Postdoctoral Researcher in in Multimodal Neuroimaging and Machine Learning

Do you want to contribute to improving human health?

Our research group offers a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of neuroscience and psychology, advancing fundamental and translational insights into the human sense of smell and its relevance to mental health. You will join a well-funded, internationally visible, and highly collaborative research environment, working closely with leading experts and benefiting from strong methodological, conceptual, and career mentorship. Through active collaborations with prominent international research groups, you will gain opportunities for international exchange and build a strong global research network that supports your long-term career development.

Your mission

We are recruiting a Postdoctoral Researcher to join an interdisciplinary project focused on improving early diagnosis and risk prediction in adolescents with early-onset psychosis, with particular emphasis on schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. This project investigates early neural markers of psychosis by integrating multimodal neuroimaging with genetic and transcriptomic data and applying machine-learning approaches to identify individual-level neural signatures associated with psychosis vulnerability.

As a postdoctoral researcher, you will play a central role in the scientific development and implementation of the project, working with large-scale neuroimaging and multimodal datasets. You will design and conduct neuroimaging analyses, coordinate data processing pipelines, and perform advanced statistical and computational analyses. You will develop and apply machine-learning and AI-based methods for individual-level risk prediction and diagnostic classification, with a focus on disease-relevant neural signatures. In close collaboration with clinical and methodological experts, you will contribute to the interpretation and dissemination of results through high-quality scientific publications and presentations. You will also have the opportunity to pursue your own research questions and further develop your independent research profile within the group’s research program.

Your profile

To be eligible for employment as a postdoctoral researcher, a PhD or a foreign degree deemed to be equivalent to a Swedish PhD is required. This eligibility requirement must be fulfilled at the latest at the time of the employment decision. Completion of your doctoral degree within the last three years is considered an advantage. If there are special reasons, your degree may have been completed earlier.

We are seeking a highly motivated candidate with an interest in applying advanced methods to questions in neuropsychiatric research. The candidate must have:

• A PhD in neuroscience, neuroimaging, medicine, computational science, physics, statistics, engineering, neuropsychology, or a related field
• Strong skills in statistical analysis, programming using Python, MATLAB, R, or similar
• Strong quantitative or computational background
• Experience with neuroimaging data analysis, including structural and functional MRI
• Familiarity with established neuroimaging software packages such as SPM, FSL, FreeSurfer, AFNI, or equivalent tools

Experience with machine learning, multivariate modeling, or data-driven approaches, as well as interest or experience in the integration of neuroimaging with genetic or transcriptomic data, is considered a strong merit. Prior experience in neuropsychiatric research, including schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, is welcome but not required, as domain expertise can be developed within the project. A solid academic track record, demonstrated by publications in peer-reviewed, high-quality international journals, is considered an advantage. The working language of the research group is English, and the candidate is expected to be able to communicate effectively in spoken and written English.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement.

Location: Solna

Read more about the Department of Clinical Neuroscience
Read more about the research group you will be part of

Application

An employment application must contain the following documents in English or Swedish:

• PhD certificate
• A complete resumé, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
• A complete list of publications
• A summary of current work (no more than one page)

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

Want to make a difference? Join us and contribute to better health for all!