Job ID: 98205

Postdoctoral Position in Human Neuroimaging

Position: Post-doctoral Position

Deadline: 30 November 2022

City: Magdeburg

Country: Germany

Institution: Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg

Department:

Description:

Position:

A 1-year full-time postdoctoral research position (with potential option to extend) will be available from the 1st of January 2023 or later at the Institute of Cognitive Neurology and Dementia Research (IKND) located at the Otto-von-Guericke University in Magdeburg, Germany.

Topic:

The candidate will be part of the Imaging subcortical systems in ageing and disease group (http://www.iknd.ovgu.de/AG+Dr_+Betts.html) led by Dr. Matthew Betts. A particular focus of the group is to understand how structural changes to the noradrenergic and dopaminergic system are related to cognitive decline in ageing and to the clinical manifestations of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. This work incorporates a combination of novel structural MR imaging techniques such as neuromelanin-sensitive MRI, quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) and high-field fMRI, PET imaging, CSF biomarkers and behavioural tasks.

The requirements for the position are:

PhD degree or equivalent in Psychology, Biology, Neuroscience, Computer Science, Neuroimaging or related field

Programming skills in MatLab, Python or shell

Knowledge of relevant statistical analyses and programs such as SPSS, R, SPM or equivalent

Experience working with human neuroimaging data (ideally MRI) in the field of ageing and neurodegenerative diseases.

Previous experience supervising students (Masters and/or PhD) a plus.

Role:

The position will involve working on a large neuroimaging dataset collected from individuals with early Alzheimer’s disease (AD) dementia towards understanding how structural alterations to the locus coeruleus and substantia nigra are related to cognitive dysfunction, neuroinflammation and vascular dysfunction. The candidate will be expected to analyse data for publications, present at internal and international meetings and assist with supervision of related PhD and Medical Master’s student projects.

The candidate will work closely with a number of colleagues from the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (https://www.dzne.de/en/) and with our local DFG-funded Collaborative Research Center 1436 ‘Neural Resources of Cognition’
(https://sfb1436.de/) aimed at understanding the cognitive potential of the human brain in ageing in addition to a number of internal and external collaborators.

The full-time postdoc position is available for 1 year (with potential option to extend) and will be paid according to German TV-L E13 starting at 48.888 euros or above per annum before tax (depending on experience). Interested candidates are encouraged to apply before the 30th of November 2022.

Place of work:

Magdeburg is a vibrant and multidisciplinary scientific environment offering a broad range of opportunities for cutting-edge cognitive neuroscience, including multiple MRI scanners (3 and 7T), MEG and EEG laboratories. The Otto-von-Guericke University of Magdeburg is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply.

Application:

Please send your application written in English merged into a single pdf to matthew.betts@dzne.de containing:

– a cover letter outlining your motivation for applying and past accomplishments relevant to the role (max 1 page)

– CV, including relevant publications and experience in human imaging

– two letters of reference or two contacts for referees

Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.