Doctoral Fellowship in Landscape and Urban Studies

ETH Zurich

100%, Zurich, fixed-term

The Institute of Landscape and Urban Studies (LUS) at the ETH Zurich Department of Architecture invites applications for two doctoral fellowship positions. The fellowship will start on 1 October 2026, with a 100% workload, based in Zurich, and is fixed-term for three and a half years.

Working across sociocultural, political-economic, and theoretical contexts, the LUS Doctoral Program fosters critical discourse and encourages independent, innovative, and interdisciplinary approaches to the urgent spatial, socio-ecological, and political challenges.

Participating Chairs at the LUS

• Chair of History and Theory of Urban Design, Prof. Dr. Tom Avermaete
• Chair of Architecture and Housing, Prof. Maria Conen
• Chair of Landscape Architecture, Prof. Dr. Teresa Galí-Izard
• Chair of Architecture and Urban Design, Prof. Hubert Klumpner
• Chair of Architecture and Urban Transformation, Prof. Freek Persyn
• Chair of Architecture and Territorial Planning, Prof. Milica Topalovic
• Chair of Landscape Architecture, Prof. Martina Voser

Project background

The LUS Institute investigates landscapes, territories, and settlements—and the human and more-than-human relations that shape them—across scales and geographies, from Switzerland and Europe to diverse contexts throughout the so-called Global North and Global South.

Its research examines the spatial, environmental, political, (geo)historical, and more-than-human relations through which contemporary environments are produced, contested, and continually reshaped. Core areas of inquiry include territorial and urban transformation; post-industrial and resource-affected territories; and the global–local entanglements that drive ongoing urbanisation processes. These interests are complemented by research into more-than-human and multispecies spatialities, foregrounding ecological interdependencies within changing landscapes.

Research projects address topics such as designed ecologies, energy transitions, housing, agroecology, hydrology, biodiversity and ecosystem processes, regenerative systems, and adaptive territorial infrastructures. Additional areas of focus include more-than-human landscapes, Indigenous territorialities, and socio-ecological and socio-economic transitions, and climate adaptation.

The doctoral program adopts an inter- and transdisciplinary approach, integrating architecture, landscape architecture, urban and territorial design, planning, urban theory and history, as well as the social sciences. It welcomes a wide range of methodological approaches, spanning (geo)historical research into landscape and urban form, participatory and community-engaged methods, qualitative and ethnographic inquiry, as well as cartographic, spatial, and mapping techniques.

Job description

The LUS fellowship will start on 1 October 2026, with a 100% workload, based in Zurich, and is fixed-term for three and a half years.

• The doctoral program is conducted in English and currently has an enrolment of 15 participants. It encourages both individual research and collaborative engagement within the doctoral community, fostering a vibrant academic environment.
• It offers a variety of platforms for interaction and exchange, including the LUS methods seminar, institute-wide colloquia, workshops, and doctoral reviews.
• Embedded in the dynamic doctoral environment of the Department of Architecture (D-ARCH) at ETH Zurich, the LUS doctoral program maintains an active collaboration with the doctoral program at the Institute of History and Theory of Architecture (gta), ETH Zurich.

While it is advantageous for proposed research to align with the individual and/or collective research agendas of the participating chairs at the LUS Institute, candidates are also encouraged to apply with independent research topics that resonate with the Institute’s broader areas of expertise and competencies.

Profile

We are seeking individuals with a background in:

• Architecture, landscape architecture, urban and territorial design and planning, and the social sciences, who have strong research or design experience and can benefit from the inter- and transdisciplinary engagements offered by the Institute
• Provisional acceptance in the LUS Doctoral Programme is contingent upon successful completion—prior to registration—of a university master’s degree (equivalent to FHEQ Level 7) in architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, urban planning, social sciences, or related fields, in full accordance with ETH regulations
• Applicants should also demonstrate excellent research and writing skills

Workplace

Zurich (Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5, 8093 Zürich)

We offer

• The program provides funding for up to three and a half years. Successful candidates will be employed at 100% Pensum under the ETH Zurich doctoral student contract, with monthly salaries based on standard ETH Zurich rates.
• You are required to take up residency in Zurich during the period of the scholarship.

Curious? So are we.

Applications should be addressed directly to the Institute of Landscape and Urban Studies (LUS), rather than to individual professors.

We look forward to receiving your online application by 2 March 2026, 23:59 CET. Your application should include the following documents:

• Letter of Motivation (1 page).
• Outline for the Proposed Research Project (4 pages + addenda).
  • Research title
  • Abstract
  • State-of-the-art review
  • Clearly defined research questions
  • Aims and objectives
  • Anticipated formats for publication
  • Rationale for why LUS is an ideal host
• Curriculum Vitae (including publications, portfolio, and work samples, maximum 10 pages).
• Published Piece of Writing (if available, 1 text, maximum 15 pages).
• Names, Affiliations, and Email Addresses of 2 referees (your referees should not be part of LUS faculty).

The program exclusively accepts application documents submitted through the ETH online application portal.

Application Timeline

• 2 March 2026: Submission deadline (23:59 CET).
• April 2026: Notification to shortlisted candidates.
• Early May 2026: Interviews with shortlisted candidates.
• End of May 2026: Notification to successful applicant(s).
• 1 October 2026: Start of the program.

Further Information: contact the doctoral program coordinator, Nazlı Tümerdem, at tuemerdem@arch.ethz.ch.