About
The Iowa Neuroscience Specialty Program in Research Education (INSPIRE) has up to seven post-doctoral training positions within the University of Iowa Department of Psychiatry. The two-year fellowship program, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, is designed to train fellows who are dedicated to a career in neuroscience research. Fellows work alongside a University of Iowa senior investigator based on their research interest. Faculty mentors specialize in a wide range of research topics including:
- Neuroimaging
- Neuromodulation
- Computational psychiatry
- Genetics
- Pharmacology
- Cognitive neuroscience
- Molecular biology
INSPIRE's training focus is in Translational Neuroscience Research of Psychiatry with an emphasis on a lifespan trajectory. The program stresses the acquisition and application of research skills in neuroscience technologies to examine the mechanisms of and treatment approaches for major mental illnesses.
INSPIRE's goals include:
- Select outstanding recent neuroscience PhD graduates and/or newly graduated physicians from psychiatry residency programs from across the nation that have a heart for translational neuroscience research.
- Provide INSPIRE postdocs with financial support, scientific mentorship, didactic training, a collaborative institutional environment, and challenging research questions to develop independent careers in translational neuroscience research.
The UI’s Department of Psychiatry is a national leader in research that investigates the causes of mental illnesses and new treatment options. Here is some of the work being done in our research centers and labs:
- Iowa Neuroimaging Consortium
- The Center for Neurodegeneration
- Iowa Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation
- Hawkeye Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center
- Molecular Psychiatry Division
- Iowa Institute for Biomedical Imaging
- Iowa Institute of Human Genetics
- Research Programs of Excellence: Schizophrenia, Autism, Alzheimer's, Lewy Body, Neuroplasticity in the Human Brain
Fellows get to choose their research specialization and select with whom they work. Over 30 faculty members are committed to training new fellows and making sure they succeed. Trainees will work in a collaborative environment, both in the lab and in clinical settings, to receive a well-rounded training experience. They also have access to professionals in multiple departments and disciplines, including psychiatry, neurology, psychology, computer science, engineering, and radiology.
Benefits: