Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology :
Cognitive Neurobiology

In order to fill a fixed-term position in full-time (39.83 hours/week = 100%) at the earliest possible date, we are looking for 1

Postdoctoral researcher in Neuropixels recordings, predictive processing, and navigation

The Department of Cognitive Neurobiology led by Caspar M. Schwiedrzik is seeking an outstanding postdoctoral researcher to establish and lead a new research program using Neuropixels recordings in behaving mice to study predictive processing at the interface of vision, space, and navigation. We will investigate how the brain learns regularities in structured environments and uses them to generate predictions about upcoming events. The successful candidate will develop experiments in which mice navigate controlled environments while encountering visual objects or events with learnable statistical structure. The goal is to understand how neural populations represent expectations, prediction errors, and the interaction between visual and spatial information during navigation. This new research program will be part of the lab’s broader cross-species research program on predictive processing and experience-dependent plasticity. Related experiments are conducted in the lab in non-human primates and humans, using electrophysiology, fMRI, (intracranial) EEG, and behavioral approaches. The position therefore offers the opportunity to develop mechanistic experiments in rodents while contributing to an integrated research program within the lab across species, methods, and spatial scales.

The lab seeks to understand the cortical basis and computational principles of perception and experience-dependent plasticity in the brain. See https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.11.30.691163, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-51543-y, and https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.12.17.694881 for recent examples of our work. The postdoc will play a key role in expanding these efforts toward high-density electrophysiology in behaving mice. Experiments will take place at the new research building THINK – Center for Theoretical and Integrative Neuroscience and Cognitive Science at Ruhr University Bochum (https://www.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/think/index.html.en). THINK provides a highly interdisciplinary environment for integrative neuroscience and cognitive science, with dedicated infrastructure for human and animal research, neuroimaging, behavioral experimentation, data analysis, and high-performance computing. The postdoc will join a growing team in the lab, including researchers working on electrophysiology, fMRI, and behavior in mice. The position is funded through the Research Center One Health Ruhr of the University Alliance Ruhr. One Health Ruhr brings together researchers from neuroscience, molecular biology, water research, cancer research, and related fields to study fundamental mechanisms of health and disease across biological and environmental scales.

Scope:

full-time

Duration:

fixed-term, 3 years with the option to extend

Start:

at the earliest possible date

Apply by:

2026-08-17

Your tasks:

Establish Neuropixels recordings in awake, behaving mice
Design and implement experimental paradigms to study interactions between visual object processing, spatial context, and statistical learning
Perform and optimize animal training, surgical preparation, electrophysiological recordings, and behavioral data acquisition
Analyze large-scale neural population recordings using modern computational and statistical approaches to investigate neural signatures of expectation, prediction error, sequence learning, and context-dependent processing across relevant cortical and hippocampal circuits
Visualize, interpret, and present results at lab meetings, conferences, and scientific workshops
Prepare manuscripts for peer-reviewed scientific journals
Develop independent research ideas and contribute to future grant proposals
Contribute to supervision and mentoring of PhD students, master’s students, and research assistants

Your profile:

PhD in neuroscience, biology, cognitive science, biomedical engineering, or a related field
Prior experience with in vivo rodent electrophysiology is essential; experience with Neuropixels recordings in behaving animals is highly desirable
Applications from candidates who are excited to help establish a new research program are particularly welcome
Strong programming (e.g., Python or MATLAB) and data-analysis skills, in particular with large-scale neural population analyses, dimensionality reduction, or encoding/decoding models is desirable
Interest in predictive processing, statistical learning, spatial navigation, visual processing, or hippocampal-cortical interactions
Experience with stereotaxic surgery, chronic implants, histology, and/or animal training is highly desirable
Familiarity with animal welfare regulations and relevant training certificates for animal experimentation (FELASA), or willingness to obtain the required certification, is expected
Fluency in spoken and written English (a good command of English is a requirement, fluency in German is beneficial but not a requirement). The working language in the group is English.

We offer:

Challenging and varied responsibilities with a high degree of autonomy
Team-oriented collaboration within a dedicated, international, and supportive team
A dynamic work environment
An open and inclusive work atmosphere
Fair and flexible working hours

Further information:

The position is salaried and based on the collective agreement of the Länder (TV-L). If the personal and collective agreement requirements are met, the employee will receive pay grade E13 TV-L.

Further information can be found at https://oeffentlicher-dienst.info/ (in German).

The place of work is Ruhr University Bochum.

If the position is funded by third-party funds the employee has no teaching obligation.

Interested candidates should submit their curriculum vitae, a description of their scientific interests with a particular focus on the topic of the project, at least one representative publication and two references. Incomplete applications cannot be considered.

RUB sees itself as a university with an international presence. The campus languages are German and English. Competence in at least one of the two languages and the willingness to learn the other are a prerequisite. RUB provides corresponding free courses for employees.

German language courses are offered by the University Language Center (ZFA) in the field of German as a Foreign Language (DaF). https://www.daf.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/daf/mitarbeitende/index.html.en

The Staff Council has the right to participate in all selection interviews. At the request of a candidate (m/f/x), it will ensure its participation in the entire procedure. Please contact [email protected].

The Ruhr-Universität Bochum is one of Germany’s leading research universities, addressing the whole range of academic disciplines. A highly dynamic setting enables researchers and students to work across the traditional boundaries of academic subjects and faculties. To create knowledge networks within and beyond the university is Ruhr-Universität Bochum’s declared aim.

The Ruhr-Universität Bochum stands for diversity and equal opportunities. For this reason, we favour a working environment composed of heterogeneous teams, and seek to promote the careers of individuals who are underrepresented in our respective professional areas. The Ruhr-Universität Bochum expressly requests job applications from women. In areas in which they are underrepresented they will be given preference in the case of equivalent qualifications with male candidates. Applications from individuals with disabilities are most welcome.

Contact persons for further information:

Caspar Schwierdzik Tel.: +49 234 32 15220

Travel costs, accommodation costs and loss of earnings or other application costs for job interviews can unfortunately not be reimbursed.

We look forward to receiving your application via our online application portal by 2026-08-17. Please make sure to mention the reference number ANR 5847.

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