From 2002 to 2004 Volkert van der Wijk studied Art History at Leiden University after that he transferred into science and obtained his doctorate (Cum Laude) from the University of Twente (NL) in 2014 with his research on the design of dynamically balanced mechanisms . In addition to his artistic work, he has been an Assistant Professor at TU Delft (NL) since 2016.

In 2017 Volkert van der Wijk was honored with the Constructor of Excellence 2017 Award* for his achievements in scientific research on dynamic balancing and for the kinetic art sculpture Taaie Tiller. (*issued annually by Dutch technology magazine Constructeur)