Fully Funded 4-Year PhD Position In Developmental Language Modelling

Job description

Transformer language models can acquire remarkable linguistic abilities, but do so under conditions radically unlike those of human learners, with architectural properties that diverge from how humans process and acquire language. This PhD project aims to close that gap, by developing language model architectures that incorporate cognitively motivated constraints, and using these models as controlled computational testbeds for theories of language acquisition. The work combines neural network modelling and architectural innovation with targeted behavioural evaluation (syntactic generalization, reading time prediction) and draws on the methods of developmental psycholinguistics to study how language knowledge emerges under human-like constraints; it sits at the intersection of computational linguistics, cognitive science, and machine learning. The research team will consist of the PhD candidate together with dr. Micha Heilbron and prof. Caroline Rowland. The successful candidate may also be expected to co-supervise PhD and master students working on related projects, and will be co-affiliated with the Language Development Department.

Requirements

What we expect from you:

Essential

• A Master's degree – or equivalent – in a relevant discipline (e.g., computational linguistics, AI, cognitive science, computer science, formal linguistics). Candidates expecting to complete their degree by summer 2026 are welcome to apply.
• Demonstrable experience training neural language models, with working knowledge of transformer models and alternative language model architectures.
• Strong programming skills in Python; proficiency with PyTorch or equivalent ML frameworks.
• Comfort with quantitative methods: probability, statistics, and linear algebra.
• Excellent written and spoken English and the ability to work independently within an interdisciplinary team.
   

Desirable (traits that would give you an advantage)

• Experience with training small language models, developmentally plausible language modelling.
• Formal training in linguistics or a closely related field—including grounding in syntax, morphology, or formal language theory—and genuine interest in the computational study of grammar and language acquisition.
• Experience with or keen interest in developmental psychology, language acquisition, and/or the cognitive science of language acquisition.
• Existing peer-reviewed publications or preprints in a related area.
• An explicit interest in, and commitment to, Open Science.

What we offer you

• Intended starting date is summer 2026. A later start date is negotiable.
• Full time PhD position (39 hours per week), fully funded for 4 years.
• Starting gross salary is approx. €3.185,72 per month (based on full-time employment, as
  determined according to the German TVöD (Tarifvertrag für den öffentlichen Dienst).
• 30 holidays per year, based on full-time employment; in addition, we honour both Dutch
  and German public holidays.
• Enrolment in a personal pension scheme to which both employer and employee pay a
  monthly contribution.
• Access to state-of-the art research and training facilities and a generous conference and
  travel budget.
• Educational training programme provided by the International Max Planck Research
  School for Language Sciences.
• Doctoral degree conferred by Radboud University, our partner university.

Application procedure

The deadline for applications is Friday, April 3rd at 5 PM (CEST). 
*****DEADLINE HAS PASSED*****
For questions and informal enquiries, contact dr. Micha Heilbron (micha.heilbron [at] mpi.nl). 

Applications should be in .pdf format and include

1. One-page statement describing your background, what draws you to this position, and how you would approach the research. Please include at least one specific question, direction, or methodological approach you'd be excited to pursue. This is meant to give us a sense of your thinking and research taste, not a comprehensive or binding proposal. (You may use the full page for content – no letter formatting needed.)
2. Brief summary (250 words) of your MSc/MA dissertation.
3. CV including education, relevant work experience, and publications if applicable.
4. Transcript or grade list for MSc education.
5. Names and contact details of two referees (contacted only if invited to interview).
6. Your availability for an (online) interview between May 4th and May 8th (May 5th excluded).

The employer

About our institute

The Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics is a world-leading research institute devoted to interdisciplinary studies of the science of language and communication, including departments on genetics, psychology, development, neurobiology and multimodality of these fundamental human abilities.
We investigate how children and adults acquire their language(s), how speaking and listening happen in real time, how the brain processes language, how the human genome contributes to building a language-ready brain, how multiple modalities (as in speech, gesture and sign) shape language and its use in diverse languages and how language is related to cognition and culture, and shaped by evolution.
We are part of the Max Planck Society, an independent non-governmental association of German-funded research institutes dedicated to fundamental research in the natural sciences, life sciences, social sciences, and the humanities.

The Max Planck Society is an equal opportunities employer. We recognise the positive value of diversity and inclusion, promote equity and challenge discrimination. We aim to provide a working environment with room for differences, where everyone feels a sense of belonging. Therefore, we welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates.

Our institute is situated on the campus of the Radboud University and has close collaborative links with the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour and the Centre for Language Studies at Radboud University. We also work closely with other child development researchers as part of the Baby & Child Research Center.
Staff and students at the MPI have access to state-of-the art research and training facilities.
 

About the Language and Predictive Computation (LPC) group

How do we understand language? What does the brain actually do when we read or hear a sentence? And how is it that Large Language Models — trained on nothing but predicting the next word — have not only mastered language, but also turned out to be the most accurate models of human brain responses to language?

In the LPC Group, we use the tools of modern AI to model language in the human mind and brain. We also run the logic in reverse: drawing on what psychology and neuroscience teach us about human language processing, we build language models constrained by the human cognitive architecture.

Ultimately, we aim to understand how the human brain learns and represents language, and to build more cognitively faithful models of human language processing. 
 

About our graduate school

The International Max Planck Research School for Language Sciences is a joint initiative
of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics and two research institutes based at
Radboud University - the Centre for Language Studies and the Donders Institute for
Brain, Cognition and Behaviour. The graduate school serves to bring together
outstanding doctoral students from diverse disciplines in the language sciences on
campus, and offer them high-quality training in an environment that both broadens their
interdisciplinary experience and prepares them for fulfilling careers in the language
sciences. 

Our education and training program involves both core and individually chosen
coursework to complement the PhD research, and training in soft skills such as writing
and presentation. Learn more here.