The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is invested in boosting the participation of underrepresented groups in scientific research. Our group, the Laboratory for Innovations in Health-Related Behavior Change, has an NIH-funded obesity trial and has the opportunity to apply for funding for a research assistant position for someone with an interest in psychological research, and who meets the criteria below.
The research assistant will have responsibilities that include scheduling and conducting participants’ research assessments and managing data. Opportunities also will be available, as desired, for the research assistant to analyze data and prepare poster presentations or manuscripts related to the projects. The research assistant also has the opportunity to be exposed to and involved in other research projects that apply contextual psychology, mindfulness, and acceptance-based interventions to areas such as physical activity promotion and regulation of eating behavior. Candidates should have a bachelor’s degree and have coursework and/or work experience related to the conduct of clinical research. This position is excellent preparation for individuals who wish to pursue graduate study in clinical psychology or a related area.
If interested, please apply by Friday, May 3rd using this link (
http://drexel.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_agzbsgxqwRx48iE), and also email a resume/CV to Lauren Bradley (leb57@drexel.edu).
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The NIH is particularly interested in encouraging the recruitment and retention of the following classes of candidates:
A. Individuals from racial and ethnic groups that have been shown by the National Science Foundation to be underrepresented in health-related sciences on a national basis (see data athttp://www.nsf.gov/statistics/showpub.cfm?TopID=2&SubID=27 and the report Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering, 2007, p. 262). The following racial and ethnic groups have been shown to be underrepresented in biomedical research: African Americans, Hispanic Americas, Native Americans, Alaskan Natives, Hawaiian Natives, and natives of the US Pacific Islands. In addition, it is recognized that under-representation can vary from setting to setting and individuals from racial or ethnic groups that can be convincingly demonstrated to be underrepresented by the grantee institution should be included in the recruitment and retention plan.
B. Individuals with disabilities, who are defined as those with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.
C. Individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds who are defined as:
1. Individuals who come from a family with an annual income below established low-income thresholds. These thresholds are based on family size, published by the U.S. Bureau of the Census; adjusted annually for changes in the Consumer Price Index; and adjusted by the Secretary for use in all health professions programs. The Secretary periodically publishes these income levels at
http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/index.shtml. For individuals from low income backgrounds, the institution must be able to demonstrate that such candidates (a) have qualified for Federal disadvantaged assistance; or (b) have received any of the following student loans: Health Professional Student Loans (HPSL), Loans for Disadvantaged Student Program; or have received scholarships from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under the Scholarship for Individuals with Exceptional Financial Need.
2. Individuals who come from a social, cultural, or educational environment such as that found in certain rural or inner-city environments that have demonstrably and recently directly inhibited the individual from obtaining the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to develop and participate in a research career. Recruitment and retention plans related to a disadvantaged background are most applicable to high school and perhaps undergraduate candidates, but would be more difficult to justify for individuals beyond that level of achievement.
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Stephanie Kerrigan
Senior Research Coordinator
for Meghan L. Butryn, Ph.D.
Drexel University
Department of Psychology
1505 Race Street
Bellet Building, Suite 313
Philadelphia, PA 19102
215-762-4861 - office
215-762-7441 - fax