Sharna is a cognitive neuroscientist, and is interested in how our life experiences change our brains. Her lab has two primary research programs, the first, focused on understanding how our brains use energy to drive our thoughts, and how this changes across the lifespan with our life experiences. In the second research program, her lab explores how being a parent confers resilience to the ageing process. Her research lab is highly interdisciplinary in its approach, bridging classic cognitive psychology with novel biomedical imaging methodologies, philosophy of the self and mind, ageing neuroscience, and women's health, to understand the brain. Her lab has been fortunate to have been supported by $12M in competitive funding from the ARC and NHMRC.

Sharna is also Deputy Director and Head of Clinical Research at Monash Biomedical Imaging, an imaging technology research platform that provides the biomedical research community access to world-class imaging technology. Clinical imaging at the platform is highly optimised to support neuro, cardiac, and whole-body imaging, and her team manages broad technologies from high gradient strength 3T MRI, PET/MR, total body PET, EEG, neurostimulation and psychophysiology laboratories.

Sharna is a passionate advocate for diversity in STEM, enjoys mentoring junior scientists, and is committed to public outreach to share scientific discoveries to the general public.

Dr Sharna Jamadar is a Superstar of STEM.