PhD Sourcing Specialist

IMC•Chicago, IL

1d•$100,000 - $150,000•Remote

About The Position

As a PhD Sourcing Specialist, you will be focused on mapping the research talent landscape, building relationships with academics before they enter the job market, creating programs that strengthen IMC’s presence in research communities, assessing candidates against our technical and cultural standards, and partnering with recruiters by delivering strong pipelines. Your Core Responsibilities include Talent Landscape & Market Intelligence, Attraction & Community Building, Programs & Initiatives, and Pipeline Development. You will map the PhD and postdoc talent landscape, track competitive hiring trends, serve as an internal expert on the research talent market, develop and maintain relationships with faculty advisors and researchers, represent IMC at academic conferences, and partner with international recruiting teams. You will also own IMC's PhD-focused programs, identify gaps in engagement, and develop new initiatives. Additionally, you will build and maintain a strong alumni and fellow network, source and pipeline PhD candidates, and develop creative outreach strategies. You will hand off qualified, engaged candidates to recruiters with context, relationships, and momentum already built.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree
4–7 years of experience in university recruiting, talent strategy, research partnerships, or academic engagement programs, ideally within a technical, quantitative, or research-driven environment
Strong understanding of AI/ML research ecosystems, leading research labs, academic conferences, and influential advisors
Demonstrated ability to build authentic, long-term relationships within academic and research communities
Experience identifying and engaging talent through channels such as arXiv, Hugging Face, GitHub, Discord, Twitter/X, and other research and developer communities
Proven ability to develop and execute sourcing programs or strategic initiatives using data, feedback, and market insights
Collaborative approach with experience partnering closely with recruiters, hiring managers, and regional stakeholders in fast-paced environments
Strong communication, organizational, and stakeholder management skills, with a high degree of ownership and sound judgment

Responsibilities

Map the PhD and postdoc talent landscape across the technical disciplines relevant to IMC's business
Track competitive hiring trends, fellowship programs, and academic community dynamics
Serve as an internal expert on the research talent market, regularly sharing insights with recruiting leadership and business stakeholders
Develop and maintain relationships with faculty advisors, lab leads, and student researchers at target institutions
Represent IMC at key academic conferences and research events with a candidate-facing focus
Partner with our APAC and European recruiting teams on shared talent pools
Own IMC's PhD-focused programs end-to-end: our PhD Fellowship, conference travel grants, and lab partnership initiatives
Identify gaps in our current PhD engagement approach and develop new initiatives
Build and maintain a strong alumni and fellow network
Source and pipeline PhD candidates across IMC's technical hiring areas
Develop and execute creative outreach strategies — direct engagement, conference follow-up, research community participation — to identify high-potential candidates
Hand off qualified, engaged candidates to recruiters with context, relationships, and momentum already built