PhD Position: Gravitational-Wave Astronomy and Massive Stellar Binary Evolution

Radboud University; Netherlands; On-site; EUR 60.000 - 80.000; Full time

Job summary

A leading research university in the Netherlands is seeking a PhD candidate in astrophysics to study the evolution of massive binary stars and their relation to gravitational-wave sources. The position combines research with teaching responsibilities and offers competitive salary and benefits, including additional vacation days and dual career coaching. Applicants should have a Master’s degree in a relevant field and strong communication skills.

Benefits

8% holiday allowance

8.3% end-of-year bonus

Dual Career Coaching

Flexible working hours

Additional days off

Training and development schemes

Qualifications

• Hold a Master’s degree in astronomy/physics or related field or expect to obtain it.
• Communicate openly and take initiative.
• Work independently and in a team.

Responsibilities

• Conduct research on the evolution of massive binary stars.
• Run simulations on high-performance computing clusters.
• Assist in teaching duties covering about 10 percent of the work time.

Skills

Curiosity and enthusiasm

Critical thinking

Teamwork

Excellent communication skills in English

Education

Master’s degree in astronomy/physics or related field

Job description

Overview

Organisation/Company: Radboud University

Research Field: Astronomy » Astrophysics

Researcher Profile: First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country: Netherlands

Application Deadline: 31 Oct 2025 - 22:59 (UTC)

Type of Contract: Temporary

Hours Per Week: 38.0

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

Join a pioneering PhD project exploring how massive stars evolve into gravitational-wave sources. Combine stellar physics, simulations and cutting-edge data to uncover the origins of black holes and neutron stars, linking theory with the latest discoveries in this rapidly growing field.

It has been just over a decade since the first detection of gravitational waves, marking the birth of a new field in astronomy. Since then, the number of detections has grown rapidly: from one, to a few, to hundreds, revealing entire populations of gravitational-wave sources. These signals are produced by black holes and neutron stars, the compact remnants of massive stars.

Many questions on how these populations form remain. To solve this puzzle, we must understand how massive stars are born, interact in binary systems, and how they end their lives as black holes or neutron stars. This will be the topic of this PhD thesis.

As a PhD candidate, you will conduct fundamental research on the evolution of massive binary stars, with a special focus on the systems that give rise to gravitational-wave sources.

This theoretical project will be at the intersection of stellar physics, computational astronomy and an unprecedented amount of data driven by observation. You will learn to run simulations on high-performance computing clusters, ranging from broad parameter studies with rapid binary-population synthesis codes to detailed stellar evolution calculations with 1D stellar evolution codes. The models you develop will be directly linked to new and upcoming observations, including the just-released 4th gravitational-wave observations (O4, released in August 2025) and the Gaia DR4 dataset (expected mid-2026).

Your duties as a teaching assistant cover about 10 percent of your work time, spread over the course of the appointment.

Would you like to learn more about what it’s like to pursue a PhD at Radboud University? Visit the page about working as a PhD candidate.

Qualifications

• You hold a Master’s degree in astronomy/physics or a related field, or you expect to obtain your Master’s degree around the starting date of the appointment.
• You bring curiosity and enthusiasm, enjoy thinking critically, communicate openly, and take initiative.
• You are able to work in a team as well as independently.
• You have excellent writing and verbal communication skills in English.

Additional Information

• We will give you a temporary employment contract (1.0 FTE) of 1.5 years, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, your contract will be extended by 2.5 years (4-year contract).
• You will receive a starting salary of €3,059 gross per month based on a 38-hour working week, which will increase to €3,881 in the fourth year (salary scale P).
• You will receive an 8% holiday allowance and an 8,3% end-of-year bonus. We offer Dual Career Coaching. The Dual Career Coaching assists your partner via support, tools, and resources to improve their chances of independently finding employment in the Netherlands.
• You will receive extra days off. With full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days of annual leave instead of the statutory 20.

Additional employment conditions
Work and science require good employment practices. This is reflected in Radboud University's primary and secondary employment conditions. You can make arrangements for the best possible work-life balance with flexible working hours, various leave arrangements and working from home. You are also able to compose part of your employment conditions yourself, for example, exchange income for extra leave days and receive a reimbursement for your sports subscription. And of course, we offer a good pension plan. You are given plenty of room and responsibility to develop your talents and realise your ambitions. Therefore, we provide various training and development schemes.

Additional comments

You can apply only via the button below. Address your letter of application to Dr. Lieke van Son. Please include your CV, a motivation letter explaining your interest and fit for this research, a transcript of grades from your MSc program and the names and email addresses of at least two referees who will provide letters of recommendation. We look forward to receiving your application.

The first interviews will take place in the first week of December. You will preferably start your employment on January 2026 (open to discussion).

We can imagine you're curious about our application procedure. It describes what you can expect during the application procedure and how we handle your personal data and internal and external candidates.