Research Scientist Intern (MSc Student Final Year): Human–Robot Interaction (m/f/d)

We are looking for a Master’s student to conduct their thesis project within our prototyping and applied systems team, contributing to applied research in Human–Robot Interaction, with a strong emphasis on interactive systems, prototyping, and empirical evaluation.

In this role, you will work closely with researchers and engineers to explore how humans interact with semi-autonomous systems, and how control, feedback, and sensing can be designed to enable safe, effective, and intuitive operation. The focus is on applied neuroadaptive scenarios: building real prototypes, running experiments, and evaluating behavior in realistic settings.

This position is ideal for someone interested in HRI/HCI as a systems-driven discipline, spanning interaction design, implementation, experimentation, and analysis.

The intention is to align the role with a Master’s thesis, depending on topic fit and supervision availability.

What you will do

• Design, build, and iterate on a prototype for human-in-the-loop and shared-control scenarios

• Work with engineers to develop control interfaces, sensing pipelines, and experimental infrastructure

• Plan and conduct a user study and system evaluation

• Analyze experimental data and help translate results into a report, demo, and research artifact

• Collaborate with researchers and engineers across rapid prototyping and iteration cycles

What we offer

• Hands-on experience across the full arc of applied research

• Close collaboration with experienced BCI researchers

• A pragmatic, low-hierarchy environment with room to take ownership

• Flexible scheduling around exams and coursework

• Currently enrolled in a Master’s program in Computer Science, Robotics, Cognitive Science or a related technical field

• Solid understanding of, or strong interest in, state-of-the-art robotic control and manipulation policies, and motivation to advance them through applied, efficient system work

• Programming skills (e.g. Python, RoS, or similar) and experience working with complex software systems

• Comfortable working with open-ended research problems and incomplete specifications

• Availability for 20 hours/week during the employment period (April/May–September/October 2026)

Nice to have

• Hands-on experience with robotic systems or control software through coursework, lab projects, or prior work

• Prior experience with user studies, experimental design, or statistical analysis

• Familiarity with signal processing, ML, or data science workflows

• Previous contributions to research projects or publications

• Interest in or exposure to brain-computer interface (BCI) technology