Professor / Associate Professor / Assistant Professor in Intelligent Railway Engineering under Strategic Hiring Scheme (Ref. 261021009)

THE HONG KONG POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY

Rooted in 90 years of heritage and intellectual achievement, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has evolved alongside society and made pivotal contributions to the development of Hong Kong, the Nation and the world. The University pursues world-class excellence in education, research and knowledge transfer to nurture socially responsible professionals and leaders, as well as to drive impactful research and innovation. PolyU will strive to continually excel as an innovative world-class university that makes a positive impact on society, living up to the University’s motto: “To learn and to apply, for the benefit of mankind”.

Ranked among the top 100 universities globally by well-known ranking organisations such as Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), Times Higher Education (THE) and U.S. News & World Report, PolyU offers a wide range of world-class educational and research programmes in seven faculties and three independent schools. PolyU has furthermore achieved commendable results in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026 – it is ranked in the global top 30 for five subjects, is first in Hong Kong for four subjects, and is in the global top 100 for 24 subjects.  For further details about the University, please visit PolyU’s website at https://www.polyu.edu.hk/.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

Professor / Associate Professor / Assistant Professor in Intelligent Railway Engineering under Strategic Hiring Scheme (Ref. 261021009)

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) and the Hong Kong Branch of National Rail Transit Electrification and Automation Engineering Technology Research Center (CNERC-Rail) invite applications from highly motivated and suitably qualified candidates with research expertise in intelligent railway technologies, including smart materials and structures, railway monitoring and control, and intelligent maintenance of rail infrastructure.

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering has a strong international reputation for conducting world-class research that delivers societal benefits and maintains well-established partnerships with industry and government agencies in Hong Kong and beyond. It is ranked first worldwide in Transportation Science and Technology in the Shanghai-Ranking Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2025, the 2nd in Civil Engineering in the U.S. News Best Global Universities Rankings 2026, the 18th in Civil and Structural Engineering, and 34th in Environmental Science in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026.

The Department offers academic programmes at the various levels (PhD, MSc, BEng, BSc).  It currently comprises approximately 80 faculty members (more than 40 regular faculty members at Assistant Professor or above levels) and around 40 technical and administrative staff.  The Department is committed to internationally recognised standards of excellence in teaching and research.  For further information about CEE, please visit https://www.polyu.edu.hk/cee/.

CNERC-Rail is a national-level, mission-driven innovation hub dedicated to advancing safer, smarter and lower-carbon rail transit systems.  Building on The Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s established strengths and global reputation in rail transit, intelligent infrastructure and smart cities, the Center collaborates with industry partners, government agencies and leading universities in the Chinese Mainland and worldwide to conduct pioneering research and translate research outcomes into practical applications.  The Center aspires to become a world-leading research and development hub for intelligent operation and maintenance technologies and a major platform for developing talent in related fields.  For further information about the Center, please visit https://www.polyu.edu.hk/cnerc-rail/.

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is an international city located strategically at the heart of Asia and is the gateway to the Chinese Mainland, with excellent transport links to major international cities.

To boost the leadership and impact of PolyU’s research work in areas of significant societal needs and strategic importance, the Strategic Hiring Scheme is introduced to recruit faculty members at all levels and outstanding scholars are invited to join the University under the Strategic Hiring Scheme.  Appointees recruited under the Strategic Hiring Scheme should have conducted / led world-leading research that is commensurate with the stage of their academic career.

Duties

The appointee will be affiliated with the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and serve as a key member of CNERC-Rail, with the potential to assume a future leadership role as Director or Associate Director of the Center.  The appointee will lead the development and delivery of new postgraduate programmes in Railway Engineering or Transportation Engineering.  The appointee will be required to:

(a) teach undergraduate and postgraduate subjects in Railway Engineering and related fields, such as Transit Engineering, Intelligent Infrastructure, Transportation Engineering, Sensing and Monitoring, Energy Systems, and Artificial Intelligence for Infrastructure;

(b) conduct high-impact research that leads to publications in top-tier refereed journals, and actively pursue and secure competitive research funding;

(c) initiate, lead and participate in mission-driven research programmes aligned with CNERC-Rail’s objectives, including the development and commercialisation of prototypes, pilot projects and digital-twin platforms;

(d) supervise student projects and MSc and PhD dissertations;

(e) participate in scholarly, industrial and consultancy activities, including collaborations with rail transit equipment manufacturers, operators, government agencies and international partners;

(f) contribute, where appropriate, to innovation and knowledge-transfer activities;

(g) undertake academic and administrative duties at the Center, Department and University levels;

(h) develop and manage subjects, curricula and pedagogical approaches for existing and new postgraduate programmes; and

(i)  perform any other duties assigned by the Director of CNERC-Rail, Head of Unit or their delegates.

Qualifications

Applicants should possess:

(a) a PhD in Railway, Civil, Transportation, Mechanical, Electrical or Electronic Engineering, Materials Science, Computer or Data Science, or a closely related discipline, which is relevant to Rail Transit Electrification, Automation, Sensing, Intelligent Operation and Maintenance, or related areas;

(b) expertise in, but not limited to, one or more of the following areas:

• high-sensitivity flexible sensors for rail transit applications (e.g. transient pressure, structural stress, wind loads, tunnel–bridge dynamic loads), including sensor networks and digital twins for full life-cycle health monitoring and early warning; · energy harvesting devices and acoustic–electric conversion metamaterials, specifically for harvesting railway noise and vibration energy in trains, tracks, and tunnels;

• surface metamaterials / metastructures for drag reduction and aeroacoustic noise mitigation, including CFD-based design and machine-learning-driven optimisation of microstructured and bio-inspired surfaces;

• carbon–cement batteries and supercapacitors, including cement-based structural capacitors, multifunctional energy-storage/binding materials, and data-driven materials discovery using machine learning and large language models; and

• intelligent operation and maintenance systems for rail infrastructure and networks, including digital twins, multimodal sensing, AI-powered diagnostics and prognostics, predictive maintenance, and full life-cycle asset management for track and electrification systems.

(c)  a strong record of high-quality, high-impact research in one or more of the areas listed above, demonstrated through achievements such as journal publications, competitive research grants, patents, prototypes or industrial collaborations;

(d) a strong commitment to excellence in teaching, research and knowledge application;

(e) demonstrated ability, or strong potential, to establish an independent, externally funded research programme and to lead or contribute to interdisciplinary, industry-engaged research projects;

(f) strong professional networks and the potential to become a world-leading scholar and academic leader within CNERC-Rail; and

(g) excellent communication skills and a high level of proficiency in English for teaching and presentations.

Applicants for appointment as Professor should demonstrate excellence in teaching, an outstanding international research reputation, and proven experience in leading academic teams. Applicants with less experience may be considered for appointment as Associate Professor or Assistant Professor.  Duties and performance expectations will be commensurate with the level of appointment.

Conditions of Service

A highly competitive remuneration package will be offered.  Faculty members recruited through the Strategic Hiring Scheme at Professor level will receive a start-up grant of HKD 5 million or more to support research activities (including the admission of two PhD students, purchase of equipment, hiring of research staff, etc.) in the initial five years, whereas those appointed at Associate Professor or Assistant Professor level will receive a start-up grant of HKD 3 million or more.  Initial appointment for Assistant Professor will be on a fixed-term gratuity-bearing contract.  Re-engagement thereafter is subject to mutual agreement.  An appropriate term will be provided for appointment at Associate Professor / Professor levels.  For general information on terms and conditions for appointment of academic staff in the University, please visit the website at https://www.polyu.edu.hk/hro/docdrive/careers/doc/Prof.pdf. 

Application

Please submit an application through PolyU’s career website (https://jobs.polyu.edu.hk/academic). Consideration of applications will commence on 20 November 2026 until the position is filled. The University’s Personal Information Collection Statement for recruitment can be found at https://www.polyu.edu.hk/hro/careers/pics_for_recruitment/.

PolyU is an equal opportunity employer, dedicated to fostering an environment that embraces diversity and demonstrates inclusion of people from all backgrounds, cultures, identities and experiences where all members of the University are treated with fairness, dignity and respect.  To learn more about the University’s “Statement on Equal Opportunities, Diversity, and Inclusion”, please visit our website at https://www.polyu.edu.hk/hro/equal_opportunities_diversity_and_inclusion/.