The Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) is a member of the Helmholtz Association (HGF) and funded by federal and state government. AWI focuses on polar and marine research in a variety of disciplines such as biology, oceanography, geology, geochemistry and geophysics thus allowing multidisciplinary approaches to scientific goals.

PhD position in Investigating Offshore Groundwater Hydrology and Submarine Groundwater Discharge (f/x/m/d)

Background

Within the international JPI Oceans project AQUA-SHELF – A Proof-of-Concept Scientific Drilling Campaign for Offshore Freshened Groundwater Systems, we seek a highly motivated PhD candidate to investigate offshore freshened groundwater (OFG), submarine groundwater discharge (SGD), and their connection to coastal groundwater systems.

OFG represents an important but still poorly understood component of coastal groundwater systems. Key questions concern its origin and age, hydraulic connectivity with terrestrial aquifers, and its potential expression as groundwater discharge at the seafloor. AQUA-SHELF combines the first dedicated European offshore drilling campaign targeting OFG with geochemical, hydrogeological and geophysical investigations.

Well-characterised SGD sites in the Baltic Sea will serve as natural laboratories for developing and testing monitoring approaches using hydroacoustic mapping, environmental sensors and targeted sediment and pore-water sampling. The monitoring and detection approaches developed in the Baltic Sea will subsequently be applied and adapted to the northern Adriatic Sea, where AQUA-SHELF will conduct the first dedicated European offshore drilling campaign to investigate offshore freshened groundwater.

These scientific boreholes will provide direct access to offshore aquifers and enable the collection of groundwater, pore-water and sediment samples from different depths. A central component of the PhD will be the geochemical and isotopic characterisation of these samples to constrain groundwater origin and age, freshwater–seawater mixing, recharge conditions and residence times. The overall aim is to better understand whether offshore groundwater in the northern Adriatic represents a largely isolated palaeo-groundwater resource or remains dynamically connected to modern coastal groundwater systems.

The position will be based at the AWI Wadden Sea Station on Sylt and embedded in an interdisciplinary research environment covering coastal geology, marine environmental research and coastal processes.

The PhD project will be closely linked to the international AQUA-SHELF consortium and will involve collaboration particularly with Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) for groundwater geochemistry and isotope hydrology and Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (CAU) for marine geophysical investigations.

You will spend research periods at partner institutions and participate in joint marine field campaigns. The project therefore provides the opportunity to combine marine fieldwork, autonomous environmental monitoring, geochemistry and interdisciplinary data integration within one PhD project.

Your Tasks

Plan and participate in marine field campaigns in the Baltic Sea and the northern Adriatic Sea
Detect and characterise submarine groundwater discharge using hydroacoustic, geochemical and environmental observations
Deploy and analyse seabed monitoring systems measuring parameters such as electrical conductivity and temperature
Collect and analyse sediment, pore-water and groundwater samples
Investigate groundwater origin, age, freshwater–seawater mixing and potential recharge pathways using geochemical and isotopic data
Integrate hydroacoustic, environmental, geochemical and hydrogeological datasets to assess land–sea groundwater connectivity
Contribute to the scientific interpretation of samples and observations from the Adriatic offshore drilling campaign
Publish results in peer-reviewed journals and present them at national and international conferences

Your Profile

Master’s degree or equivalent in geosciences, hydrogeology, marine geology, environmental sciences, geochemistry, geophysics or a closely related discipline
Strong interest in interdisciplinary marine and groundwater research
Knowledge of hydrogeology, submarine groundwater discharge, coastal groundwater systems or groundwater geochemistry
Experience with fieldwork and/or geochemical or environmental datasets
Experience with one or more relevant methods, such as hydroacoustics, marine geophysics, environmental sensors, sediment or pore-water sampling, isotope or hydrochemical analyses
Experience with quantitative data analysis using R, Python, MATLAB or comparable software; GIS experience is advantageous
Very good command of English (approximately equivalent to CEFR level C1); knowledge of German is advantageous but not required
Willingness to participate in multi-day marine research cruises and international field campaigns

Further Information

Contact in day-to-day work: collaboration mainly with more than 5 people
Communication: almost equal share (internal/external) in the following ways

By telephone: occasionally (several times a month)
E-mail: frequently (daily or several times a week)
Video conferencing (e.g. Webex): frequently (daily or several times a week)
Personal contact in presence: frequently (daily or several times a week)

Movement around the workplace: regularly over longer distances (e.g. other buildings)
Business trips: frequent (weekly or several times a month)
Expeditions: occur

Please note that the general conditions listed serve as a guide and may vary depending on the specific area of application.

For further information on the specific position, please reach out to Dr Jasper Hoffmann ( jasper.hoffmann@awi.de ; +49 4651 956-4114).

If you have any general questions about the application process, our Recruiting team will be glad to support you – please contact Elisabeth Wildt ( bewerbungsmanagement@awi.de , +49 471 4831-2236).

In this overview you will find further contact persons for various matters.

This position is limited to 36 months, subject to funding approval. The salary will be paid in accordance with the Collective Agreement for the Public Service of the Federation (Tarifvertrag des öffentlichen Dienstes, TVöD Bund), up to salary level 13 (66 %) . Employment typically starts at experience levels 1 to 3. For more information on the current pay scale, please visit our careers page . The place of employment will be Sylt.

All doctoral candidates will be members of AWI's postgraduate program POLMAR or another graduate school and thus benefit from a comprehensive training program and extensive support measures.

We offer

Excellent research environment with access to globally unique infrastructure, comprehensive datasets, and international expeditions
Opportunity to develop and pursue independent scientific ideas and innovative research approaches addressing societally relevant questions
Close scientific collaboration and interdisciplinary cooperation within the institute as well as with national and international partners
An international working environment with daily interaction with colleagues from around the world
Opportunities for professional and personal development
Flexible working hours and the possibility of mobile working for up to 50% of regular working hours
Annual special payment in accordance with the German public sector collective agreement (TVöD Bund)
Occupational health promotion and company fitness programme with Hansefit
Support services and an established culture promoting work–life balance, e.g. through our family office offering childcare services (e.g. holiday programmes) as well as advice on family and care responsibilities
Occupational pension scheme (VBL)

AWI values diversity and actively promotes gender parity, as well as an open, inclusive environment that provides equal opportunities. We are convinced that diverse teams and a variety of perspectives enrich our work and our daily collaboration. In a continuous process of learning and reflection, we aim to ensure that all our employees can be themselves and feel a sense of belonging. We welcome applications from qualified people regardless of binary and non-binary genders, race and nationality, ethnic and social background, religion, age, disabilities, neurodivergence, sexual orientation, and other identities.

Applicants with disabilities will be given preference when equal qualifications are present.

AWI fosters work-family compatibility in various ways. And as a new international member of our team, you can be sure that we will help you settle in. Our Family Office and International Office will be glad to support you, even before you start at AWI.

We look forward to your application!

Please submit your application online only by October 8 th , 2026 . We kindly ask you to apply in English. No photo is required – we value your qualifications and experience.

Reference number: 26/91/D/Bio-b

PhD position in Investigating Offshore Groundwater Hydrology and Submarine Groundwater Discharge (f/x/m/d)

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