Information for Prospective PhD Students and PostDocs
Thank you for your interest in the SPINS research group.
Before reaching out, please carefully read the information contained in this page to determine if your interests and background are a good match.
Why join us:
We research the tracherous, exciting, rewarding (and often paranoid) world of cybersecurity. Our positions offer the opportunity to gain valuable experience in research, teaching, and mentoring, supported by a strong commitment to professional and career development. You will work in a stimulating and welcoming environment, both within the research group and across the University of Zurich—one of Switzerland’s leading institutions—situated in a vibrant city consistently ranked among those with the highest quality of life worldwide. The positions include competitive stipends and comprehensive social benefits (PhD students are employed with full pension coverage). Subsidized UZH housing is also available for 1st-year PhD students. In addition, there is generous support for conference travel and research-related expenses.
Information for Prospective PhD Students
Profile Requirements
We are seeking highly motivated PhD students to join our research on secure system design, with a focus on hardware-software co-designs. The position is suitable for candidates who enjoy working close to the hardware/software boundary and want to explore how operating systems, compilers, and hardware can be co-designed to provide strong security guarantees.
Ideal start date: January 2026.
Core Areas:
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Systems Security
(Applied Cryptography, Trusted Computing, etc.) -
Operating Systems & Isolation Mechanisms
(microkernels, privilege separation, sandboxing, memory management/protection, etc) -
Hardware Security & Architecture
(ARM TrustZone, RISC-V security extensions, hardware-software co-design, etc) -
Program/Code Security Techniques
(memory safety, compiler instrumentation, binary rewriting, runtime verification, etc.)
Requirements:
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Master’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related field.
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Strong programming skills (e.g., C/C++, Rust, Python; familiarity with embedded development and hardware description languages are a plus).
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Experience writing technical documents (thesis, research reports, or publications).
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Strong analytical thinking and excellent English communication skills.
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Prior documented research experience.
Desirable
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Publications in systems/security venues.
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Experience with:
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LLVM, GCC toolchains, or kernel-level programming or
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Emulators/simulators (QEMU, gem5, ARM FVP) or
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FPGA prototyping or board-level embedded development
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Who is *not* a good fit:
- Wants to do applied ML, LLMs, blockchains, etc. This is mentioned specifically, given the high volume of applicants looking to work in these popular areas. This position has nothing to do with them; if you are looking for positions in those areas, please check other groups in our department.
- Looking for an "easy and comfortable" PhD. It will take 5+ years and be very hard work. I'll do my best to support you, but leveling up is always hard work. It ultimately depends on one's own resilience and self-motivation.
- Doesn't want to be involved with teaching or administrative tasks and focus 100% on research. All PhD students are also an integral part of teaching and administration activities. This is both a required component of the PhD program and part of the duties of employed (funded) PhDs.
Contact:
If (after reading) you think you are a good fit, please e-mail Prof. Ivan De Oliveira Nunes with the following:
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A brief motivation letter
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Curriculum Vitae (CV)
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Bachelor’s and Master’s transcripts (including list of courses and grades)
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Contact information of three references
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Any additional supporting documents (e.g., diplomas, thesis, project report, publications)
We look forward to receiving your application!
Please note that all applications will be read carefully. However, due to the high volume of applications, we are only able to reply to those advancing to the subsequent steps of the recruitment process.
Thank you!
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Information for Prospective Postdocs
Thank you for your interest.
We currently have one funded opening for a Postdoc in System Security.
The ideal candidate is someone who has (or will soon have) completed a solid PhD in system security (as demonstrated through publications in top security and system venues) and wants to improve their publication track record for a future academic career.
In terms of area, the candidate should be proficient in applied cryptography, systems security (ideally, HW/SW co-design of system security services), and OS security mechanisms (e.g., isolation, privilege separation, compartmentalization, etc.).
Ideal start date: January 2026.
Contact:
If you meet the position criteria, please e-mail Prof. Ivan De Oliveira Nunes with the following:
-
A brief motivation letter
-
Curriculum Vitae (CV)
-
Contact information of three references
-
Three sample publications authored by you.
Please note that all applications will be read carefully. However, due to the high volume of applications, we are only able to reply to those advancing to the subsequent steps of the recruitment process.
Thank you!