecture and software engineering disciplines; experience in developing distributed systems/information systems/embedded systems
• Technical Skills: Proficient in object-oriented programming languages (e.g., Java, C#, Python). Experienced in software-related modeling techniques/formalisms (UML, SysML, BPMN). Experienced with modern software development frameworks (e.g., Spring), tools (e.g., IntelliJ, Docker, Git), software engineering processes, and AI-assisted coding tools. Passion for tinkering with hardware.
• Soft skills: very good communication skills (speaking and writing) in English, ability to work in teams, willingness to take over teaching duties.

Ihre Aufgaben

You will be responsible for researching and developing modern software architectures for cyber-physical systems. This includes researching the state-of-the-art, developing novel concepts and architectures, implementing prototypes, conducting experiments, and preparing and presenting research articles to purse the PhD.

Further responsibilities include:

• Support the research group in its initial setup phase,
• Assistance with developing and running a laboratory infrastructure with robots, sensors, and production stations (3D printers) for research and teaching.
• Taking over mandatory teaching duties at the Bachelor and Master level. Courses will cover software engineering, software architecture, and software project management aspects. The position includes mandatory teaching duties of 4 semester week hours per semester.
• Support the supervision of student assistants.

Über uns

RWTH is proud to be certified as a family-friendly university. As part of our Campus Health initiative, RWTH offers a wide range of health, counseling, and prevention services, including university sports. Our staff also benefit from a comprehensive continuing education program and the option to purchase a job ticket for convenient commuting.

RWTH is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome and encourage applications from all qualified candidates and make employment decisions without regard to national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability or age. RWTH is especially committed to supporting the advancement of women in academia. When women are underrepresented in a university unit, preferential consideration will be given to female applicants among candidates of equal merit and professional standing, unless compelling reasons favor another individual.

In keeping with RWTH’s commitment to equality of opportunity, we ask that you do not include a photo with your application.

Please refer to https://www.rwth-aachen.de/applicant-privacy-policy for information about how we collect and process applicant data in accordance with Articles 13 and 14 of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Besoldung / Entgelt

EG 13 TV-L