PhD position "Whole brain dynamics underlying flexible decision making in rodent" at Donders Centre for Neuroscience at Radboud University, the Netherlands We are looking for A PhD candidate for a collaborative project in the groups of Liya Ma and Paul Tiesinga at the Donders Institute utilizing approaches from both experimental and computational neuroscience. You will study Reinforcement Learning (RL) processes in animal models using experimental and computational approaches. The experiments will establish a mathematical model for RL behaviour in mice, identify neural correlates for value-related parameters in the model using in vivo high-density electrophysiology, manipulate the neural correlates, and measure corresponding changes in RL-guided behaviour. The overall aim of the project is to investigate the neural mechanism by which value signals guide decision making. This will inform state-of-the-art deep learning approaches and shed light on novel interventions for psychiatric diseases. Guided and supported by our supervisory team, you will design and perform experiments in mice, analyse data, conduct computational modelling, and prepare manuscripts. You will also have the opportunity to write grants, peer-review journal articles, and contribute to teaching and event organization. We ask * A dedicated, reliable, detail-oriented, and well-organised team player. * Experience in animal behaviour preferred. * Experience in electrophysiology preferred. * Experience with MATLAB or Python preferred. * Good communication and writing skills in English. We are The Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour is a world-class interfaculty research centre that houses more than 700 researchers devoted to understanding the mechanistic underpinnings of the human mind. Research at the Donders Institute is focused around four themes: 1. Language and communication, 2. Perception, action and control, 3. Plasticity and memory, 4. Neural computation and neurotechnology. State-of-the-art research facilities are available for the broad range of neuroscience research that is being conducted at the Donders Institute. The Donders Institute has been assessed by an international evaluation committee as excellent and recognised as a 'very stimulating environment for top researchers, as well as for young talent'. The Donders Institute fosters a collaborative, multidisciplinary, supportive research environment with a diverse international staff. English is the lingua franca at the Institute. Paul Tiesinga's group aims to understand how information is processed in the brain by building computational models of the brain and developing methods to analyse signals recorded from the brain. Liya Ma's group studies how cognitive control processes are supported by cortical microcircuits and network-level long-range communications. You will be supported by the two teams' extensive expertise in high-density electrophysiology in behaving rodents, advanced data analyses and computational modelling. To help PhD candidates achieve their ambitions within and beyond academia, Radboud University provides various career training courses and coaching opportunities. Our groups are deeply committed to the professional development of doctoral candidates. PhD candidates at Radboud University receive a competitive salary with holiday pay, year-end bonus and other benefits. Their partners have access to Radboud University's Dual Career and Family Care Services. Please apply via the link in https://www.academictransfer.com/nl/296962/phd-candidate-in-neuroinformatics... before February 12th to receive full consideration. Best regards, Paul Tiesinga Professor of Neuroinformatics Donders Institute/Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands