The RIKEN Centre for Interdisciplinary Theoretical and Mathematical Sciences (iTHEMS; ithems.riken.jp), located near Tokyo, Japan, is currently accepting applications for the 2026 Special Postdoctoral Researcher (SPDR) programme.
SPDRs are for 3 years, with an expected start date between April 1st, 2026 and March 31st, 2027 (next year).SPDRs are fully independent researchers and are expected to design and lead their own projects. In addition to salary and other benefits, each SPDR receives a budget of 1,000,000 JPY per year, with further funds available (see site for details). SPDRs are also eligible to apply for their own internal and external, domestic and international grants and other funding opportunities.
More details about RIKEN's SPDR programme can be found here:
https://www.riken.jp/en/careers/programs/spdr/career2026/
Within RIKEN, the iTHEMS Centre promotes interdisciplinary collaborations among theoretical and numerical scientists from diverse fields including mathematics, physics, biology, computer science, etc. Interactions are encouraged through daily activities such as journal clubs, seminar series, study/working groups, workshops, and international research collaborations. Any researcher can propose new activities around any topic of common interest.
SPDR candidates interested in being hosted in iTHEMS should contact their potential host prior to submitting their application. Of most relevance to this mailing lists are the iTHEMS laboratories of:
Catherine Beauchemin (biophysics/math biology)
https://ithems.riken.jp/en/members/catherine-beauchemin
cbeau@riken.jp
Leo Speidel (Mathematical Genomics)
https://ithems.riken.jp/en/members/leo-speidel
leo.speidel@riken.jp
In addition, you might be interested to contact iTHEMS members Dr. Gen Kurosawa (circadian rhythms), Dr. Ryosuke Iritani (ecology and evolution), Dr. Kyosuke Adachi (biophysics/active matter), Dr. Eiryo Kawakami (medical mathematics/AI) or any other iTHEMS researcher for potential collaborations.
A full list of iTHEMS researchers with whom you might wish to establish a collaboration prior to submitting your application can be found here:
https://ithems.riken.jp/en/members
A full list of RIKEN researchers able to host SPDRs within and beyond iTHEMS can be found here:
https://www.riken.jp/medialibrary/riken/careers/programs/spdr/career2026/host_lab.pdf
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Deadline for registering basic information
2025, April 3, Thursday, 5 p.m. (JST)
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Deadline for revising/uploading documents & letters of reference
2025, April 10, Thursday, 5 p.m. (JST)
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