Laboratory Specialist, Syed Lab, Department of Pediatrics

The Department of Pediatrics at the University of Virginia’s (UVA) School of Medicine is seeking applicants for a Laboratory Specialist. This is a position primarily focused on performing research tasks and has minimal clinical involvement.

This position will support the research of Sana Syed, MD, MS focusing on understanding gut structure and function in common Pediatric GI diseases using machine learning and AI methods. The overarching goal of the Syed Lab is to personalize diagnostic and treatment plans for pediatric patients suffering from chronic gastrointestinal (GI) disease by identifying better disease biomarkers and novel drug targets. Our ultimate vision is to be able to diagnose disease subtypes and predict future disease complications allowing for individualized insights into specific disease associations. Details about the Syed lab and it’s work can be found at https://med.virginia.edu/sana-syed-lab/ .

The Laboratory Specialist will report to Dr. Sana Syed. For additional information about the position, please contact Adam Greene, PhD, Research Program Manager at: ARG7EF@virginia.edu

The UVA Department of Pediatrics and the UVA Children’s Hospital share a common goal to enhance the health and well-being of children and families through collaborative medical care, education of professionals dedicated to pediatric healthcare, breakthrough research that improves lives, leadership, and community service.

The successful candidate will:

• Demonstrate expertise in troubleshooting problems and recommending solutions.
  
• Have a strong ability to work independently and function well as part of a team.
  
• Pay great attention to detail and take pride in their work.
  
• Have strong organizational and timeline management skills.
  
• Work in a professional manner and have a strong willingness to learn and improve.
  
• Complete data entry, cleaning, and analysis.
  
• Analyze and annotate digital histology slides.
  
• Assemble presentation slides and give spoken presentations to research teams.
  
• Prepare and write manuscripts and assist on grant proposals.
  
• Participate in conducting scientific experiments and performing technical simple wet lab assays; analyzing and assessing interpreting experimental results in the context of the medical field.
  
• Maintain lab inventories and logs.
  
• Organize shipments and deliver samples to various on-grounds collaborators
  
• Communicate with national and international collaborators.
  
• Draft emails and letters for journal editors, program officers, and other individuals.
  
• Assist in the evaluation of research methods, procedures, and techniques based on established objectives.
  
• Provide basic assistance to researchers in manipulating, computing, and analyzing data using specialized statistical computer software. Evaluate experiment results using statistical and multivariate analyses.
  
• Perform library and literature research.
  
• Explain work instructions and may adapt general methods and procedures in order to meet the needs of the research.
  
• Assist in training other staff members on procedures.
  
• Work effectively with medical and undergraduate students to guide projects and meet deadlines.
  
• Travel occasionally to conferences and collaborating sites to represent the lab and its work.
  
• In addition, other duties may be assigned.
  

Minimum Qualifications:

- Lab and Research Technician 1

Education: High school diploma or equivalent

Experience: At least 1 year of lab experience, which may include student experience. Bachelor's degree will be considered in lieu of experience.

Licensure: None

- Lab and Research Technician 2

Education: Associate's degree

Experience: At least 2 years of lab experience which may include student experience. Bachelor's degree in related science will be considered in lieu of experience.

Licensure: None.

- Lab Specialist

Education: Bachelor's degree.

Experience: 3 years of experience. 6 years of lab-related experience accepted in lieu of degree.

Licensure: None.

Preferred Qualifications :

Clinical/epidemiological research experience and flexibility to travel internationally.

Physical Demands:

This position can spend extensive periods of time standing and moving while conducting experiments or obtaining samples. Also requires keyboarding, manual writing, and other bench requiring finer finger manipulation.

The anticipated start date is June/July 2024 and will remain open until filled. Current undergraduates on track to graduate in the spring of 2024 may apply. This is a restricted position with the possibility of renewal dependent upon project need, availability of funding, and performance. This is a non-exempt, benefited position. For more information on the benefits at UVA, visit hr.virginia.edu/benefits.

The University will perform background checks on all new hires prior to employment. A completed pre-employment health screen / drug screening is required for this position prior to employment.

References will be completed via UVA’s standardized process Skill Survey. A total of five references will be requested via SkillSurvey during the final phase of the interview process.

This position is located in Charlottesville, VA.

To Apply:

Please apply through UVA Careers page and search for R0059184.

Internal applicants must apply through their UVA Workday profile by searching 'Find Jobs'.

Complete an application online with the following documents:

• CV
  
• Cover letter
  

Upload all materials into the resume submission field, multiple documents can be submitted into this one field. Alternatively, merge all documents into one PDF for submission. Applications that do not contain all required documents will not receive full consideration.

For questions about the application process, please contact Karon Harrington, Recruiting Specialist, at fak3ph@virginia.edu

For more information about UVA and the Charlottesville community please see http://www.virginia.edu/life/charlottesville and https://embarkcva.com/

The University of Virginia, i ncluding the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician’s Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, are fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff. We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person's perspectives and lived experiences. We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information.