Fully-funded PhD position in field-based human and/or ape locomotor biomechanics

Submitted: 03/04/2026
Submitted By: Tracy Kivell and Charlotte King
Department: Human Origins
Institution: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Job type: Full time
Apply by: 04/30/2026
Application Email:
Application URL: https://www.eva.mpg.de/human-origins/positions-available/

The PhD student will work within a new Minerva Fast Track Research Group led by Dr. Charlotte King focused on human and ape locomotor biomechanics and ecomorphology. We are offering a PhD position to investigate the locomotor biomechanics of great apes, including humans, through experimental approaches. This project provides the opportunity to contribute to our understanding human origins by examining the functional morphology of living apes as models to reconstruct locomotor evolution in our extinct hominin relatives. The research will integrate field-based data collection with computational and quantitative analyses.

We seek a candidate with a strong interest in human origins and competency in computational approaches to data processing and analysis. Candidates with prior fieldwork experience with primates or other mammals will be prioritized. Applicants must have a Master's degree (including M.Sc. thesis) in biological anthropology, zoology, biomechanics, ecology and evolution, biology, ethology, or a related topic.