Postdoctoral Researcher in Reinforcement Learning for Epidemic Mitigation Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) in Egypt

Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) is advertising a postdoctoral researcher position in reinforcement learning for epidemic mitigation within the Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences, Department of Computer Science, and the Federated labs AI and Robotics research group. The role is based at VUB’s Brussels Humanities, Sciences & Engineering Campus (Elsene) in Brussels, Belgium.

The project sits at the interface of machine learning, computational epidemiology, and public health decision-making. The successful applicant will develop and evaluate learning-based methods to control infectious disease spread under realistic epidemiological, operational, and societal constraints. The research emphasis is on creating new reinforcement learning algorithms and applying them to epidemic preparedness and response, with attention to multi-objective, hierarchical, and explainable reinforcement learning, as well as uncertainty-aware decision-making.

The position involves working with epidemic simulation models, including spatial and individual-based models, and formulating control problems as sequential decision-making tasks. Duties include developing and implementing reinforcement learning approaches for epidemic mitigation, contributing to scientific publications, software, and reproducible research workflows, and presenting results at meetings, conferences, and workshops.

Applicants should hold a PhD in machine learning, artificial intelligence, computer science, applied mathematics, or a related field. Desired experience includes reinforcement learning or closely related methods, strong programming skills in Python (with JAX as a plus), and simulation-based or quantitative research experience. English communication skills are required. Non-EEA nationals must meet VUB permit and residence requirements.

The appointment is a 12-month full-time contract (1 FTE), extendable subject to a positive evaluation of the research activities. The planned starting date is 2026-10-01. The post includes a salary linked to government scales and VUB employment benefits, including homeworking options, telework allowance, holiday arrangements, insurance, commuting support, and access to campus facilities.

To apply, submit your CV, motivation letter, reference contacts, up to three representative publications or preprints, and optionally links to code repositories or software projects through the VUB jobs portal by 2026-09-30. Questions about the position can be directed to Pieter Libin at pieter.libin@vub.be.