Life in Blacksburg
Blacksburg is often called one of the best college towns in the United States. It offers a safe and welcoming community, an affordable cost of living, and easy access to the Blue Ridge Mountains. Residents enjoy a vibrant downtown with restaurants and cafes, lively farmers markets, and outdoor activities like hiking, biking, and kayaking. Want to explore more about what makes Blacksburg special? Let’s Talk Blacksburg shares local stories and resources. Also, the article Best of Blacksburg & Virginia Tech provides a visitor’s view of the top places, food, and experiences around the area.
Research Environment and Opportunities
The environment at Virginia Tech is an outstanding one for researchers with interests in cognitive and developmental neuroscience. There are also faculty members and other researchers with related interests in other schools and departments across campus, such as at the human development and family study, economics, business, and neuroscience. Virginia Tech has three research-dedicated 3T MR scanners, housed in main campus VTCRC and Roanoke FBRI capable of performing structural, spectroscopic, and functional scans of human subjects as they view and listen to stimuli. In addition, there are peripheral devices allowing collection of eye movements, skin conductance responses, heart rate, blood pressure and respiratory rhythm. There is a full-time physicist who assists investigators with the technical details necessary to conduct studies and a full-time data analysis consultant.
Prospective Graduate Students and Postdocs
Graduate Students: To join the AND Lab as a graduate student, please apply to one of the following Virginia Tech Ph.D. programs: Developmental Science (DS) or Cognitive Neuroscience & Biological Psychology (CNB). After applying, kindly send an email to Tae-Ho Lee to inform him of your application.
Postdoctoral Researchers: If you are interested in joining the AND Lab as a postdoctoral researcher, please contact Tae-Ho Lee via email with a brief description of your research interests, a CV, and representative publications.
In addition, Virginia Tech offers university-wide opportunities such as the Virginia Tech Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship , which provides salary support, research funds, and professional development resources for early career scholars. Applicants considering a postdoctoral position in the AND Lab may also explore this fellowship as a way to enhance their training and career advancement.
Undergraduate Research Assistant Opportunities
We are seeking enthusiastic and dedicated undergraduate students who have an interest in cognitive and developmental neuroscience. As an Undergraduate Research Assistant in the VT AND Lab, you will collaborate closely with other lab members on one or more ongoing research projects. Your responsibilities will include conducting experimental sessions with participants, assisting with data entry, coding, and analysis, preparing project stimuli, and performing literature searches. You may also have the opportunity to participate in neuroimaging (fMRI) research. Research assistants typically volunteer or earn course credit for their work in the lab, as opposed to receiving payment. Due to the training required to become a research assistant in our lab, we request a minimum commitment of 12 hours per week, generally for at least two semesters. If you are interested in acquiring research experience by working in our lab, please contact us at andlab[at] vt [dot] edu
