Postdoctoral Researcher

Offer Description

The postdoctoral researcher will be involved in the NCN OPUS 29 project No. UMO-2025/57/B/HS6/01722 entitled “Does pain summation follow arithmetic principles?”.

The aim of the project is to identify the mechanisms responsible for spatial summation of pain and to develop models explaining how nociceptive stimuli are integrated by the nervous system.

The project involves experimental studies with healthy volunteers using psychophysical methods, psychophysiological measurements, mathematical modelling and machine learning methods.

Where to apply

E-mail: w.adamczyk@awf.katowice.pl

Requirements

Research Field: Other

Education Level: PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

1. A doctoral (PhD) degree in Medical and Health Sciences, Social Sciences, or Natural Sciences, specifically in one of the following disciplines: Medical Sciences, Physical Culture Sciences, Health Sciences, Biological Sciences, Psychology, or a related field corresponding to the research scope of the project.
2. Meeting the eligibility criteria for a post-doc position in accordance with the NCN regulations
3. A completed higher education degree confirmed by a master’s diploma in physiotherapy, a medical doctor’s diploma, or a diploma in another related field
4. Research interests related to pain research
5. Experience in conducting basic research on spatial summation of pain and spatial localisation of pain
6. Experience in preparing, conducting and documenting experimental studies involving human participants in accordance with ISO standards
7. Programming skills in Python, in particular in preparing experimental procedures and in data processing and analysis
8. Ability to perform statistical data analysis in R and Python
9. Good command of English, sufficient to use the scientific literature and to prepare manuscripts for publication and scientific presentations
10. Documented research activity, including participation in national and international conferences on pain research, and experience in publishing research results
11. Ability to work in a research team and strong communication skills
12. Independence, responsibility, accuracy and very good work organisation

Specific Requirements

Additional assets:

1. Experience in data analysis using multilevel mediation
2. Familiarity with keeping research documentation in accordance with ISO standards
3. Experience with experimental pain models based on direct-current electrical stimulation controlled by a digital-to-analogue converter (DAC)
4. Willingness to acquire skills in analyses using machine learning, AI and mathematical modelling
5. Authorship or co-authorship of scientific publications in pain research, particularly on spatial aspects of pain

Languages: ENGLISH

Level: Excellent

Research Field: Medical sciences » Health sciences; Medical sciences » Medicine; Medical sciences » Other

Years of Research Experience: 4 - 10

Internal Application form(s) needed: Angielski_postdoc_Pain_Lab_OPUS29_EN.pdf (English) (251.95 KB - PDF)

Additional Information

Benefits

1. Basic gross salary: from 6934 PLN;
2. Seniority allowance: from 0% to 20% of the basic salary (depending on documented length of service)
3. Additional annual remuneration – the “thirteenth salary” (in accordance with the AWF Katowice Remuneration Regulations)
4. Long-service award (in accordance with the AWF Katowice Remuneration Regulations)
5. Work in a dynamic, close-knit team in the friendly atmosphere of a renowned university
6. A variety of tasks and challenges, and professional development
7. Social benefits
8. Access to the University’s sports facilities

Additional comments

Scope of duties:

1. Participating in the design, preparation and conduct of experiments on spatial summation of pain and the integration of sensory information
2. Developing, programming and running experimental procedures within the planned studies, including preparing scripts for stimulus presentation and data acquisition in Python and R
3. Preparing research setups, calibrating equipment, and ensuring the consistency and methodological soundness of the procedures used in individual experiments
4. Conducting experimental studies using nociceptive stimuli, psychophysical methods and psychophysiological measurements
5. Developing and modifying experimental procedures and tools for data collection, processing and quality control
6. Organising and overseeing data management, including preparing databases, data quality control, pre-processing and documentation
7. Performing statistical analyses of experimental data in R, including advanced statistical methods and multilevel models
8. Participating in data analysis and interpretation using machine learning and other advanced analytical methods foreseen in the project
9. Conducting and coordinating a systematic literature review and meta-analysis on the project topic
10. Participating in the development and validation of models explaining the mechanisms of spatial summation of pain and the integration of sensory information
11. Processing and interpreting research results and preparing manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals
12. Preparing conference presentations, posters and materials for disseminating the project results
13. Actively participating in scientific conferences and other forms of presenting and popularising research results related to the project topic
14. Collaborating with members of the research team of the Pain Research Laboratory at the Academy of Physical Education in Katowice on the tasks set out in the project schedule
15. Providing scientific supervision and mentoring to early-career researchers, in particular doctoral students and master’s students involved in the project
16. Supporting the implementation of Open Science principles, in particular study registration, documentation of procedures, and sharing of data and research materials
17. Participating in project management, including coordinating tasks, keeping project documentation, and preparing materials and reports required by the funding agency

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

1. Application for the competition addressed to the Rector of AWF Katowice
2. Personal questionnaire for job applicants (form available on the University website)
3. GDPR information clause for candidates in the competition procedure (form available on the University website)
4. Statement under Art. 113 of the Act – legal acts (form available on the University website)
5. Statement under Art. 118 of the Act – direct subordination (form available on the University website)
6. Statement under Art. 120 of the Act – AWF Katowice as the primary place of employment (form available on the University website)
7. Statement under Art. 24 of the Act – internal reporting procedure (form available on the University website)
8. Documents confirming a clean criminal record (information and forms available on the University website)
9. Documents confirming the required qualifications (including certificates of completed training, internships, workshops and courses)
10. Cover letter describing how the requirements are met and the candidate’s research experience (max. 1 page)
11. Information on notable achievements: scientific publications (published/submitted/planned), including publications with renowned publishers/in renowned scientific journals
12. Information on conference presentations, participation in national and/or international research projects, and participation in university (student) projects

DOCUMENTS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY 15 November 2026 in one of the following ways:

1. signed and scanned, by e-mail to: w.adamczyk@awf.katowice.pl
2. signed with a qualified electronic signature, by e-mail to: w.adamczyk@awf.katowice.pl
3. by post to: Wacław Adamczyk, Institute of Physiotherapy and Health Sciences, AWF Katowice, ul. Mikołowska 72a, Building C, 40-065 Katowice, Poland.

(eligibility for the competition is determined by the date the documents are received, not the date they are sent)

The competition will be resolved by 30 November 2026.

Winning the competition does not guarantee employment in the project
The Academy reserves the right to contact selected candidates only and to cancel the competition without giving reasons

Work Location(s)

• Number of offers available: 1
• Company/Institute: Institute of Physiotherapy and Health Sciences, Pain Research Laboratory
• Country: Poland

Contact

• State/Province: Slaskie
• City: Katowice
• Website: http://www.awf.katowice.pl
• Street: Mikołowska 72A
• Postal Code: 40-065
• E-Mail: w.adamczyk@awf.katowice.pl
• Phone: 601634715