Carolien Zeetsen

183 APPENDIX Donders graduate school for cognitive neuroscience A Donders graduate school for cognitive neuroscience For a successful research Institute, it is vital to train the next generation of young scientists. To achieve this goal, the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour established the Donders graduate School for Cognitive Neuroscience (DGCN), which was officially recognised as a national graduate school in 2009. The Graduate School covers training at both Master’s and PhD level and provides an excellent educational context fully aligned with the research programme of the Donders Institute. The school successfully attracts highly talented national and international students in biology, physics, psycholinguistics, psychology, behavioural science, medicine and related disciplines. Selective admission and assessment centres guarantee the enrolment of the best and most motivated students. The DGCN tracks the career of PhD graduates carefully. More than 50% of PhD alumni show a continuation in academia with postdoc positions at top institutes worldwide, e.g. Stanford University, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, UCL London, MPI Leipzig, Hanyang University in South Korea, NTNU Norway, University of Illinois, North Western University, North–eastern University in Boston, ETH Zürich, University of Vienna etc.. Positions outside academia spread among the following sectors: specialists in a medical environment, mainly in genetics, geriatrics, psychiatry and neurology. Specialists in a psychological environment, e.g. as specialist in neuropsychology, psychological diagnostics or therapy. Positions in higher education as coordinators or lecturers. A smaller percentage enters business as research consultants, analysts or head of research and development. Fewer graduates stay in a research environment as lab coordinators, technical support or policy advisors. Upcoming possibilities are positions in the IT sector and management position in pharmaceutical industry. In general, the PhDs graduates almost invariably continue with high–quality positions that play an important role in our knowledge economy. For more information on the DGCN as well as past and upcoming defences please visit: http://www.ru.nl/donders/graduate-school/phd/