PhD Position from Body Shape to Musculoskeletal Model

Musculoskeletal disorders, affecting muscles, bones, joints, and associated tissues, are the leading cause of disability worldwide. Musculoskeletal models hold great potential for prevention and development of new treatments, but current models often fail to capture sex diversity.

Our NWO Vidi Grant project, “Breaking BIASmechanics”, aims to change this by creating innovative technology for generating accurate musculoskeletal models outside the lab that account for sex variations. In collaboration with societal, industry, and health partners—including NOC*NSF, Vitronic, ModelHealth, and the Sport & Gyn network—these next-generation models will allow us to explore how sex diversity affects movement and musculoskeletal loading, guiding more equitable rehabilitation, prevention, and performance programs.

The PhD position will involve serving as one of the modelling experts within the project team, with a specific focus on developing methods to map internal musculoskeletal geometries from external body shape and demographics.

Job description

As a PhD candidate in this project, you will:

• Contribute to a large-scale, multi-year data collection effort with human subjects, using MR imaging, ultrasound, and motion capture
• Develop parametric models of the human body tailored to the demands of biomechanics research
• Design and train models to infer internal skeletal and muscular geometry from external body shape
• Build statistical models that capture validated relationships between individual musculoskeletal parameters to enable subject-specific model personalisation
• Implement algorithms into hardware and software for 3D body scanning and video-based motion capture
• Collaborate with an interdisciplinary team of experts in biomechanics, anatomy, medical imaging, clinical sciences, and sports coaching

This PhD is ideally suited to a candidate who enjoys combining cutting-edge computational and statistical modelling with musculoskeletal biomechanics, hands-on experimental work, and close collaboration across disciplines.

Job requirements

We are seeking an ambitious PhD candidate who is excited to push the boundaries of musculoskeletal research. You are eager to combine computational, statistical, and musculoskeletal biomechanics and anatomy to create inclusive, next-generation musculoskeletal models that will shape the future of rehabilitation, prevention, and athletic performance.

You bring:

• A Master's degree in Biomechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Technical Medicine, Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, or a related discipline
• Experience with statistical or parametric modelling (e.g. statistical shape models, PCA-based methods)
• Programming skills in Python, MATLAB, or similar
• Familiarity with musculoskeletal modelling (e.g. OpenSim, AnyBody, or similar)
• Affinity with biomechanics or human movement science
• Proficiency in English, both written and spoken
• The ability to work independently while thriving in a collaborative, multidisciplinary team

A plus if you also have:

• Experience with medical imaging data (MRI, ultrasound, or CT)
• A background in machine learning or deep learning, particularly for regression or shape inference tasks
• Experience with 3D geometry, mesh processing, or computer vision
• Knowledge of motion capture systems or biomechanical data processing
• The ability to communicate with study participants in Dutch; knowledge of Arabic, Turkish, or other languages is an additional asset for participant inclusion

If you enjoy hands-on research, working with people, and bridging experiments with cutting-edge computational methods, this PhD is the perfect opportunity to make an impact in inclusive musculoskeletal research.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)

TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. It delivers results in education, research and innovation.

Faculty Mechanical Engineering

ME is a dynamic and innovative faculty with high-tech lab facilities and international reach. It is a large and versatile faculty where unique connections are often made by combining different disciplines. This is reflected in its state-of-the-art education and its contribution to pioneering research, inspiring education and international cooperation.

Conditions of employment

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1.5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months is followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2.5 years, assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.