Postdoctoral Fellow

About the role

• Job Posting Title: Postdoctoral Fellow
• Hiring Department: College of Pharmacy
• Position Open To: All Applicants
• Weekly Scheduled Hours: 40
• FLSA Status: Exempt
• Earliest Start Date: Immediately
• Position Duration: Expected to Continue Until Dec 31, 2024
• Location: AUSTIN, TX

Job Details

General Notes

The University of Texas at Austin provides competitive compensation plans plus a comprehensive benefits package that includes: insurance and Teachers Retirement System (TRS) retirement benefits; paid vacation, sick and holiday time off; access to employee professional development and wellness services; the opportunity to qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) federal program; and more.

This position may occasionally require work additional hours or on weekends as needed to complete time-sensitive projects. Postdoctoral fellow positions are temporary positions, renewable annually based on mutual agreement and continued funding.

Purpose

The Postdoctoral Fellow reports to Dr. Maria Croyle in the College of Pharmacy to facilitate a funded research project to evaluate the physical and biochemical properties of materials that sustain the viability of primary cells and established cell lines when stored at ambient and elevated temperatures. A secondary focus will be the evaluation of the performance of a panel of stabilized vaccines (viral, mRNA, protein subunit) after administration in several in vivo models of infectious disease.

Responsibilities

• Perform general experiments, some of which may require design of protocols to optimize and characterize formulations in which vaccines and cells are stored
• Perform in vivo experiments including preparation and characterization of vaccine candidates, collection and processing of samples, data analysis
• Publish and present work in high quality peer reviewed journals and at national/international meetings
• Provide support in writing and preparation of grant applications (NIH, NSF, DOD etc)
• Maintain records of safety and other administrative documents required for continual operation of the lab
• Additional duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• A Ph.D. degree in Materials Science, Bioengineering, Drug Delivery, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Immunology, or other related life sciences. PhD must have been earned within three years of start date.
• Demonstrated ability to adapt to diverse interdisciplinary research projects
• Superior time management, critical thinking, documentation and interpersonal communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to publish novel research in peer reviewed journals.

Preferred Qualifications

• 1-2 years post-PhD research experience
• Experience in aseptic technique, working under BSL II conditions and animal work a plus
• Experience with virus-based assays (infectious titer, neutralizing antibodies)
• Experience in performing flow cytometry with primary cells
• Experience in working with mRNA based vaccines a plus
• Some experience in bioinformatics / analysis of RNA-Seq datasets a plus

Salary Range

• $56,484+ depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

• BSL II Virology Laboratory
• Open office environment
• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation
• Use of manual dexterity
• Ability to lift 20 pounds regularly

Required Materials

• CV
• Letter of Interest
• List of 3 Professional References; at least one must be from a supervisor

Additional information

Important: You will be prompted to submit your Resume/CV in the first step of the online job application process. Then, any additional Required Materials as listed above will be uploaded in the My Experience section; you can multi-select the additional files or click the Upload button for each file. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply.

This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.

Retirement Plan Eligibility

The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length. This position has the option to elect the Optional Retirement Program (ORP) instead of TRS, subject to the position being 40 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

Pay Transparency

The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant.

However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information.

Employment Eligibility Verification

If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form. You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States. Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment. Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.