Tenure Track - 530080

The University of Alabama•Alabama, AL

11d

About The Position

The University of Alabama's newly established Department of Translational Science and Medicine within the College of Community Health Sciences (CCHS) is seeking a dynamic and innovative faculty member with a passion for revolutionizing medicine. This is a unique opportunity to build an independent research program at the exciting intersection of quantitative pharmacology, drug disposition, and translational medicine. We seek an exceptional scientist or clinician-scientist with a Ph.D., MD, Pharm.D., or equivalent advanced degree who possesses deep expertise in Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics (DMPK) and Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic (PBPK/PKPD) modeling. The successful candidate will establish an innovative, extramurally funded research program that utilizes mechanistic modeling and simulation to optimize drug exposure, evaluate drug-drug interactions, predict human pharmacokinetics, and bridge fundamental preclinical discovery with real-world clinical application. Appointments to the faculty of The University of Alabama are based on the personnel requirements of the University’s academic programs and on the goal of achieving and maintaining excellence in its teaching, research, and service/academic citizenship activities. The newly established Department of Translational Science and Medicine is seeking a faculty member to significantly contribute to the department's mission of accelerating therapeutic translation through quantitative and computational methodology. The ideal candidate will leverage their mathematical and biological expertise to predict how advanced therapeutics, biological modalities, and complex delivery systems behave within living systems. Key Research Focus Areas: a) Establishing programs that utilize PBPK, population PK, and quantitative systems pharmacology (QSP) to bridge fundamental biological principles with clinical outcomes. b) Driving the translation of novel therapeutics by predicting human pharmacokinetics, optimizing dosing regimens, and conducting virtual population simulations for complex or special populations. c) Evaluating the systemic in vivo performance, biodistribution, clearance, and targeted delivery kinetics of novel modalities and advanced drug formulations. Interdisciplinary Integration & Impact: While this position focuses on quantitative modeling rather than active clinical practice, the successful candidate will be expected to interface with the broader CCHS and university research ecosystem to: 1) Serve as the department's quantitative expert, helping to define drug disposition challenges and target profile attributes early in the translational pipeline. 2) Translate in vitro and preclinical in vivo DMPK data into predictive, clinically relevant models that ensure therapeutic viability and streamline the regulatory pathway. 3) Utilize data-driven simulations to better understand variability in drug response, ultimate informing safer and more effective clinical translation within health systems.

Requirements

A Ph.D., MD, Pharm.D., or equivalent advanced degree (including dual degrees such as MD/Ph.D. or Pharm.D./Ph.D.) in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacology, Biomedical Engineering, Biostatistics, or a closely related quantitative discipline.
Two-Four years of productive postdoctoral, residency, or industrial experience in PKPD/PBPK modeling, with a strong track record of peer-reviewed publications demonstrating expertise in translational modeling and simulation.
Advanced proficiency with industry-standard modeling software.

Nice To Haves

Evidence of successful collaboration bridging quantitative modeling with laboratory or clinical research datasets.
Experience applying PKPD/PBPK modeling to complex scenarios, such as targeted nanomedicines, biologics, cell/gene therapies, or chronic disease models.
Proven ability to communicate fluently across distinct scientific languages, bridging the gap between computational/mathematical principles and biomedical/clinical concepts.
Ability to develop and teach courses that link the mathematical principles of drug disposition directly to clinical efficacy, safety, and disease pathophysiology.

Responsibilities

Establish and maintain a robust, innovative, and externally funded research program focused on DMPK, PBPK/PKPD modeling, and translational quantitative pharmacology.
Actively pursue and secure extramural funding from agencies such as the NIH, FDA, NSF, or private foundations and pharmaceutical industry partnerships.
Publish high-impact research findings in peer-reviewed journals and present work at national and international scientific conferences.
Collaborate with formulation, product development, computational, basic science, and clinical research teams across the university and with external partners.
Develop and teach courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels that integrate pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, biopharmaceutics, and computational modeling with pathophysiological principles.
Mentor and train undergraduate students, graduate students (Ph.D./MS), postdocs, and junior researchers, cultivating a collaborative and highly quantitative laboratory environment.
Contribute to departmental, college, and university committees, and serve the broader scientific community via peer review and professional society engagement (e.g., ISoP, ASCPT, AAPS).

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