PhD Decision Support for Agricultural Water Management

In a nutshell

The summer of 2026 has demonstrated the vital importance of water resources for agriculture in Switzerland and the conflicts that can arise over their use. As part of this PhD project, you will have the opportunity to work with us and our project partners to make a significant contribution to making agricultural water management in Switzerland more sustainable and future-oriented. The PhD project is embedded in the “Integrated Water Management Thurgau” resource project.

This is how you can contribute

• Development of model-based decision-support tools for different target groups
• Agrohydrological modeling at both regional and field scale
• Effective communication and publication of project content and results to different target audiences
• Co-creation and communication with project partners and stakeholders

Additional information

The 'Water Protection and Substance Flows' Research Group conducts research into nutrient management, nutrient flows and nutrient dynamics in agricultural ecosystems and the environment, and links topical knowledge with advice for practitioners and policy-makers. The associated 'Earthwatch' team develops spatial, non-destructive methods in the context of remote sensing to support these and other future Agroscope tasks.

Good food, healthy environment

Agroscope is the Swiss federal centre of excellence for research in the agriculture and food sector. Its researchers work at a number of sites in Switzerland. Headquartered in Bern-Liebefeld (as of 2026: Posieux), Agroscope is attached to the Swiss Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research EAER.

This makes you unique

• Master's degree (MSc) in Agricultural Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Geography, or a related field
• Experience with crop growth models, soil water balance models, hydrological models
• Excellent proficiency in scripting languages (Python, R)
• Excellent analytical and communication skills
• Independent, goal-oriented, and solution-focused approach to work
• Knowledge of two official Swiss languages and English