Research Fellow in Computational Modelling of Longitudinal Cognitive Function Full-time

Research Fellow in Computational Modelling of Longitudinal Cognitive Function

The postholder will work within the Applied Computational Psychiatry Lab (ACP; situated in both the UCL Division of Psychiatry and the UCL Max Planck Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research in the UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology). The postholder will benefit from access to both divisions and the Max Planck Centre, and thereby from contact with a large research community spanning computational methods and development, imaging, behavioural science, developmental psychopathology, psychiatry, neurology and clinical trials involving pharmacology, psychotherapy and neurostimulation.

The UCL Division of Psychiatry, located within the Faculty of Brain Sciences, is a world-renowned centre of excellence in mental health research. Our mission is to improve mental health through cutting-edge research and education. By leveraging insights from basic science, we address clinical problems with the aim of improving patient outcomes and public health. Moreover, we take pride in delivering innovative teaching that is directly relevant to clinical practice and informed by our research. Join our team and help us drive forward the field of mental health research and education.

About the Role

The post holder will join a cross-disciplinary team and conduct exciting, cutting edge research in mental health science. They will lead in developing new approaches to robust computational modelling to characterise cognitive and computational processes relevant to the treatment of mental disorders. The work will focus on developing computational methods applicable to studies in natural settings involving pharmacological treatment variability and neural responses to naturalistic stimuli in clinical settings.

• The post is available immediately and is funded for 1 year in the first instance.
• The post is graded on the non-clinical research staff Pay Scale Grade 7, the annual salary for which ranges from £46,261 to £54,019, including London Allowance.

Appointment at Grade 7 is dependent upon having been awarded a PhD; if this is not the case, initial appointment will be at Grade 6B (£39,807 to £42,891, including London Allowance) with payment at Grade 7 being backdated to the date of final submission of the PhD Thesis.

Any offer of employment will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

About You

The successful candidate will hold or be working towards a PhD in machine learning, statistics, neuroscience, psychology, or a quantitative field and should have a strong background in:

• Decision-making
• Reinforcement learning and / or machine learning
• Bayesian modelling
• Sampling and inference method
• Clinical experience in the field of developmental neuroscience, psychiatry or related fields is highly desirable.

A full job description and person specification can be accessed at the bottom of this page. Please use the personal statement section to explain how you meet each essential and desirable criteria outlined in the person specification.

Please do not upload your photograph on your application/CV.

Contact details:

• If you have any queries about the role, please contact Prof Quentin Huys at q.huys@ucl.ac.uk
• If you need reasonable adjustments or a more accessible format to apply for this job online or have any queries about the application process, please contact dop.hr@ucl.ac.uk

What We Offer

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits some of which are below:

• 41 Days holiday (including 27 days annual leave 8 bank holiday and 6 closure days)
• Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)
• Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan
• On-Site nursery
• On-site gym
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay
• Employee assistance programme: Staff Support Service
• Discounted medical insurance

Our Commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

As London's Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world's talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong.

We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in UCL's workforce. These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women.

The Division of Psychiatry prides itself for operating in an all-inclusive environment. Teamwork is highly valued, individual strengths are recognised and celebrated, and there is a commitment to advancing the careers of everyone, regardless of gender or role. We aim to provide a family friendly environment where both women and men feel able to take the time they need for family. The Athena SWAN Charter recognises commitment to advancing women's careers in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine (STEMM) employment in academia and the Division is delighted to have an Athena Swan Silver Award since 2022. All staff are invited to contribute to EDI initiatives within the Division to contribute to improving working conditions and opportunities for all. Mentoring is a crucial part of supporting career progression and mentoring schemes are available for staff in the Division.

You can read more about our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion here:

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/psychiatry/about/equality-diversity-and-inclusion

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/equality-diversity-inclusion/

Available Documents

• download: Job Description and Person Specification.pdf