Research Scientist Postdoctoral Research Associate

Research Scientist - Postdoctoral Research Associate

University of Illinois

Location: Chicago, IL

Job Number: 7308574

Posting Date: Newly posted

Salary / Pay Rate: $61,000

Application Deadline: Jul 1, 2025

Job Description

The Department of Pediatrics and the Institute for Health Research and Policy at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) are seeking an outstanding Postdoctoral Scholar. This is a full-time position for a period of 1-2 years, focusing on addressing longstanding healthcare and educational disparities for children with developmental delays and disabilities, their families, and their communities through NIH-funded projects which are currently underway.

The postdoctoral scholar will work with the Principal Investigator, Dr. Reshma Shah, and Co-Investigators, Drs. Sarai Coba-Rodriguez, Kruti Acharya, Molly Martin, Alan Schwartz, Amy Campbell, Kate Zinsser, Kathi Diviak, Kristen Kenan, Sage Kim, Sarah Sobotka and Michael Berbaum on two NIH-funded projects: 1) Preschool and Me a hybrid implementation-effectiveness randomized controlled waitlist trial of a medical-educational linkage model and 2) Pathways for Preschoolers a longitudinal cohort study examining contextual factors impacting access to educational and clinical therapies for preschool-age children with developmental delays and disabilities. This is an opportunity to become part of a scientific community that is actively engaged in policy change and ensuring evidence-based supports are accessible, scalable and sustainable. The scholar will play a key role in analyzing school and clinic-based data as well as policy implementation at the local, state and national level. It is also an ideal position for someone who is interested in increasing their publication record and continue their trajectory towards an independent research career. Training and support include the ability to attend relevant seminars and courses, mentorship in grant writing, experience in recruitment and retention of a clinical trial, introduction and exposure to an extensive collaborative network, and the opportunity to mentor undergraduate researchers' independent projects and participate in community outreach. There is opportunity to receive clinical hours towards licensure should the candidate desire.

Responsibilities:

Developing, designing, and executing research protocols

Data collection and data analyses

Communicating with community partners

Preparing research results for presentations, reports, and publications (with opportunities to contribute to grants and publications as co-author)

Requirements:

Ph.D. (by the time of appointment) in psychology, public health, social work, education, or related field

Ability and desire to work in an interdisciplinary and collaborative environment

Proficiency in quantitative and/or qualitative analyses

Interest addressing health and educational disparities among children with a diagnosis or concerns of developmental delays and disabilities

Experience in scientific communication including speaking and publishing manuscripts.

Familiarity with survey design, longitudinal data, qualitative methods and mixed-method study design

Strong communication and organizational skills

Desired, but not required qualifications:

Fluency in Spanish

Experience with working with large datasets

Experience in qualitative analyses