Postdoctoral Research Associate
About The Position
The Postdoctoral Research Associate provides scientific and operational leadership for clinical trials in the Movement Neuroscience Lab investigating neuromodulation for pain and muscle function in orthopedic conditions. The lab studies arthrogenic muscle inhibition, treating pain and muscle weakness as co-occurring features that share nervous system pathways rather than as separate problems, in populations including knee osteoarthritis, ACL injury and reconstruction, patellofemoral pain, and knee replacement. The incumbent leads day-to-day conduct of two ongoing trials on pain pathways, collects and analyzes neurophysiologic and biomechanical data, maintains regulatory compliance, and contributes to a research direction on personalization and optimization of neuromuscular electrical stimulation. The position includes support to develop additional research and pursue independent funding within the lab's scope.
Requirements
- Knowledge of human neurophysiology and motor control, clinical trial methodology, and human subjects research regulation
- Ability to independently plan and execute data collection with human participants, manage study data and regulatory documentation, analyze quantitative physiologic data, and communicate findings in peer-reviewed publications
- Ability to work collaboratively across clinical and engineering teams
- PhD in rehabilitation science, neuroscience, biomedical engineering, kinesiology, human movement science, or a closely related field
- Prior research experience involving human participants
- A record of first-author peer-reviewed publication
Nice To Haves
- Clinical licensure or clinical training (PT/DPT, MD, DO, OT, or equivalent)
- Experience with non-invasive brain stimulation or neuromuscular electrical stimulation
- Experience with clinical trial coordination
- Background in pain neuroscience or sensitization
- Proficiency with REDCap and with R, MATLAB, or Python
Responsibilities
- Lead day-to-day scientific and operational conduct of two clinical trials examining pain pathways and neuromodulation.
- Manage recruitment, screening, enrollment, retention, and protocol fidelity.
- Coordinate scheduling and study visits with clinical collaborators and lab personnel.
- Collect, process, and analyze neurophysiologic and biomechanical data, including transcranial magnetic stimulation, EMG, quantitative sensory testing, and isokinetic dynamometry.
- Develop and maintain analysis pipelines and ensure data quality across sessions.
- Prepare manuscripts, conference abstracts, and grant applications as first author and contributing author.
- Develop an independent line of research within the lab's scope and pursue independent funding.
- Maintain regulatory compliance and data integrity, including IRB submissions and amendments, reportable event documentation, consent processes, and REDCap database management.
- Contribute to development and testing of the lab's neuromuscular electrical stimulation platform, focused on individualization, usability, and adherence.
- Train and mentor doctoral and undergraduate students in data collection and analysis.
Benefits
- medical
- vision
- dental
- paid time off
- tuition assistance
- wellness & life
- retirement
- commuting & transportation
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
