Postdoctoral Researcher in Naturalistic Neuroscience at the Donders Centre for Cognition

• Employment: 0.8 FTE
• Gross monthly salary: € 3,974 – € 5,439
• Required background: PhD
• Organizational unit: Faculty of Social Sciences
• Application deadline: 01 May 2023

We are looking for a motivated postdoctoral researcher with expertise in computational models of perception and action and an interest in probabilistic neurocomputing and naturalistic approaches. The successful candidate will participate in the NWO-funded project ‘Understanding behaviour in the real world ‐ a naturalistic approach to Neuroscience’. The aim of this project is to use virtual reality and wearable technology and methods from data science and artificial intelligence to relate laboratory findings to behaviour in the real world and to apply the new Neuroscience knowledge in clinical practice. The overarching focus will be on three behavioural pillars – walking, orienting and reaching – and compare their characteristics within the same normative framework to develop a data‐driven computational model for real‐world perception and action.

The postdoc project will specifically focus on whole‐body search and orienting behaviour to real‐world stimuli, including 6D gaze control during active and passive self-motion. You will work closely together with colleagues from the Donders Institute and Radboud University’s Institute for Computing and Information Sciences. Your responsibilities may also include some management, mentoring (PhD, MSc and BSc) and teaching-related tasks.

Profile

• You have a PhD in a relevant field (e.g. sensorimotor neuroscience, artificial intelligence, computational neuroscience).
• You have a demonstrable interest and experience in bio-inspired modelling, probabilistic and/or naturalistic approaches to sensorimotor control.
• You have good social, communication and organisational skills.
• You are a team player.
• Experience with behavioural and neurophysiological studies would be useful, and experience supervising students at various levels would be advantageous.

We are

The Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour is a world-class interfaculty research centre that houses more than 700 researchers devoted to understanding the mechanistic underpinnings of the human mind. Research at the Donders Institute is focused around four themes: 1. Language and communication, 2. Perception, action and decision-making, 3. Development and lifelong plasticity, 4. Natural computing and neurotechnology. Excellent, state-of-the-art research facilities are available for the broad range of neuroscience research that is being conducted at the Donders Institute. The Donders Institute has been assessed by an international evaluation committee as ‘excellent’ and recognised as a ‘very stimulating environment for top researchers, as well as for young talent’. The Donders Institute fosters a collaborative, multidisciplinary, supportive research environment with a diverse international staff. English is the lingua franca at the Institute. 

Radboud University

We want to get the best out of science, others and ourselves. Why? Because this is what the world around us desperately needs. Leading research and education make an indispensable contribution to a healthy, free world with equal opportunities for all. This is what unites the more than 24,000 students and 5,600 employees at Radboud University. And this requires even more talent, collaboration and lifelong learning. You have a part to play!

We offer

• It concerns an employment for 0.8 FTE.
• The gross monthly salary amounts to a minimum of €3,974 and a maximum of €5,439 based on a 38-hour working week, depending on previous education and number of years of relevant work experience (salary scale 11).
• You will receive 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus.
• You will be employed for an initial period of 2 years, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2 years.
• You will be able to use our Dual Career and Family Care Services. Our Dual Career and Family Care Officer can assist you with family-related support, help your partner or spouse prepare for the local labour market, provide customized support in their search for employment and help your family settle in Nijmegen.
• Working for us means getting extra days off. In case of full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days of annual leave instead of the legally allotted 20.

Additional employment conditions

Work and science require good employment practices. This is reflected in Radboud University’s primary and secondary employment conditions. You can make arrangements for the best possible work-life balance with flexible working hours, various leave arrangements and working from home. You are also able to compose part of your employment conditions yourself, for example, exchange income for extra leave days and receive a reimbursement for your sports subscription. And of course, we offer a good pension plan. You are given plenty of room and responsibility to develop your talents and realise your ambitions. Therefore, we provide various training and development schemes.

Would you like more information?

For questions about the position, please contact Pieter Medendorp, Professor of Sensorimotor Neuroscience at +31 24 361 60 41 or pieter.medendorp@donders.ru.nl.

Practical information and applying

You can apply until 1 May 2023, exclusively using the button below. Kindly address your application to Pieter Medendorp. Please fill in the application form and attach the following documents:

• A letter of motivation.
• Your CV.

Interviews will be scheduled in consultation with the candidates in the first two weeks of May. You would preferably begin employment on 1 September 2023.

We can imagine you’re curious about our application procedure. It offers a rough outline of what you can expect during the application process, how we handle your personal data and how we deal with internal and external candidates.

Apply now 

Application deadline 01 May 2023

We would like to recruit our new colleague ourselves. Acquisition in response to this vacancy will not be appreciated.

Contact information

Pieter Medendorp, Professor of Sensorimotor Neuroscience

pieter.medendorp@donders.ru.nl +31 24 361 60 41

Please click here to apply.