Unconventional Way I Found an RA Job

[PsyStudent925]

Hi All,

For those of you considering RA positions prior to applying for clinical PhD programs, I wanted to share an unconventional way (suggested by my undergrad clinical adviser) that I obtained my first RA job. FYI- my employer at this position was highly impressed by my response when they asked how I had heard about their study.

On the NIH (National Institutes of Health) website, they list extramural grant awards by state. http://report.nih.gov/award/State/state08.cfm

Select your state, and it will tell you all of the NIH grants in that state, the location, PI, grant award, and study title. It includes all studies, but just search the page for key words that are interesting to you. Contact info isn't listed, but with a little detective work you should be able to track down an appropriate e-mail. Obviously this isn't the same as searching for open positions, but you may manage to catch someone who actually is hiring or about to hire. Good luck. This was the way I got my first of 3 RA jobs, and now I'm attending a clinical PhD program in the Fall!

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[psychmama]

Great tip! Thanks.

 

[Boston2k]

Very innovative, good tip!

 

[ladysky61]

I did something similar to find an summer RA position! I searched the hospitals in my area.

 

[LM02]

The NIH CRISP database is a more user-friendly way of doing the same thing. You can search by location, institution, type of grant, etc.

http://www.crisp.cit.nih.gov

 

[Ollie123]

The NIH CRISP database is a more user-friendly way of doing the same thing. You can search by location, institution, type of grant, etc.

http://www.crisp.cit.nih.gov

CRISP is a lovely resource for many reasons for those who aren't familiar.
I used it when applying to grad schools to find out who had a solid track record of funding. Its by no means the only marker of faculty quality since many great work does not require a grant in order to get it done, but its one more data point to consider along with everything else - all things being equal, someone who brings in lots of grants is probably the better choice just because of the resources you may have available. Its great when you're still trying to decide where to apply to find out if faculty have ongoing projects that haven't been published yet that fit well with what you are interested in. Or for that matter, if faculty have a lot of projects that DON'T fit with their past work indicating they may have shifted their focus. Its one more thing to check on before starting a study to make sure someone else doesn't have one in progress that might scoop you (though the majority of funded projects are probably way beyond the scope of the average thesis or dissertation). I also think its useful for everyone, but especially those in academia, to have an idea of what the "hot" areas are right now to stay ahead of the curve and plan for future directions. Its just one data point, but it can give you a sense of the bigger picture of where your area is going by reading some brief descriptions of the major active studies.

 

[researchgirl]

If you are interested in working in Washington DC and gaining experience in health/cancer psychology research, this is an excellent place to work:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wl/jo...656&jobSummaryIndex=1&agentID=&QUICK_SEARCH=1

The job title says project coordinator, but it's a research assistant job. Any May graduates or other people looking for research to prep them for graduate school should take a look.

 

[PsyStudent925]

I should also add that I currently live near Stanford University and there are tons of paid RA positions available there. Go to the Stanford Jobs website to view the openings, and you can limit your search to "Social Science Research." However, the cost of living is ridiculously high, so be prepared if you look into it.

 

[psychanxiety]

I also want to tell people not to despair if you don't find a job immediately. When I was applying for jobs 2 years ago, I didn't get any offers until 2 days before I graduated from college (mid-May)! The job I ended up taking didn't even put up an ad until the first week of May. So you need to keep looking over and over and get creative- find treatment centers in your area and call them to see if they need volunteers (great stepping stone) or employees. I have another friend who didn't find a job until August.