About the role
Position Summary
The Department of Biosystems & Agricultural Engineering at Michigan State University is seeking a Postdoctoral Scholar whose work focuses on harvest automation of specialty crops. The selected candidate will work with Dr. Yuzhen Lu to develop and test automated field-deployed sensing/harvesting systems that may integrate machine vision, artificial intelligence, and mechanisms for specialty crops and to generate high-quality peer-reviewed publications. The successful candidate will meet with Dr. Lu and collaborators regularly to review progress and discuss best practices in design, prototyping, algorithm development and testing, manuscript preparation, mentoring, and lab management. The selected candidate may engage in other activities such as grant proposal development and instructional responsibilities as needed for their professional development.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, age, disability or protected veteran status.
Required Degree
Terminal -Biosystems/Agricultural Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics, Automation, Computer Science, or a closely related field.
Minimum Requirements
The candidate must have formal training experience in mechanical/robotic harvesting, machine vision, and system integration. It is essential that the candidate has excellent speaking and writing skills and the ability to work effectively in an interdisciplinary research team. The candidate must also establish and conduct a research program resulting in high-quality journal publications.
Desired Qualifications
The preferred candidate is expected to have solid skills in engineering design, prototyping, and integration, and have experience in developing a machine vision-based automation system for selective harvesting of specialty crops.
Required Application Materials
Cover letter, a complete CV, academic transcripts, and contact information (name, address, phone number, and email) for three references.
Special Instructions
For more information, please contact Dr. Yuzhen Lu at luyuzhen@msu.edu.
Review of Applications Begins On
05/22/2026
Website
https://www.canr.msu.edu/bae/
MSU Statement
Michigan State University has been advancing the common good with uncommon will for more than 160 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU pushes the boundaries of discovery and forges enduring partnerships to solve the most pressing global challenges while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.