W3 Professorship for Functional and 3D Modeling of Plants
Published on: 24.11.2025
The University of Bonn is an international research university with a wide education and research profile. With a 200-year history, approximately 31,500 students, more than 6,000 staff, and an excellent reputation at home and abroad, the University of Bonn is one of the most important universities in Germany and is recognized as a University of Excellence.
The Faculty of Agricultural, Nutritional and Engineering Sciences at the University of Bonn, Germany, invites applications for a full
W3 Professorship for Functional and 3D Modeling of Plants
to be filled at the earliest possible date.
Faculty of Agricultural, Nutritional and Engineering SciencesMathematical Institute
Deadline:
31 January 2026
Starting date:
earliest possible date
The professorship will strengthen the Cluster of Excellence PhenoRob (www.phenorob.de) with a focus on developing models of individual plants explicitly linking their 3D geometry, processes, and functions. The candidate’s research should exploit phenotypic traits in response to environmental variables and management factors.
We seek an individual who has achieved international recognition in simulation modeling of whole plants at crop level. A central element is the plant’s 3D geometry, and models should predict plant growth, development, and yield as well as key physiological relationships across the whole plant. These relationships may include energy metabolism, plant water dynamics, growth dynamics as well as nutrient uptake, transport, and allocation from sub-organ to plant scale. The models should include responses and possible adaptation mechanisms of plants and crops to abiotic stresses such as drought and temperature stress or nutrient deficiencies. The research should complement and link to the existing modeling competencies of the Cluster of Excellence toward comprehensive multiscale crop models and should include plant-plant interactions that appear in conventional crops, crop mixtures, and new cropping systems.
Demonstrated success in acquiring relevant extramural funding is required. The coordination of collaborative research projects and networks is expected for the future.
Teaching activities are expected in agricultural study programs of the Faculty of Agricultural, Nutritional and Engineering Sciences that relate to modeling and computer simulations of plants.
The recruitment requirements are based on § 36 Hochschulgesetz NRW.
Diversity and equal opportunity
The University of Bonn is committed to diversity and equal opportunity. It is certified as a family-friendly university. It aims to increase the proportion of women in areas where women are under-represented and to promote their careers in particular. It therefore strongly encourages women with relevant qualifications to apply. Applications will be handled in accordance with the Landesgleichstellungsgesetz (State Equality Act). Applications from suitable individuals with a certified serious disability and from those of equal status are particularly welcome.
