PhD Position: Cognitive Neuroscience of Motivation

1. Introduction

Ever wanted to bridge neuroscience, computational modelling and clinical psychology? Then this is the right job for you! The ’Cease or Persist (COPE)’ project is an ERC-funded research programme that aims to unravel the neurocomputational mechanisms of effortful persistence. As a PhD candidate, you will combine computational modelling, neuroimaging, pharmacology and neuromodulation.

2. Job description

The Motivation, Effort and Decision-Making (MED) lab (PI: Eliana Vassena) is looking for a PhD candidate to investigate the neural and computational mechanisms of motivation and effortful persistence. You will focus on a key part of the COPE research programme: a pharmacological fMRI study, aimed at dissociating the contribution of different neurotransmitter systems to effortful persistence. As a PhD candidate, you will work in a highly interdisciplinary environment alongside cognitive and clinical neuroscientists, computational modelling experts and clinical psychologists. 

Within this project, you will conduct behavioural and neuroimaging studies, including pharmacological manipulations. You will collect and analyse behavioural, physiological and fMRI data. Computational modelling of neural and behavioural data will be a key focus. These activities will be carried out in close collaboration with the COPE team and the Motivation, Effort and Decision-Making lab. You will actively participate in lab meetings, centre meetings and activities of the Computational NeuroPsychiatry platform (CNP). As part of your PhD position, you will have a 10% teaching load and the opportunity to make a start working on your teaching portfolio for the University Teaching Qualification (UTQ).

You will join the Motivation, Effort and Decision-Making (MED) research group, which is based at the Behavioural Science Institute. The MED lab is embedded in a vibrant and collaborative environment within the Experimental Psychopathology Research Programme, in close collaboration with the Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, where some of the studies will be conducted. We also regularly collaborate with the Donders Centre for Cognition, the Radboud university medical center (psychiatry department) and the Pro Persona Clinic within the context of a collaborative platform called ’Computational NeuroPsychiatry (CNP) Nijmegen’. 

Would you like to learn more about what it’s like to pursue a PhD at Radboud University? Visit the page about working as a PhD candidate. 

3. Profile

• You have a Master’s degree in neuroscience, psychology, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, or a related field.
• You have experience with programming in Python and Matlab.
• You have experience with computational modelling of cognition and/or motivation (e.g. reinforcement learning, meta-learning, decision-making).
• You have experience in conducting advanced statistical analysis in R or similar (e.g. mixed models, machine learning).
• Preferably, you have experience with collecting neuroimaging data and/or pharmacological studies.
• Preferably, you have previous experience as a research assistant.
• You have excellent communication skills in English (oral and written). 

4. We are

The Behavioural Science Institute (BSI) is an interdisciplinary research institute where fundamental, applied and translational research takes place with the aim of understanding important societal issues and contributing to their solutions. BSI is one of the three research institutes of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Radboud University. Our researchers collaborate across the boundaries of psychology, communication science and pedagogical and educational science. Our mission for the upcoming years is to join forces in interdisciplinary research on the theme of ’Empowering the Young’. We study the challenges that young people face in our current society and contribute to their empowerment. BSI performs high-quality research with scientific and societal impact. To foster this, the institute provides excellent research facilities and has strong collaborations with non-academic partners. Moreover, BSI is known for its successful graduate school and strong dedication to open science and team science. We stand for a warm, inclusive and cooperative research environment in which our staff are well-supported in a work culture that promotes collaboration and respect.

The Experimental Psychopathology research programme aims to acquire fundamental scientific and applied knowledge to better understand the cognitive and neurobiological mechanisms of psychopathology. We study clinically relevant processes such as biased information and affective processing, approach-avoidance tendencies, cognitive control, emotion regulation, motivation, and executive functioning. 

5. We offer

• We will give you a temporary employment contract (1.0 FTE) of 1.5 years, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, your contract will be extended by 2.5 years (4-year contract).     
• You will receive a starting salary of €2,901 gross per month based on a 38-hour working week, which will increase to €3,707 in the fourth year (salary scale P).
• You will receive an 8% holiday allowance and an 8,3% end-of-year bonus. 
• We offer Dual Career Coaching. The Dual Career Coaching assists your partner via support, tools, and resources to improve their chances of independently finding employment in the Netherlands. 
• You will receive extra days off. With full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days of annual leave instead of the statutory 20. 

6. Practical information and applying

You can apply only via the button below. Address your letter of application to Eliana Vassena. In the application form, you will find which documents you need to include with your application.

You will preferably start your employment on 1 September 2025.

We can imagine you're curious about our application procedure. It describes what you can expect during the application procedure and how we handle your personal data and internal and external candidates.