Postdoc Position: Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience

Postdoc Position: Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience

Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences

Leipzig, Germany

About the position

We invite applications for a fully funded 4-year postdoctoral position funded by DFG for an outstanding early-career researcher to join the team of Christian Doeller at the Department of Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences (MPI-CBS), Leipzig, Germany.

You will work at the forefront of cognitive neuroscience in a highly interdisciplinary and international environment, with access to world-class facilities and a vibrant scientific community.

Project for this call

This position is embedded in a forthcoming Leibniz Prize project that builds directly on our lab’s work on cognitive maps and the hippocampal–entorhinal system. The project investigates how spatial coding principles extend beyond traditional domains (e.g., navigation and memory) to support social cognition and belief formation.

A central aim of this project group is to develop a neurocognitive account of how spatial mapping mechanisms give rise to social cognition and belief formation, and how these processes may underlie systematic cognitive biases. In doing so, the project extends core neuroscientific principles toward a neuroscience of social understanding while maintaining a strong emphasis on mechanistic explanation.

By linking individual-level neural computations to higher-level cognitive and collective phenomena, this research bridges cognitive and computational neuroscience and social psychology within a unified framework.

What we seek

We are looking for outstanding early-career scientists who bring fresh ideas, deep curiosity, and a collaborative mindset.

You should have:

• A PhD in cognitive neuroscience, psychology, biology, computer science, physics, or a related field;
• Expertise or strong interest in social cognition;
• Solid expertise in cognitive neuroscience methods;
• Strong programming skills;
• Excellent academic track record;
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively;
• We value scientific ambition, creativity, openness, and strong communication skills.