The research group Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience of the Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences (SILS), one of the largest institutes of the Faculty of Science, is looking for a PhD candidate in the field of systems neuroscience, bridging the gap between neurophysiology and human cognition. This is an interdisciplinary project which will be performed jointly with the department of Brain and Cognition at the Psychology Research Institute at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences.

Our project title is 'What do you expect to see? The neuronal correlates of interactions between perception and memory.'

This interdisciplinary project will be supervised by Dr Heleen Slagter (Brain and Cognition, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences) and Dr Carien Lansink (Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Group, SILS-FNWI, UvA).

What determines how we perceive the outside world? An essential key to answering this question lies in understanding how perception is shaped by expectations about what is going to occur based on past experiences. This project aims to build a detailed mechanistic account of the neural and behavioural interactions between sensory and memory brain systems supporting perception. This will be achieved by using in vivo chronic, multi-area electrophysiology and human imaging (fMRI) in combination with behavioural tasks and advanced signal analysis methods.

You should have a Master's degree in experimental neuroscience or a related field. Affinity and/or experience in experimental methods for systems neuroscience are a prerequisite. You preferably have strong programming skills (especially in MATLAB) and experience in developing and applying methods for signal processing and neural data analysis. Experience with fMRI and human research is a plus. A certificate for working with laboratory animals (under Dutch legislation) will be an important asset for this position. As a PhD candidate you will also participate in educational activities at the bachelor and/or master levels.

The appointment will be on a temporary basis for a period of 4 years (initial appointment will be for a period of 18 months and after satisfactory evaluation it can be extended to a total duration of 4 years) and should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan, including attendance of courses and (international) meetings. You are also expected to assist in teaching of undergraduate students.

Based on a full-time appointment (38 hours per week) the gross monthly salary will range from €2,266 in the first year to €2,897 in the last year. The Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities is applicable. 

University of Amsterdam

With over 5,000 employees, 30,000 students and a budget of more than 600 million euros, the University of Amsterdam (UvA) is an intellectual hub within the Netherlands. Teaching and research at the UvA are conducted within seven faculties: Humanities, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Economics and Business, Law, Science, Medicine and Dentistry. Housed on four city campuses in or near the heart of Amsterdam, where disciplines come together and interact, the faculties have close links with thousands of researchers and hundreds of institutions at home and abroad.  

The UvA’s students and employees are independent thinkers, competent rebels who dare to question dogmas and aren’t satisfied with easy answers and standard solutions. To work at the UvA is to work in an independent, creative, innovative and international climate characterised by an open atmosphere and a genuine engagement with the city of Amsterdam and society.

http://www.uva.nl/en/home

Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences

The Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences (SILS) is one of the Faculty of Science's largest institutes. Our approximately 240 scientists and staff members work in 16 research groups that perform excellent research centred on three themes: 1) Cell & Systems Biology, 2) Neurosciences, and 3) Molecular Life Sciences.

http://sils.uva.nl/