Bar-Ilan University | Fully Funded PhD positions at Gonda Brain Institute
In this project we will explore how people build & deploy world models efficiently for planning & deciding. We will also investigate how world model construal & use is biased in anxiety.
Research
Humans excel at leveraging world models to anticipate future states and derive goal-directed plans, capacitites that remain elusive for AI. The Sharp Lab seeks to elucidate the computational and neural mechanisms that support the construction and deployment of these world models, and to understand how their dysregulation contributes to anxiety and other psychiatric conditions.
Resources
Doctoral researchers will have access to OPM-MEG neuroimaging, immersive VR suites, high-precision eye- and body-tracking, and a secure GPU cluster for large-scale computational modelling. The project is backed by more than USE 1 million in dedicated research funding.
Funding
Full stipend and tuition for four years (with possible extension)
Elegibility
- BSC/BA or MSC/M in psychology, neuroscience, cognitive science, computer science.
- Ease with mathematical reasoning. Programming experience is a plus but not required.
Application
- Deadline: 1 September 2025.
- Instructions: please email a CV, cover letter detailing research interests and fit, and contact details of two recommenders to paul.sharp@biu.ac.il.
- Start date: October 2025 (flexible).
Source and more details: https://sharplabbiu.github.io/join/
