FUNDED PhD CANDIDATE POSITION – ACCENTED SPEECH PROCESSING

at the BCBL- Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language (San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain) www.bcbl.eu

  1. INFORMATION ABOUT THE POSITION
  • Position: PhD student
  • Researcher Profile: First Stage Researcher (R1- up to the point of PhD)
  • Number of vacancies: 1
  • Project: Horizon Europe Framework Programme (HORIZON) Doctoral Networks, ‘Bridging Communication Gaps in Human and Human-AI Interactions: The Role of Accented Speech on Neurocognitive mechanisms and Social Dynamics’ (HUM.AI.N-ACCENT)
  • Location:  Spain > Donostia-San Sebastián
  • Research Field: Neuroscience > Cognition and Language
  • Type of contract/Duration of Contract: Temporary > 3 years.
  • Job Status: Full-time
  • Hours per week: 35
  • Starting date: Between 01/01/2026 and 01/05/2026
  • Application deadline: 10/10/2025

Information about the project: 

A PhD position is available in the Speech & Bilingualism research group at the BCBL, San Sebastian, Spain. The successful candidate will perform research on foreign-accented speech processing. Research methods include acoustic and behavioral measures, optionally EEG/MEG and eye-tracking.

The Doctoral Candidate (DC) will be part of an international network of 13 research labs located throughout Europe who work on the EU funded HUM.AI.N-ACCENT project. The full consortium count with a total of 24 academic and non-academic partners in Europe, Canada and the USA. As part of the training, the DC will attend regular events across Europe and will realise short stays (secondments) to at least two Beneficiary/Partner Organizations.

HUM.AI.N-ACCENT is an interdisciplinary research project that explores the neurocognitive and social impacts of foreign-accented speech in human-human and human-AI interactions. With millions of new arrivals to the European Union each year, there is an urgent need to understand how foreign accents influence communication, decision-making, and social dynamics. Research has shown that foreign-accented speech can generate biases and increase cognitive load, yet the origins and consequences of these effects are still poorly understood. The HUM.AI.N-ACCENT project aims to fill this gap by combining insights from cognitive psychology, neuroscience, AI engineering, human-computer interaction, and social science, with lifespan perspectives. Using advanced methodologies like neuroimaging, eye-tracking, virtual reality, and neural tracking, the project will investigate how foreign-accented speech affects neural responses, attention allocation, and social judgments. By studying both human-human and human-AI interactions, the project will provide critical insights into how accents shape communication and behaviour in diverse contexts.

Job description: 

The successful candidate will receive interdisciplinary training in theories and methods for the study of language and cognition, more specifically native- and foreign-accented speech perception and production. This includes many network-wide events and other (international) training opportunities.

The Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language is a world class interdisciplinary research center for the study of cognition, brain and language. BCBL provides a rich research environment with access to many neuroimaging techniques (EEG, MEG, MRI, NIRS, eye-tracking) and different labs to test babies, children, adults and elders. More information about the BCBL can be found at: https://www.bcbl.eu/en

PI and research group: 

Clara Martin, Ikerbasque Research Professor, is the group leader of the .Speech and Bilingualism research group

Dr. Martin research group’s main objective is to explore the relationship between speech perception and production as well as study language interactions in the bilingual mind. The research group investigates factors that impact multilingual speech processing, and how to influence and optimize second language sound and word learning. The group also explores bilingual language control, assessing language interference in multilinguals on the sound, word and sentence level in speech perception and production. The research group also focuses on the impact of orthographic systems on speech sounds and words on perception and production across modalities, languages, and populations.

 

  1. CANDIDATE PROFILE AND SELECTION CRITERIA

 

Required skills:

The candidate should have a Master’s degree (or equivalent) in Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience, Linguistics, or related fields. Previous experience with cognitive neuroscience and/or linguistics, experimental psychology is required, as well as good knowledge of acoustics, phonetics, phonology. The candidate should have strong background in experiment programming and statistical analyses and excellent written and oral communication skills in English.

DCs must comply with the Marie Curie Actions mobility rule:

  • the researcher must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the beneficiary (in this case: Spain) for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their appointment.
  • The researcher cannot already be in possession of a doctoral degree.

Desirable skills:

  • Previous experience in participating in research projects (e.g., data collection, analysis).
  • Experience with acoustic data analysis.
  • Knowledge of Spanish (or willingness to learn) is a plus.

 

  1. WORKING CONDITIONS

Salary: 38.000€ Gross per year (without family allowance); 40.000€ Gross per year  (with family allowance)

Entitlements and other benefits: https://www.bcbl.eu/en/join-us/what-is-like-to-work-bcbl

Training opportunities and Career development plan:

Researchers at any stage of their career, regardless of their contractual situation, are given an opportunity for professional development and for improving their employability through access to a Personal Career Development Plan which includes

(1) Training through individually personalized research projects under senior supervision

(2) Exchanging knowledge with the scientific community and the general public

(3) Network-wide training in theory and methods

(4) Complementary training courses

(5) Involvement in proposal writing, task coordination

(6) Development of skills for the organization of training and scientific events

BCBL seeks to foster an environment where all talents can flourish, regardless of gender, age, cultural background, nationality or impairments. If you have any questions relating to accessibility or support contact us.

 

  1. OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

Language policy

  • The corporative language at the Center is English.
  • The center provides initial level Spanish and Basque lessons to all the international staff members.
  • The interview will be conducted entirely in English.

 

  1. APPLICATION PROCESS

Submission of the application and documentation:

To submit your application, please follow this link applying for “PhD Foreign-Accented Speech – DN” and attach the following documentation:

  • A curriculum vitae
  • A statement outlining research interests and motivation to apply for the position (1 page maximum)
  • Two letters of recommendation (submitted by the referees no lateer than the application deadline)
  • Transcript off recrods for the master and bachelor degrees

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to online interviews.

Learn more about the BCBL’s OTM-R policy

Application process timeline:

  1. Deadline for application: 10/10/2025
  2. Evaluation by committee: 13/10/2025 – 07/11/2025
  3. Interviews: 10/11/2025 – 28/11/2025
  4. Final decision: 28/11/2025
  5. Feedback to all applicants: 01/12/2025
  6. Work contract start date: Between 01/01/2026 and 01/05/2026

Contact details for enquiries:  Prof. Clara Martin (c.martin@bcbl.eu)