PhD Position - Perceptual Learning in the Human Brain

• To be eligible for admission to a PhD programme, candidates must have completed at least 300 ECTS credits through their official university studies, including at least 60 ECTS credits at master's level.
• A master degree in a research-related discipline (e.g.: cognitive sciences, biology, computer science, experimental psychology, etc; our lab is strongly interdisciplinary and we welcome background diversity).
• Basic programming experience in any programming language
• Fluent spoken and written English
• Good communication skills and ability to collaborate in interdisciplinary environments
• Keen interest in Neuroscience research

• Basic programming experience with Python
• Basic experience with neuroimaging data analysis in Nipype
• Experience designing and conducting experiments using fMRI and/or E/MEG
• Demonstrable commitment to rigorous research practices
• Willingness to develop a combined computational/experimental profile

• The corporative language at the Center is English
• The center provides initial level Spanish and Basque lessons to all the international staff members
• The interview will be conducted entirely in English

at the BCBL- Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language (San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain) www.bcbl.eu

The Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language (BCBL) in San Sebastian (Basque Country, Spain) is looking for a Research Assistant to join its team.

• Position: PhD student
• Researcher Profile: First Stage Researcher (R1- up to the point of PhD)
• Number of vacancies: 1
• Project: Making sense of the sensory world: perceptual learning in the human brain
• Funding sources: Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and University (202 PID2025-169017NA-I00)
• Location: Spain > San Sebastian
• Research Field: Neuroscience > Cognitive Computational Neuroscience and Neuroimaging
• Type of contract/Duration of Contract: Temporary, 4 years
• Job Status: Full-time
• Hours per week: 35
• Starting date: Flexible between 01/01/2027 and 30/04/2027
• Application deadline: 08/11/2026

Perception is extraordinary. We are born with little notion of the kinds of objects we might find in our path. But just by receiving rays of light in our eyes and acoustic vibrations in our ears, we slowly build a fully structured internal representation of landscapes and faces, of speech and music. Perceptual learning is the discipline that aims to understand how do humans and other animals develop these internal representations. Studying this process is important to understand what does the brain know about reality itself, and to devise mechanistic interventions in clinical cases where perception fails, like psychosis.

This project will study how the brain creates internal representations across visual and auditory modalities, assessing their commonalities and differences. Our lab combines computational models with fMRI to develop theoretically-grounded experiments and empirically-grounded theory. This particular project is designed for fMRI, but there will be possibilities for extensions to E/MEG.

Part of this project will be developed in collaboration with the Department of Psychology of the University of Cambridge / MRC CBU and there may be opportunities for placements in Cambridege.

This is a fantastic opportunity for students with a background in cognitive neuroscience who want to extend their skillset to computational modelling, or for computational neuroscientists who want to learn human neuroimaging.

• Designing and conducting experimental research in cognitive neuroscience
• Deploying and refining existing computational models of perceptual learning
• Writing research papers in collaboration with the PI, aiming to publish at top-tier journals
• Dissemination of results at international scientific conferences
• Assisting in the supervision of Master students