Research Specialist 3 - Medical Center

Georgetown University•Vinalhaven, ME

12d•$47,586 - $87,558•Onsite

About The Position

This is a full-time position for a Research Specialist 3 at the Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery in the Medical Center at Georgetown University. The Research Specialist 3 will work on our Pediatric Stroke Project, which studies the long-term reorganization of language and cognitive abilities after stroke in children. The project is funded by a large NIH grant with $1M per year budget and includes a team of researchers (faculty, staff, graduate students, and postdocs) working on an assessment of language and cognitive abilities several years after the stroke, using neuropsychological and other behavioral testing and also functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Participants are recruited from a rare patient population who suffered a stroke in infancy or childhood, compared with age-matched controls who have no neurological conditions. Our aim is to determine how long-term outcomes of pediatric stroke change, depending on the age at which the stroke occurred. The Research Specialist 3 will work with another more senior Research Specialist and with faculty on the project; the Research Specialist 3 will recruit appropriate participants with a recruiting team, arrange and book their families’ visits to the Center, conduct testing and scanning over a 3-day visit, and then analyze the behavioral and brain imaging data. This process includes searching, reading, and assessing medical records of several thousand patients from two major children’s hospitals in order to identify potential participants (done with subsequent review by our neurologists); obtaining past and current medical histories from prospective families; participating in design of our test materials as needed; conducting testing, scanning, and data analyses for behavioral and fMRI data; participating in recruitment from other sites in the Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia; and producing final data analyses and results for publication.

Requirements

Master’s degree in psychology, neuroscience, cognitive science, or a related field (only Bachelor’s degree possible but not preferred), plus 5-7 years related experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience
Academic knowledge of and experience with recruiting and testing neuropsychological populations including children and adults
Clinical and medical background in stroke or brain injury
Academic and working knowledge of statistical analyses and experimental design
Must operate with the highest level of professionalism, demonstrate excellent judgment and problem-solving, be highly organized and reliable, have excellent abilities in time management, possess exemplary written and oral communication skills, and be able to work with minimal supervision
Excellent skills in interacting with children and patients and their families, including maintaining rapport and compliance during neuropsychological assessments that can be lengthy and at times frustrating for the participants
Must be able to safely work in a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) environment, i.e. must not have a pacemaker, aneurysm clip, non-removable ferromagnetic object in or on the body, or have any other condition that would pose a safety risk

Nice To Haves

Prior experience designing and conducting neuroimaging and behavioral research, but training in neuroimaging can be given for candidates with outstanding qualifications and experience in behavioral research is preferred