Queensland Brain Institute

Join a university ranked in the world's top 50

Collaborate with highly awarded, world-class colleagues

Plan for your future with a generous 17% superannuation allowance

Work at our vibrant and conveniently located St Lucia campus

About UQ

As part of the UQ community, you'll have the opportunity to work alongside the brightest minds, who have joined us from all over the world, and within an environment where interdisciplinary collaborations are encouraged.

As part of our commitment to research excellence, we are proud to provide our staff with access to world-class facilities and equipment, grant writing support, greater research funding opportunities, and post-fellowship contracts via our UQ Amplify initiative.

At the core of our teaching remains our students, and their experience with us sets a foundation for success far beyond graduation. Not only do we have one of the largest PhD enrolments in Australia, but we have also made a commitment to making education opportunities available for all Queenslanders, regardless of personal, financial, or geographical barriers.

About This Opportunity

We are thrilled to offer a postdoctoral research position for an enthusiastic and motivated Research Fellow to join our systems neuroengineering group. If you are interested in experimental or computational systems neuroscience, we welcome you to apply. Projects can be purely experimental, purely computational/theoretical, or a hybrid of the two depending on your interests/skills. If your desired project direction aligns with our research focus, we encourage you to get in touch with us.

Critically, our work and our team are multidisciplinary. You will be exposed to a range of experimental and computational aspects of circuits neuroscience regardless of your background/training. We are committed to your training scientifically and the advancement of your career. To achieve this goal, we cultivate an inclusive and supportive lab culture where people can expand their technical expertise while enjoying science.

Research Topics

We are interested in how neuronal circuits represent information and how this information is transformed and processed within sensory pathways. We focus on somatosensation from the skin to the cortex.

To address fundamental questions about neural coding, we combine rich multidimensional neurophysiological recordings with computational predictions and experimental perturbations. We aim to identify key principles of neural circuit function and explore information processing in neural circuit motifs.

This is an exciting opportunity for a Research Fellow to engage in research to further their expertise and growing research profile to achieve national recognition in their discipline. At this level it is expected that in incumbent will efficiently manage service and engagement roles and activities.

Key responsibilities include:

1. Research

Develop an independent and/or team research program to achieve national recognition and impact in the research area.

Produces quality research outputs consistent with discipline norms by publishing or exhibiting in national research journals, other appropriate refereed publications and conference publications, with a lead role in some outputs.

Participate in or contribute as chief investigator role (often in conjunction with more experienced researchers) in applications for competitive research funding to support projects and activities, which includes actively seeking, obtaining and managing research funding.

Work with colleagues in the development of joint research projects and applications for competitive research funding support.

Contribute to progressing towards transfer of knowledge, technology and practices to research end users through translation, including commercialisation of UQ intellectual property.

Review and draw upon best practice research methodologies.

2. Teaching

Where undergraduate and postgraduate teaching is undertaken achieve teaching quality as indicated by approved surveys and outcomes for students and improve or innovate where appropriate in response to feedback.

3. Supervision and Researcher Development

Demonstrate a track record of the effective supervision of Honours and Higher Degree by Research students.

Demonstrates personal effectiveness in supervision and management and development of researcher capability and skill.

Facilitate engagement opportunities for Higher Degree by Research supervisees

Effective lead and develop supervisee performance and conduct by providing feedback, coaching, and professional development.

Manage staff effectively throughout the employee lifecycle in accordance with University policy and procedures.

Working to promptly resolve conflict and grievances when they arise in accordance with University policy and procedures.

4. Citizenship and Service

Demonstrate behaviours that align to the UQ values.

Shows leadership of self and others through mentoring, collaboration and active participation in priority activities for the unit.

Provide support to other academic positions and unit operations as needed during other team members absences.

Effectively and efficiently manage internal service roles and administrative processes as required, including participation in decision- making and service on relevant committees.

Collaborate in service activities external to the immediate organisation unit.

Actively pursue and develop external links and partnerships by cultivating relationships with industry, government departments, professional bodies and the wider community.

This is a research focused position. Further information can be found by viewing UQ's Criteria for Academic Performance.

This is a full-time (100%), fixed-term position for up to 3 years. At Academic level B. The full-time equivalent base salary will be in the range $104,579.67 - $124,187.99, plus a generous super allowance of up to 17%. The total FTE package will be up to $122,358.21 - $145,299.95 annually.

The greater benefits of joining the UQ community are broad: from being part of a Group of Eight university, to recognition of prior service with other Australian universities, up to 26 weeks of paid parental leave, 17.5% annual leave loading, flexible working arrangements including hybrid on site/WFH options and flexible start/finish times, and genuine career progression opportunities via the academic promotions process.

About You

We are particularly interested in researchers with one or more of the following:

Completion of a PhD in the discipline area as well as a background in neuroscience, engineering, physics, mathematics, computer science, or biology.

Experience with rodent neuroscience.

Experience with in high density extracellular electrophysiological recording techniques.

Experience with 2-photon imaging, and optogenetics.

Experience with behavioural experimentation.

Proficiency in data analysis/programming and a quantitative mindset are essential for success in our group.

A growing profile in research in the discipline area.

A developing reputation and track record of publications in reputed refereed journals and presenting at conferences.

Evidence of successfully seeking, obtaining and managing external research funding.

A growing record of supervision of Honours and Research Higher Degree students to successful completion.

Experience in meaningful internal service roles in conjunction with active contributions to external activities

In addition, the following mandatory requirements apply:

Work Rights: You must have unrestricted work rights in Australia for the duration of this appointment to apply. Visa sponsorship is not available for this appointment.

Background Checks: All final applicants for this position may be asked to consent to a criminal record check. Please note that people with criminal records are not automatically barred from applying for this position. Each application will be considered on its merits.

Questions?

For more information about this opportunity, please contact Clarissa Whitmire [email protected]

For application queries, please contact [email protected] stating the job reference number (below) in the subject line.

Want to Apply?

All applicants must upload the following documents in order for your application to be considered:

Resume

Cover letter

Responses to the ‘About You' section

Other Information

At UQ we know that our greatest strengths come from our diverse mix of colleagues, this is reflected in our ongoing commitment to creating an environment focused on equity, diversity and inclusion. We ensure that we are always attracting, retaining and promoting colleagues who are representative of the diversity in the broader community, whether that be gender identity, LGBTQIA+, cultural and/or linguistic, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples, or people with a disability. Accessibility requirements and/or adjustments can be directed to [email protected]

If you are a current employee (including casual staff and HDR scholars) or hold an unpaid/affiliate appointment, please login to your staff Workday account and visit the internal careers board to apply for this opportunity. Please do NOT apply via the external job board.

Applications close Tuesday 26 September 2023 at 11.00pm AEST (R-29963).