PhD student

BCBL; Donostia/San Sebastián; On-site; EUR 19,000 - 23,000; Full time

Job summary

The Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL) in San Sebastián invites applications for a PhD Student within the 3DTechSign project. You will join the Sign Language group and pursue doctoral research on applying AI to sign language data, including pose estimation and motion capture tools.

The appointment is a 4-year contract with a flexible start between 01/2027 and 30/04/2027, with international collaboration and training opportunities; English is the working language.

Qualifications

• Eligible for PhD admission with appropriate university requirements.
• Experience with sign language data acquisition, preprocessing, or analysis.
• Strong written and spoken English.
• Programming skills, preferably Python.
• Ability to work in an interdisciplinary research team.

Responsibilities

• Join the Sign Language group and conduct PhD research on sign language data.
• Compare pose estimation tools and develop a benchmark dataset.
• Publish findings and present at international conferences.

Skills

Python

Sign language data

English fluency

Teamwork

Open Science

Tools

OpenPose

MediaPipe

Motion capture

Job description

at the BCBL- Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language (San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain) www.bcbl.eu

The Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language (BCBL) in San Sebastian (Basque Country, Spain) is looking for a PhD studentt to join its team.

1. INFORMATION ABOUT THE POSITION

• Position: PhD student
• Researcher Profile: First Stage Researcher (R1- up to the point of PhD)
• Number of vacancies: 1
• Project: 3DTechSign
• Funding sources: Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and University
• Location: Spain > San Sebastian
• Research Field: Neuroscience > Cognition and Language
• Type of contract/Duration of Contract: Temporary, 4 years
• Job Status: Full-time
• Starting date: Flexible between 01/01/2027 and 30/04/2027

Information about the project:

3DTechSign applies advances in computer vision and artificial intelligence to the domain of sign languages, understudied and underdocumented languages that are typically overlooked as part of our linguistic and cultural heritage, and marginalized in terms of language technologies. Artificial intelligence, and, most visibly, large language models, are revolutionizing the way that people interact with technology and they are entering every aspect of life, from the workplace to education to entertainment. Yet not everyone is part of this revolution: deaf sign language users do not have these language technologies at their disposal, limiting their access to the benefits of these tools.

The project combines technical innovation, linguistic theory, and community engagement to advance responsible, research-driven applications of AI in sign language studies. The specific problem that this project addresses is the digital gap that separates signed languages from spoken languages. The project aims to narrow that gap by using AI technologies with sign language data. This will generate tools that can be leveraged to improve the scientific study of sign languages, while critically addressing their technical limitations and ethical implications. The project has two core parts and two transversal factors. The two core components examine, on the one hand, analysing sign language data (using pose estimation algorithms) and, on the other, sign language synthesis (using motion capture and avatar technology). The transversal factors explore the use of AI techniques to analyse complex sign language datasets, and the ethical considerations that arise in the use and application of AI technologies. Additionally, the project includes three proof of concept studies that exploit the resources and tools for actual research studies to examine different aspects of sign language structure and cognition: the categorical perception of phonological units; the relationship between form and linguistic function; and the role of different phonological features during lexical access.

The successful candidate will join the Sign Language group at the Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL) and conduct a PhD within the 3DTechSign project, investigating the application of technologies to sign language data, and creating tools for research into the neurocognition of sign language. The researcher will contribute to all aspects of the project, with a focus on comparing existing pose estimation tools and evaluating their use with sign language data (including the creation of a benchmark motion capture data set). The validated pose estimation tools will be adapted to specific sign language research needs; the PhD student will work with other team members on such topics as categorical perception in sign language, (semi-)automatic transcription of individual signs and continuous signing, and creating synthetic sign stimuli that manipulate the temporal and spatial information in the signal.

The PhD student will enroll in the Cognitive Neuroscience program at the University of the Basque Country (EHU), and will work under the direct supervision of Dr Costello. In addition to the excellent doctoral training opportunities at the BCBL (programming, neuroimaging techniques, scientific communication), the student will receive specialized training in collecting and managing sign language data, data management, analysis and visualization, applying computer vision tools to sign language data, machine learning techniques and sign language proficiency. The student will attend a summer school and/or courses to learn machine learning techniques that can be applied to sign language data. The student will carry out at least one 3-month research stay with international collaborators. The position also involves participation in group and center-wide scientific meetings, presentation of findings at international conferences and preparation of peer-reviewed publications.

PI and research group:

Dr. Brendan Costello is an Ikerbasque Research Fellow and leader of the Sign Language research group at the Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL). His research combines behavioral and neuroimaging, and language science to investigate the cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying sign language processing, bimodal bilingualism and the role of modality in language structure and representation. He has led several competitively funded projects, supervised various PhD theses and postdoctoral researchers, and maintains an extensive network of international collaborations.

The Sign Language group examines language in the context of deafness, focusing on sign language (processing, the sign lexicon, iconicity, language learning) but including work on reading in deaf individuals. Currently, the group consist of 5 PhD students and a postdoc researcher who use a variety of techniques including fMRI, MEG, eyetracking and behavioral paradigms to look at how modality impacts language. The groups members come from psychology, linguistics and educational sciences. The group collaborates with the Spanish Sign Language research community to contribute to the documentation and resources available for LSE, as well as with international collaborators working on different sign languages to facilitate cross-linguistic comparisons.

Required skills:

• To be eligible for admission to a PhD programme, candidates must have completed at least 300 ECTS credits through their official university studies, including at least 60 ECTS credits at master's level.
• Carry out research under supervision
• Have the ambition to develop knowledge of research methodologies and discipline
• Have demonstrated a good understanding of a field of study
• Have demonstrated the ability to produce data under supervision
• Be capable of critical analysis, evaluation and synthesis of new and complex ideas
• Be able to explain the outcome of research and value thereof to research colleague
• Academic background in cognitive neuroscience, psychology, linguistics, computational linguistics, biomedical engineering, data science, or a related field.
• Experience with sign language data acquisition, preprocessing, or analysis.
• Programming skills, preferably in Python, and familiarity with statistical or computational data analysis.
• Knowledge of Spanish Sign Language or another sign language.
• Experience working with a deaf signing community.
• Experience with 3D technologies including pose estimation (e.g. MediaPipe, Openpose) and motion capture.
• Familiarity with reproducible research practices and Open Science.
• Ability to work collaboratively within an interdisciplinary research team while progressively developing scientific independence.
• Strong written and spoken English and the ability to communicate research clearly.
• Experience acquired through non-formal training, international mobility, or professional mobility that demonstrates effective communication and adaptability in an international research environment.

Additional considerations (if any):

• No project-specific retention, redeployment, mobility, or previous BCBL membership requirements apply. The position is open to all candidates who meet the funding scheme and EHU doctoral admission requirements. Recruitment will follow BCBL’s equal-opportunity

3. WORKING CONDITIONS

Salary: 21.000€ gross annual salary

Entitlements and other benefits: https://www.bcbl.eu/en/join-us/what-is-like-to-work-bcbl

Training opportunities and Career development plan:

Researchers at any stage of their career, regardless of their contractual situation, are given an opportunity for professional development and for improving their employability through access to a Personal Career Development Plan which includes:

(1) Training through individually personalized research projects under senior supervision

(2) Exchanging knowledge with the scientific community and the general public

(3) Network-wide training in theory and methods

(4) Complementary training courses

(5) Involvement in proposal writing, task coordination

(6) Development of skills for the organization of training and scientific events

BCBL seeks to foster an environment where all talents can flourish, regardless of gender, sex, sexual orientation, age, sociocultural background, nationality or impairments. We are proud to have in place both an LGTBIQ+ Plan and a Gender Equality Plan to actively promote inclusion and equal opportunities. If you have any questions relating to accessibility or support, please contact us. We welcome applications from deaf candidates.

4. OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION:

Language policy

• The corporative language at the Center is English; the Sign Language Group also uses Spanish Sign Language and several team members have working knowledge of International Sign.
• The center provides initial level Spanish and Basque lessons to all the international staff members
• The interview will be conducted entirely in English or, in the case of deaf candidates, International Sign.