PhD Position: Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation and Computational Affective Neuroscience

Radboud University Nijmegen via AcademicTransfer; Nederland; On-site; EUR 36,000 - 45,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Holiday allowance 8%

End-of-year bonus 8.3%

Extra leave days: 30 or 41 days

Job summary

Radboud University Nijmegen invites applications for a PhD position focusing on affective neuroscience and computational modelling within the HEART2ADAPT project. You will work on approach-avoidance decisions under threat, using real-time tracking of brain and bodily signals and transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS) to test causal mechanisms.

The role includes protocol development, data collection, and neural data modelling, with mentoring of BSc/MSc students and collaboration with the

Qualifications

• Pursuing a PhD in neuroscience or a closely related field.
• Experience with computational modelling and data analysis.
• Interest in affective neuroscience and neuroimaging methods.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to protocol development for the HEART2ADAPT project.
• Assist with data collection and computational modelling of behavioural and neural data.
• Apply TUS to model brain regions and test causal mechanisms (offline and MR-compatible online TUS).
• Mentor BSc/MSc students and collaborate with Donders Institute and BIS.

Skills

Affective neuroscience

Computational modelling

Transcranial ultrasound stimulation

Education

PhD in neuroscience

Job description

Psychological sciences » Behavioural sciences

Psychological sciences » Cognitive science

Organisation/Company Radboud University Research Field Engineering » Biomedical engineering Neurosciences » Neurobiology Neurosciences » Neuropsychology Psychological sciences » Behavioural sciences Psychological sciences » Cognitive science Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 9 Nov 2026 - 22:59 (UTC) Country Netherlands Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Not Applicable Hours Per Week 38.0 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

Are you passionate about affective neuroscience computational modelling and transcranial ultrasound stimulation? Come and join our PhD project on approach-avoidance decisions under threat, funded by the ERC Advanced Grant HEART2ADAPT, and work with a dynamic team.

Why do some people remain calm and make flexible decisions under stress, while others freeze or flee? HEART2ADAPT aims to answer this question. We are developing a new model to understand how the body’s autonomic stress state shapes responses to threat and how the balance between sympathetic and parasympathetic activity supports adaptive decision making in dynamic environments.

Using state-of-the-art methods to track brain and bodily signals in real time – such as heart rate, posture and advanced neuroimaging – we will investigate how stress influences decision-making. A key component of this specific PhD project is testing causal mechanisms using transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS), including both offline TUS and the development of MR-compatible online TUS.

Funded by a European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant, the project HEART2ADAPT offers you the opportunity to contribute to protocol development, data collection and computational modelling of behavioural and neural data. You will apply TUS to key nodes of our model, including the amygdala, ventral striatum and dorsal ACC.

You will work closely with colleagues at the Donders Institute and the Behavioural Science Institute, as well as with international collaborators. Responsibilities may also include mentoring of BSc and MSc students.

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.

Additional Information

• We will give you a temporary employment contract (0.8 FTE 5- year contract - 1.0 FTE 4- year contract) 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) or 3.5 years (5-year contract).
• You will receive a starting salary of €3,204 gross per month based on a 38-hour working week, which will increase to €4,051 from the fourth year onwards ( salary scale P ).
• You will receive an 8% holiday allowance and an 8,3% end-of-year bonus.
• 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.

Additional employment conditions

Work and science require good employment practices. This is reflected in Radboud University's primary and secondary employment conditions . You can make arrangements for the best possible work-life balance with flexible working hours, various leave arrangements and working from home. You are also able to compose part of your employment conditions yourself, for example, exchange income for extra leave days and receive a reimbursement for your sports subscription. And of course, we offer a good pension plan. You are given plenty of room and responsibility to develop your talents and realise your ambitions. Therefore, we provide various training and development schemes.

Additional comments

The first interviews will take place on Thursday 26 November. Any second interview will take place on Wednesday 2 December. You will preferably start your employment in January 2027.

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