How can we infer what people know, believe or misunderstand from dialogue? We combine LLM reasoning and neuro-symbolic NLP to build interpretable user models.

Understanding language involves more than producing fluent text. Connecting NLP with philosophy and law opens up new questions about meaning and reasoning.

• Conduct research on user modeling and coordinate selected research activities within CREST-AI together with Prof. Christina Niklaus.
• Combine LLM reasoning with neuro-symbolic NLP to build interpretable models of users’ beliefs, uncertainty and misconceptions from dialogue.
• Develop human-centered evaluation methods for personalized AI to assess how people understand and use complex information.
• Contribute your own research ideas to CREST-AI, publish at leading NLP and AI venues, and present at international conferences.
• Supervise master’s and bachelor’s theses and student projects.
• Support research coordination and academic service.

• PhD in computer science, computational linguistics or a related field, completed by the start date.
• Research experience in NLP, particularly LLM reasoning, semantic representation or user modeling.
• Strong Python and machine learning skills; experience with knowledge graphs or human–AI interaction is a plus.
• A publication record demonstrating original contributions to NLP, AI or a related field, appropriate to your career stage.
• Ability to work independently, take initiative and collaborate effectively within a research team.
• Enthusiasm for interdisciplinary collaboration, particularly with researchers in philosophy and law; no prior expertise in these fields is required.
• Excellent written and spoken English.

The SNSF-funded CREST-AI project

Help shape a new generation of language AI that adapts to people's understanding. CREST-AI brings together NLP, philosophy and law to explore how AI can help people understand, question and reason about complex information, using legal language as a challenging testbed. You will join the research team led by Prof. Christina Niklaus at the University of St.Gallen and develop interpretable user models that guide adaptive explanations.

What we offer

You will work closely with Prof. Christina Niklaus and her team, with room to contribute your own ideas within the project’s research agenda and strengthen your research profile. A competitive salary, funded conference participation and access to project-funded compute time support your work. You will collaborate with researchers at St.Gallen and the University of Zurich, alongside a fellow postdoc developing complementary methods for conversational AI.

Application

Please apply through the HSG online application portal, submitting a single PDF containing: (1) a cover letter, (2) your CV with publication list, (3) one representative publication or preprint, (4) contact details of two referees, and (5) your PhD certificate or confirmation of expected completion.

Review of applications will begin on 23 November 2026 and continue until the position is filled.