Postdoctoral Fellow with the Canine Brains Project at Harvard University
Application Link
https://academicpositions.harvard.edu/postings/13832
Position Description
The Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University invites applications for a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Evolutionary Neuroscience Laboratory of Dr. Erin Hecht to contribute to comparative neuroscience research in canids and primates. We are specifically recruiting applicants with interest and expertise in neurohistology, stereology, and other microscopy analysis techniques. Additional projects and training opportunities can be tailored to suit the candidate’s goals and interests, and may include comparative human/nonhuman primate neuroimaging, canine neuroimaging with dogs and foxes, and/or behavior and psychological assessments.
This is a one-year position, expected to begin in fall 2024 or winter 2024-2025, with possibility of renewal dependent upon adequate funding and satisfactory performance. The research will take place in the Evolutionary Neuroscience Laboratory directed by Dr. Hecht and located in the Peabody Museum on Harvard University’s Cambridge, Massachusetts campus.
Broadly, the Evolutionary Neuroscience Laboratory studies how brains change in response to selection pressure on behavior, and how brains acquire heritable adaptations for complex, learned behaviors. Comparisons between modern humans and our living primate relatives provide a way to address this question in the context of our own evolutionary history, while domestication provides an additional window on brain-behavior evolution. The lab uses a variety of experimental and computational tools, such as structural and functional neuroimaging, histology and digital microscopy, and behavior analysis. The lab’s websites are: http://hechtlab.org/ and http://caninebrains.org
The Evolutionary Neuroscience Lab is supported by funding from the National Science Foundation and the Sloan Foundation. There will be opportunities for cross-training and interaction with an interdisciplinary research team including neuroscientists, primatologists, geneticists, and animal behavior scientists.
Basic Qualifications
A doctoral degree is required for this position.
Additional Qualifications
Desired qualifications include research experience in neurohistology. Qualified applicants may also have expertise in neuroscience, psychology, neuroimaging, histology, and/or animal behavior.
Special Instructions
Please submit a letter of interest, an updated CV, and the names of three references. Evaluation will begin at the time the advertisement is placed and will continue until the position is filled.
Contact Information
Professor Erin Hecht
Contact Email
Equal Opportunity Employer
We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions or any other characteristic protected by law.
What an exciting opportunity! Thank you for posting this, Dr. Hecht.