PhD position in reading research (Cognitive Neuroscience)

How do readers recognize words from strings of letters? For most adults, this process may seem effortless and automatic. Yet, for the cognitive psychologist, human's ability to read remains somewhat mysterious. In this project, carried out by the Snell Language Lab (www.snelllab.eu) and funded by an ERC grant from the European Commission (runtime 2025-2030), we're developing and testing a new theory of the reading brain in various exciting ways. In particular, we'll look at how attention is distributed across the visual field during text reading, and at how word recognition is influenced by sentence-level representations that are (believed to be) maintained in working memory. In doing so, we hope to account for several interesting phenomena, such as how readers fail to notice the mistake in the phrase "Do love you me?". Lastly, we will investigate to what extent visuo-spatial attention operates differently in readers with dyslexia. The research project will rely on the use of behavioral measures (eye movements, response times, accuracy) and neurophysiological techniques (EEG).

Your duties

• gain knowledge of the field through literature research, discussion with team members, and internal research meetings
• contribute to our understanding of a multi-faceted cognitive skill
• plan, organize, and conduct data-collection, analyse and interpret results
• collaborate hands-on with participants and other researchers
• publish scientific articles
• present results at local, national and international scientific meetings
• supervise BSc and MSc theses

Requirements:

You are passionate about fundamental empirical research, with a particular interest in the brain mechanisms driving language processing. The ideal candidate should have:

• an Msc. in Cognitive neuroscience, Artificial Intelligence, or neighboring fields (degree obtained before January 1st, 2025)
• an affinity with quantitative research methods, experimental design and data analysis
• excellent analytical skills
• strong affinity with programming
• excellent writing skills and proficiency in the English language
• a creative, pragmatic and problem-solving attitude!

As a university, we strive for equal opportunities for all, recognising that diversity takes many forms. We believe that diversity in all its complexity is invaluable for the quality of our teaching, research and service. We are always looking for talent with diverse backgrounds and experiences. This also means that we are committed to creating an inclusive community so that we can use diversity as an asset.

We realise that each individual brings a unique set of skills, expertise and mindset. Therefore we are happy to invite anyone who recognises themselves in the profile to apply, even if you do not meet all the requirements.

Salary Benefits:

A challenging position in a socially engaged organisation. At VU Amsterdam, you contribute to education, research and service for a better world. And that is valuable. So in return for your efforts, we offer you:

• a starting salary of € 2.872,00 (PhD) and maximum € 3.670,00 (PhD) gross per month in the fourth year, for a full-time employment
• an employment contract of initially 1 year. Given a positive evaluation after the first year, this will be extended to a total of 4 years. Your dissertation at the end of the fourth year forms the end of your employment contract.

We also offer you attractive fringe benefits and arrangements. Some examples:

• A full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year. If you choose to work 40 hours, you have 96 extra holiday leave hours on an annual basis. For part-timers, this is calculated pro rata.
• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
• good growth opportunities (e.g. post-doctoral positions after the PhD)
• a wide range of sports facilities which staff may use for free
• possibility to save holiday hours, e.g. for sabbatical leave, or exchange holiday hours for extra salary

Van der Boechorststraat 7