Project and methods
The social brain lab has pioneered the investigation of the mechanisms of empathy in rodents and humans. We now look for a talented scientist with a passion for studying how the brain triggers social behavior in rodents. You would fine tune behavioral models of social decision-making in rats and mice, and work together with experts in optogenetics and electrophysiology in the lab to unravel the circuitry that drives a rodents to prevent pain to others. Our lab offers an excellent, highly collaborative international team with expertise in optogenetics, calcium imaging, behavior and neuroimaging in humans and rodents to jointly explore what makes rats and humans prosocial. If you have a positive, flexible, energetic attitude and a strong affinity for social neuroscience, for training rodents to do amazing things and to use cutting edge methods to understand the mechanisms of that behavior, this could be a strong opportunity to develop an outstanding CV in the emergent field of social neuroscience.

Desired skills and experience

• PhD in behavioral neuroscience or related fields.
• Experience with and affinity towards rodent behavior.
• Experience with and affinity towards stereotaxic surgeries in rodents.
• Highly motivated, energetic, detail orientated and capable to work and troubleshoot independently and collaboratively.
• Have excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• For postdocs: At least one excellent publication in behavioral neuroscience

Salary
The salary will be commensurate with experience and institutional guidelines based on the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities; CAO NU). The fulltime starting salary for a postdoctoral researcher depends on experience and ranges from € 3.217,- to € 4.402.- before taxes.  A 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% year-end bonus are excluded. We offer travel expenses, paid parental leave, flexible working hours, 30 days paid leave per year and help by finding a house.

Appointment
The position is for a period of 3 years in total. The first appointment is for one year with the option for an extension for the remaining period pending on an evaluation.

Starting date
As soon as the ideal candidate is identified.

Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience

The Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience is an Academy research institute. It conducts basic and strategic research in the neurosciences. It examines how the human brain makes awareness, perception, movement, learning, social interaction and other cognitive functions possible. It also studies how brain disorders can disrupt these functions.

Social Brain Lab

Team
The project will be held at the Social Brain Lab (SBL), led by Christian Keysers and Valeria Gazzola at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience. The lab investigates the neural bases of empathy by combining human and animal experiments with last-generation imaging and neuro-modulatory techniques. The Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience (www.nin.nl) is the country’s leading fundamental neuroscience research institute. Both the PIs have an additional position at the University of Amsterdam, one of the top psychology departments in Europe. Together this provides a critical mass of experts in the most advanced neuroscience techniques, together with a dynamic multi-cultural environment. English is the working language of the research group and is extremely well spoken in the vibrant and international city of Amsterdam, creating an attractive, progressive and easy-to-integrate environment.

The SBL is highly diverse, with members from more than 8 nations (from South-America to India) with backgrounds ranging from biology to engineering with an emphasis on biology and psychology. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, protected veteran or status as disabled status, or genetic information.