Doctoral candidate

Founded in 1607, Justus Liebig University Giessen (JLU) is a research university rich in tradition. Inspired by curiosity about the unknown, we enable around 25,000 students and 5,800 employees to advance science for society. Join us in breaking new ground and writing success stories - your own and those of our university.

Support us as of now in part-time (75 %) as a

Doctoral candidate (m/f/d)

in the field of Computational Cognitive Neuroscience

The position is part of the externally funded project " Scene categorization as adaptation to the statistics of the natural world " as part of the Excellence Cluster "The Adaptive Mind" and is to be filled on a fixed-term basis in accordance with § 2 WissZeitVG and § 72 HessHG with the opportunity for own academic qualification at the Professorship of Computational Cognitive Neuroscience and Quantitative Psychiatry, Department of Medicine. The salary is in accordance with the collective labour agreement of the State of Hessen (E 13 TV-H).

The position is funded by the Cluster of Excellence The Adaptive Mind. The goal of The Adaptive Mind is to transform the scientific understanding of the adaptability of human behavior. Further information about the Cluster of Excellence can be found here:

Your tasks at a glance

In your project, you will investigate how humans categorize and understand complex visual scenes by identifying the key dimensions underlying the mental and neural representation of our visual environment

The goal is to collect large-scale behavioral data in an online study (e.g., similarity judgments) and to develop a computational model that adaptively samples visual representations, thereby capturing how internal scene representations adjust to the statistics of the natural world; within this model, the emerging dimensions will be formalized, their relations to objects and scene features characterized, and their predictive power for human behavior evaluated

Further extensions of the research project may include work with neural data (e.g., functional MRI), behavioral adaptation in virtual environments (VR), or cross-cultural comparisons

In the data analysis, existing computational models of object and scene perception may be tested and new models developed

Your specific tasks will include the conceptualization, implementation, and analysis of studies, as well as the presentation of research findings at scientific conferences and in publications

The provision of academic services (including the processing of a research project financed by third party funds on a temporary basis) also serves the purpose of academic qualification.

Your qualifications and competences

Completed university degree in Cognitive Science, Computer Science, Psychology, Neuroscience, Physics, or a related field (M.Sc. or equivalent; near completion acceptable)

Theoretical background in (visual) cognitive neuroscience is an advantage

Excellent programming skills in Python required

Good to very good programming skills in other languages are benefits

Experience with command-line environments, working on servers, and using common tools (e.g., Git, Slurm) is an advantage

Very good English skills in both spoken and written form

Experience in writing scientific manuscripts targeted at international journals or presenting at scientific conferences is beneficial

Ability to work reliably and independently as part of an international team

Our offer to you

A varied position with flexible working hours

Being part of an interdisciplinary and dynamic team that enjoys their work and wants to solve important problems of cognitive neuroscience

Integration into a large community of perception researchers in Giessen, Marburg, and Darmstadt, with large joint projects (Excellence Cluster "The Adaptive Mind ", LOEWE center "DYNAMIC"), with numerous opportunities for qualification and collaboration

Access to excellent scientific and computational infrastructure in a leading centre for visual perception research

Free use of local public transport (LandesTicket Hessen)

More than 100 training seminars, workshops and e-learning opportunities per year for personal development, as well as a wide range of health and sports activities

Remuneration according to TV-H, company pension scheme, child allowance and special payments

Good compatibility of family and career (certificate "audit familiengerechte hochschule")

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact Prof. Dr. Martin Hebart by e-mail ).

JLU welcomes qualified applications regardless of biological and social gender, disability, nationality, ethnic and social origin, religion, ideology, age as well as sexual orientation and identity. The JLU aims for a higher proportion of women in accordance with the women's promotion plan. We therefore particularly encourage qualified female candidates to apply. JLU is certified as a family-friendly university. Applications from disabled people of equal aptitude will be given preference.

You want to break new ground with us?

Apply via our online form by November 25th, 2025, indicating reference number 531/11. We look forward to receiving your application.

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Work Location: In person