Student Research Assistants | Center for Humans and Machines

The Center for Humans and Machines at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin seeks applicants as Student Research Assistants for the Study of Human-Machine Interactions, 15-20 hours/week.

The Center for Humans and Machines (CHM) at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin conducts interdisciplinary science to understand, anticipate, and shape major disruptions from digital media and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the way we think, learn, work, play, cooperate, and govern. Our goal is to understand how machines are shaping human society today and how they may continue to shape it in the future. The Center is comprised of an interdisciplinary, international, and diverse group of scholars, and a science support team.

To complement this team, we are looking for a motivated Student Research Assistant who is comfortable working at the intersection of computer science and social sciences. We are looking for three distinct Student Research Assistant profiles:

Profile ‘AI Behaviourist’: Apply the latest AI technologies for the study of human-AI interaction and implement related experiments using Qualtrics or oTree. You have a good command of AI technologies (e.g., Large Language Models, text-to-image models), Python scripting for data analysis, and, ideally, experience with designing and implementing human behaviour experiments. 

Profile ‘Machine Learning Specialist’: Train, fine-tune, evaluate, and integrate generative machine learning models for studying human-AI interaction. You are experienced with deep learning libraries like PyTorch and Hugging Face, and you have a solid understanding of supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning techniques.

Profile ‘Experimental Interface Developer’: Design, develop, deploy, and maintain web-based experimental interfaces on human-AI interaction using a FastAPI, React, and MongoDB stack. You have experience with web development (HTML, JavaScript) and API design (RESTful). 

Formal requirements (for all profiles):

• Currently enrolled in a program at a German university related to experimental social science (e.g., psychology or economics), cognitive science, computer science, physics, or other relevant fields

• Weekly in-person attendance at the institute in Berlin

• Availability of at least 15 hours weekly

What we offer

• Working on cutting-edge scientific projects related to human-AI interaction

• Close collaboration with CHM researchers

• Comprehensive onboarding and time to learn new skills in an agile environment

• Possibility to contribute and realize your own ideas

• The duration of the position is for at least 6 months and is coupled with your proof of enrollment and can be extended

• Salary: 14,33€ / hour (for master's students) and 12,41€ / hour (for Bachelor's students)

The Max Planck Society strives for gender and diversity equality. We welcome applications from all backgrounds.
The Max Planck Society is committed to increasing the number of individuals with disabilities in its workforce and therefore encourages applications from such qualified individuals.

Please apply, including a CV without a photo and your latest transcript, via our career site.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Applicants can expect to hear from the hiring team within two weeks.