Two PhD positions for the neurocognition of the grammar of visual narratives

The Visual Language Lab within the Department of Communication and Cognition of the Tilburg School of Humanities and Digital Sciences at Tilburg University, invites applications for two PhD positions in the field of psycholinguistics and cognitive neuroscience. The successful candidate will join a research team with Dr. Neil Cohn on the PICTREE Project funded by the European Research Council (ERC). Students on this project will study how the brain processes sequences of narrative images (like in comics) in relation to the sentence structure of languages. Additional information about this research project can be found at www.visuallanguagelab.com/pictree.

Your position 
The PICTREE Project aims to study how the brain processes pictures and sequences of pictures, like in comics. These PhD positions will study how sequences of images combine images together into hierarchic relationships, which allow for storytelling like comics to have complex sequential relationships. This work will require students to blend linguistic theories and psychological research on visual narrative sequencing and sentence structure, particularly syntax. PhD students will design and carry out cognitive neuroscience (EEG/ERP) experiments examining these issues and will be encouraged to additionally contribute to theory-building. PhD students will also participate in weekly lab meetings and seminars, and will assist in teaching courses and advising thesis projects related to their research.

The Visual Language Lab is the research group of Neil Cohn and colleagues within the Department of Communication and Cognition at Tilburg University. We focus on linguistic and cognitive research on language, graphics, and multimodality, especially in comics or emoji, and we use multiple methods of research including theoretical, experimental, and corpus analyses. We try to cultivate a positive atmosphere where all lab members feel part of a diverse and inclusive team environment that includes professors, postdocs, PhDs, and masters and bachelor’s students. We also have a worldwide network of international collaborators and often have visiting scholars spend extended time in our lab at Tilburg. PhD students will be expected to become active members of our local and international scholarly community and aim to become leaders in this emerging field of research. Additional information can be found at https://www.visuallanguagelab.com.

Your profile 

• (Research) Masters degree in psychology, linguistics, cognitive neuroscience, cognitive science, and/or a related field.
• Motivated to carry out cutting-edge research, and have shown an interest in research during their studies (either through doing a Research Masters or conducting experiments already).
• An accessible attitude, can function well in a team, and can establish and maintain interpersonal relations, with excellent communication skills in English.
• Ability to take initiative, be organized, be flexible, and work independently
• An interest in comics, drawing, language, linguistics (particularly syntax/grammar and semantics), and (neuro)cognition.
• Previous experience running experiments with language, pictures, and/or comics examining behavioral cognitive processing and/or event-related potentials (EEG/ERP) is a plus.

Our offer 
Tilburg University offers excellent benefits in a pleasant working environment: 

• A position based on 0,8 – 1,0 fte (40 hours per week). 
• A salary of €2.901 gross per month for full-time employment in your first year rising up to €3.707 in your fourth year, based on UFO profile PhD and salary scale PhD. 
• This is a vacancy for a PhD in accordance with Article 2.3 paragraph 8 sub b CLA DU. You will initially be given a temporary contract for the duration of 12 months.
• Vacation pay of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3%. 
• Over 8 weeks of vacation leave. 
• The opportunity to work partly on campus and partly from home with a home office allowance of €2 per day.
• Reimbursement for sustainable commuting: walking, cycling, and public transport. 
• A monthly internet allowance of €25.
• An options model in which you exchange benefits for things such as additional leave, more pension, a bicycle or personal training at our Sports Center. 
• A moving allowance (subject to conditions). 
• Employees from abroad may be eligible for a tax-free allowance for extraterritorial expenses equal to 30% of taxable salary. 
• A pension with ABP; the largest Dutch pension fund.
• Training in personal development, career development, leadership, education, and research. Or a language course at our Language Center. 
• A work culture in which we embrace differences, everyone is welcome and given equal opportunities. 
• A vibrant campus in green surroundings that is easily accessible by public transport. 

For more information, see our website and the CLA Dutch Universities. 

Tilburg University is an academic, inclusive, and engaged community. Together with nearly 3,000 employees, we are committed to broad prosperity, sustainably, and inclusion. For current and future generations. We develop and share knowledge for the requirements of people and our society. This is how we contribute to solving complex social issues and help society move forward.

We educate our 19,500 students of 110 nationalities to become responsible leaders with knowledge, skills, and character. With our education and research for broad prosperity, we exceedingly focus on themes such as mental and preventive care, an inclusive labor market, the energy transition, and digitalization.

About the Department of Communication and Cognition
The Department of Communication and Cognition (DCC) studies cognitive and social aspects of human communication through a multidisciplinary approach combining careful experimentation with survey methods, corpus analyses and computational modeling. We consist of about 70 researchers covering a broad range of topics relevant for cognition and communication, and this includes approximately 25 PhD students. Core research domains include communication and technology, cross-cultural communication, information visualisation, marketing and business communication, language production, and non-verbal communication. 

Would you like to know more before applying? Feel free to contact Neil Cohn at n.cohn@tilburguniversity.edu.

We kindly invite you to apply before 15 May 2025; this can only be done online. Address your cover letter to Neil Cohn and include: 

• A complete CV, including listing of publications and theses (created drawings/comics also welcomed).
• Cover letter (maximum one page) explaining your interest in this project.
• Contact details of two references.
• Copy of one publication, thesis, or essay as a writing sample, preferably of a related topic.

Letter selection is scheduled on May 19th; you will receive notification from us shortly thereafter. The selection interviews will take place in the first weeks of June. 

The selection committee consists of: 

1. Neil Cohn, Associate Professor
2. Tessa van Leeuwen, Associate Professor
3. Joost Schilperoord, Assistant Professor (retired)
4. Irmak Hacımusaoğlu, Postdoc

You will ideally start working for Tilburg University on 1 September 2025. 

This vacancy has been published simultaneously internally and externally. In case of equal suitability, our preference is for an internal candidate.