[MATHLINK] PhD opportunities at the University of Massachusetts Amherst

[Joonkoo Park]

Dear Colleagues,


Please help us circulate the message. Apologies for cross postings.


The Cognition and Cognitive Neuroscience Graduate Program
<https://www.umass.edu/psychological-brain-sciences/research/cognition-and-cognitive-neuroscience>
at the University of Massachusetts Amherst <https://www.umass.edu/> is
recruiting PhD students to start in fall 2026. Across different labs, we
study various aspects of cognition including attention, categorization,
decision-making, memory, multisensory perception, numerical cognition,
psycholinguistics, reading, and visual cognition. Our program overall is
committed to rigorous quantitative analyses and computational approaches to
illustrate theories and interpret experimental data. There is a high level
of collaboration across labs within our program, within the department, and
across different departments. Our graduate students are funded through a
mix of research assistantships, teaching assistantships, and fellowships.

Among faculty members within the Cognitive program, the following are
actively reviewing graduate applications for fall 2026.

*Dr. Lauren Aulet* <Cognitive and Neural Development Lab;
https://www.auletlab.com> studies the development of high-level perception
and cognition, such as numerical cognition, mental rotation, and intuitive
physics. Dr. Aulet’s lab works with both children and adult participants,
and uses behavioral (psychophysics, eye-tracking) and neuroimaging methods
(fMRI). Candidates will ideally have programming skills and/or experience
working with kids, and a general interest in the cognitive and neural
mechanisms underlying perception and development.

*Dr. Andrew Cohen* <Reasoning, Decision Making, and Computational Modeling
Lab, https://websites.umass.edu/rdcl> studies how fundamental cognitive
processes, such as memory and decision making, drive human behavior. The
current focus addresses the application of these processes to choice,
eyewitness lineups, and fingerprint analysis. Computational models are used
to instantiate theories, improve procedures, and develop measurement tools.
Competitive candidates can come from any background, but should possess
scientific curiosity and strong quantitative skills.

*Dr. Joonkoo Park* <Cognitive & Developmental Neuroscience Lab,
https://www.codeneuro.net> is most interested in studying foundational
cognitive capacities for uniquely human conceptual representations. His
current research specializes in numerical cognition using integrated
methods, including psychophysical, developmental, neuroimaging (fMRI &
EEG), and computational modeling approaches. Candidates interested in
fundamental cognitive science questions with strong quantitative skills are
particularly encouraged to apply.

*Dr. Benjamin Pitt* <Cognitive Construction Lab,
https://cognitiveconstructionlab-com.l.ink> studies how people's minds are
actively shaped by their everyday experiences, leading people in different
contexts to think in systematically different ways, even about fundamental
concepts like space, time, and numbers. To do this, Dr. Pitt conducts
behavioral experiments with children and adults across cultures, including
indigenous groups living in the Amazon. Grad applicants should have
excellent written and oral communication, quantitative and technical skills
(i.e. basic statistics in R, programming), organizational abilities, and
motivation to learn. The most competitive candidates will also have
relevant research experience in cognitive science or related fields. See
this FAQ
<https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pt4h_n29Sxo0uCezAVwsrHNnwFv_pir4q-1JQYTAl40/edit?usp=sharing>
for more.

The deadline is Dec 1, 2025. For instructions to apply, please see:
https://www.umass.edu/psychological-brain-sciences/graduate/cognition-and-cognitive-neuroscience/how-apply.
For additional questions about our program, please contact our Program
Head, Professor Kyle Cave at kcave at psych.umass.edu.


Best,

Joon

Joonkoo Park, Ph.D. (he/him)
Associate Professor & Honors Faculty
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences
Commonwealth Honors College
University of Massachusetts at Amherst
http://www.joonkoo.org
https://www.codeneuro.net/
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