Postdoctoral Research Fellow

About the role

We are seeking a skilled and highly motivated Postdoctoral Research Fellow to join the Fouragnan Lab at the University of Plymouth, UK.  You will work on a UKRI-funded project investigating the Proof of Principle that Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation (TUS) can be used safely with Psychiatric Patients, using state-of-the-art multimodal neuroimaging methods (including fMRI), resting state fMRI and computational modelling of decision related behaviours.

This is an exciting opportunity for a Post-doctoral researcher to undertake and develop high-quality research in a team of internationally recognized leaders in the field. You will be supervised by Prof. Elsa Fouragnan and will work closely with many collaborators from the University of Oxford, UK and Stanford, USA.

The post will be based at the school of Psychology at the University of Plymouth (ranked amongst the 20^th best Psychology research department in the UK), which benefits from access to the Brain Research Imaging Centre (BRIC). BRIC is the most advanced multi-modal brain imaging facility in the Southwest of the UK. It is equipped with state-of-the art neuroscience facilities comprising a 3T Prisma scanner and seven cutting-edge human research laboratories, including a non-invasive neurostimulation lab (TUS, TMS, tES), as well as MR-compatible TUS and recording EEG system.

Our group uses multimodal neuroimaging and neurostimulation coupled with computational modelling to characterise and causally manipulate the spatiotemporal and computational principles of the brain networks underlying human decision making (Fouragnan et al., 2015; 2017; 2019; 2023; 2024; Folloni et al, 2019).

What we’re looking for

You will be responsible for designing and running a combined fMRI/TUS decision-making experiment to test dose and several brain regions related to different biotypes of depression, and disseminating them in papers and conferences. Candidates must have a PhD (or equivalent) in psychology, neuroscience, clinical neurophysiology, cognitive science or in a related discipline. Candidates must have previous practical experience and working knowledge of TUS or other forms of NIBS and fMRI as evident by a strong track record of publications in international journals. You must also have evidence of programming skills and previous experience in using either FSL or SPM analysis software. Applicants must have demonstrated experience working with psychiatric patients in research and/or clinical settings. Previous experience in combined TUS/fMRI experiments as well as computational modelling of decision-making is desirable.

The post is full-time position working 37 hours per week on a fixed-term basis from 1^st April 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter for a period of 36 months due to specialist experience.

Due to the nature of the role, unfortunately we are unable to accommodate working from home.

Informal enquiries may be addressed to Dr. Elsa Fouragnan at elsa.fouragnan@plymouth.ac.uk.  Please note that applications sent directly to this email address will not be accepted. For more details on our research interests visit http://elsafouragnan.com.

For more information on School of Psychology please visit our dedicated webpage https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/schools

For more information about the job and the person specification, please refer to the job description.

Application Process

Please apply online, demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria outlined in the knowledge, qualifications, training, and experience elements of the job description in your supporting statement.

Anticipated Interview Date(s): w/c 17^th February 2025

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