The Mind in Development Lab (P.I. Dr. Maya Rosen) in the Neuroscience Program at Smith College invites candidates to apply for a lab manager/research assistant position beginning August 1st 2024. Our research examines the impact of environmental experience on children’s development. Many of our projects focus on understanding the neural, environmental and cognitive mechanisms explaining disparities in long-term outcomes including academic achievement and mental health.
Under the supervision of Dr. Rosen, the individual in this position will be involved in managing an active research lab and a large NIH-funded study. The candidate will participate in all aspects of the research process, including recruitment of children and families, preparation of IRB applications, data collection from children and caregivers, programming behavioral tasks, and maintenance of a database for participant recruitment and tracking. These duties will primarily focus on a longitudinal study examining the neural, cognitive and environmental mechanisms linking socioeconomic status and academic achievement. Data collection for this study involves acquisition of functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and MRI data, intensive measures of the home environment, and cognitive and academic assessments. Finally, the candidate will Take appropriate actions to support a diverse workforce and participate in the College’s efforts to create a respectful, inclusive, and welcoming work environment.
**Required to be able to work in person on Smith College’s campus**
Essential Functions
Duties and Responsibilities:
- General administrative duties to maintain the workings of the laboratory (e.g., managing finances, lab website, coordinating lab meetings, etc.)
- Recruitment and screening of participants
- Prepare IRB applications
- Clean and organize data for analysis
- Manage undergraduate students
- Maintain databases for participant recruitment and tracking
- Data collection with children and caregivers in multi-modal studies involving neuroimaging, parent interviews, assessments of the home environment, cognitive tasks, and academic and mental health assessments
Other Functions
All employees are expected to participate in the College’s efforts to create a respectful, inclusive, and welcoming work environment.
Minimum Qualifications (knowledge, skills, education, experience, certifications, licenses)
Bachelor’s degree in a relevant academic area (e.g. Psychology, Neuroscience, Education)
Experience working with children (e.g. data collection or clinical experience) is preferred
Experience with task presentation software or programming experience (e.g., Psychopy, Eprime, R, Matlab, Python, Javascript) is preferred but not required
Experience in collecting and/or analyzing neuroimaging data (i.e., fNIRS, MRI, fMRI) and comfort working in a command-line environment (e.g., Linux) is preferred but not required
Experience working with individuals from diverse backgrounds
Additional Information
Please attach BOTH a cover letter and either a current resume or curriculum vitae in order for your application to be considered for this position. The cover letter should include a description of your previous experience, the skills you learned, what scientific questions you are interested in pursuing and your long-term career goals. Please also include the contact information of 2-3 individuals who can be contacted as references.
Review of applications will begin May 6, 2024, but applications will be open until the position is filled.