Postdoctoral Researcher

The Vaghi Lab (www.vaghilab.org) in the Department of Psychology at Birkbeck, University of London, is launching a new MRC-funded project and is looking for outstanding talent!

This postdoctoral position is part of a project aimed at achieving an individual-level understanding of the development and organizational principles of brain circuits that support psychiatric conditions.

As Postdoctoral Researcher you will have significant scope for scientific input into the design and direction of research questions - these will fall within the broader remit of using advanced techniques such as normative modelling and precision functional mapping with dense fMRI sampling to study the developmental trajectories of brain circuits implicated in compulsivity, and to identify the network topologies supporting flexible cognition at the individual level in patients with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

You will work independently, and in collaboration, with other members of the Vaghi Lab, joining a growing team of PhD students, research assistants, and postdoctoral fellows.

You will also join a thriving research community in Psychology at Birkbeck, and you will be encouraged to build your own research networks within the department and at other institutions nearby. You will participate in regular lab meetings, learn about diverse methodologies for the study of neural and cognitive mechanisms in psychiatric populations, and have the opportunity to attend national and international conferences annually.

More generally, you will participate fully in lab life, attend regular meetings and collaborate with other lab members.

To succeed as Postdoctoral Researcher, and a senior role in the lab, you will be responsible and show readiness for academic leadership.

You will have finished, or are about to finish, your PhD in a relevant discipline, such as cognitive neuroscience, psychology or related subject. You will be self-motivated, comfortable with both analytic and critical thinking, and have a strong cognitive neuroscience and imaging background, with an interest in connecting brain data to cognitive theories of compulsivity.

You should also have a rich experience with neuroimaging methods and data collection (fMRI), task design, and good programming skills.

On completion of this post, it is envisioned that you will have gained the organisational, technical and leadership skills necessary for making the transition to Principal Investigator of your own laboratory - that means that during your time in the lab, you will be expected to assist in the supervision of junior team members and will be encouraged to apply for independent research funding, and will become increasingly autonomous over the course of your tenure in the lab.

A full list of criteria is available in the job description pack. Applicants’ track records in research (e.g., of published papers, preprints, presentations) will also be evaluated relative to their career stage.

Salary and benefits
From £44,247 to £50,379 per annum, Grade 7 on the College's London Pay Scale which includes a consolidated London Weighting Allowance. 

Contract: Fixed-term, 2 year contract (subject to extension), full-time (35 hours a week).

Closing date: Wednesday 10 December 2025, interview date: Friday 16 January 2026. Visa sponsorship offered. 

To apply, please submit a single PDF file containing a curriculum vitae (including publication list), personal statement (describing your personal qualifications, research interests and motivation for applying), and contact information of three referees.

Enquiries:

If you would like to know more about the role, please contact Dr Matilde Vaghi Reader in Psychology at m.vaghi@bbk.ac.uk

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