Large Language Models and Reasoning in Multi-Agent Systems

The Bruno Kessler Foundation (FBK) is a leading research institution based in Trento, Italy. With over 450 researchers distributed across 12 Research Centers, FBK promotes excellence in science and technology across both technical and social domains.

The internship is offered within the Intelligent Digital Agents (IDA) Research Unit of the Digital Health & Wellbeing Center. The unit focuses on developing flexible, ethically grounded technologies and digital assistants to support mental health and prevention.

More information can be found at https://ida.fbk.eu/

Planned activities

The Research Unit is looking for a young recent graduate interested in pursuing an internship experience in Improving Multi-Agent Reasoning via Literature-Guided Fine-Tuning of Expert Agents.

The intern will contribute to the Pool of Experts framework, which simulates psychologically profiled expert agents engaging in cooperative reasoning. While the architecture works in a zero-shot setting, this internship aims to explore if and how fine-tuning or lightweight adaptations can improve individual expert reasoning and overall decision quality.

Main activities include:

• Analyzing reasoning behaviors of agents across benchmarks;
• Conducting a literature review on LLM fine-tuning, particularly in role- or persona-based setups;
• Designing or testing modular improvements to expert agents;
• Exploring efficient adaptation strategies (e.g., LoRA, prompt tuning);
• Implementing experimental improvements within the PoE system.

This internship offers experience at the frontier of cognitive AI, machine learning, and digital mental health technologies.

Requirements

• Possession of, or enrollment in, a Master’s degree in one of the following fields: Computer Science, Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, Cognitive Sciences, Psychology;
• Fluent knowledge of English (minimum level B2);
• Strong interpersonal and teamwork skills;
• Good adaptability, initiative, and autonomy;
• Proficiency in Python;
• Familiarity with LLMs, generative AI, and prompt-based modeling.

Internship information

• Internship start date: second semester 2025
• Internship experience duration: 6 months for extra-curricular internships 
• Opportunity reserved for graduates with a Master's degree (for extra-curricular internships, the degree must not have been obtained more than 12 months ago)
• The internship experience will take place at the Povo location
• We offer support in finding accommodation at affiliated facilities, in the case of off-site candidates
• We offer the possibility to use the internal canteen service
• Possible recognition of participation allowance

How to Apply

All interested parties are asked to fill out the online form by clicking on "Apply Online" in the "Internship opportunities" section, attaching the following documents in .pdf format:

• curriculum vitae
• motivational letter

For any details about the internship activity, please contact: Patrizio Bellan – pbellan@fbk.eu

For any further information, please contact the Human Resources Department at: jobs@fbk.eu

Application deadline: the notice will be withdrawn when the desired applications are reached.