Research Associate - Internal Medicine

The University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, department of Internal Medicine is seeking a Research Associate to provide support for research by conducting experimental procedures and performing operational duties in an established research laboratory studying cancer biology. Specific research is in the areas of cancer and sarcoma genetics, the tumor microenvironment, preclinical studies and novel genome editing tools.  
Key experimental duties include in vivo experiments (mouse) involving tumor measurement and harvest, in addition to experiments involving histology, tissue culture and molecular biology.  Key areas of responsibilities include animal husbandry, conducting research activities/experiments, collecting, analyzing and summarizing data, preparing reports, contributing to manuscripts/publications, administrative and project management, facilities and equipment management, and supervision/staffing.  
KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

Research:

Plan relevant hypotheses to test, direct experimental directions; perform research activities based on protocols; critically examine literature to guide future experiments of the research project.

Adapt and perform protocols from the literature.

Read and review articles as directed, in addition to finding relevant literature on own.

Analyze literature to develop hypotheses to test current data and design experimental approaches to evaluate these hypotheses.  

Participate in collaborative research groups; provide data and scientific input to collaborative projects

Experiments, Investigations, Evaluations:

Perform animal husbandry and genotyping for colony of genetically engineered mice.  Monitor tumors in mice, including: measuring growth, delivering therapeutic agents, and harvesting tumor tissue. 

Perform in vitro studies involving molecular biology techniques including DNA, RNA, and protein analysis, and histological analysis of tissue specimens.

Conduct high-quality experiments and evaluate / interpret data leading to grants and papers, including molecular cloning, cancer drug response, and immune responses.

Collect, record and consolidate data.

Track progress of research activities.

Adhere to Quality Assurance protocols to maintain validity and integrity of research data.

Troubleshoot, analyze and propose modifications to protocols; perform complex techniques per protocol; test and evaluate current procedures; develop and implement procedures for monitoring data integrity; present results at team meetings and university-wide symposiums

Collect, Analyze and Summarize Data; Prepare Reports; Contribute to Manuscripts, Publications:

Collect and track, perform data entry for reports and maintain records of methods used. 

Perform statistical analysis of data and qualitative analysis.
Prepare figures and interpret data to contribute to grant submissions and manuscripts.

Present results/finding at team and departmental meetings.

Prepare bibliographies and abstracts for publications.
Administrative and Project Management:

Manage projects across multiple labs with several collaborators, documenting compliances and submitting regulatory documents, including IRB, ACRUF, or similar protocol submissions

Assist in documenting compliance with safety and regulatory guidelines

Facilities and Equipment Management:

Maintain common lab equipment and database of lab reagents/samples. 

Assist with procurement of supplies and materials. 

Initiate purchasing requests, monitor accounts/expenditures; reconcile statements

Supervision/Staffing:

Supervise graduate students, medical fellows, undergraduate and other lab members in experimental design and lab techniques.

Train, provide direction, assignments, feedback, coaching and counseling of employees, student trainees, and members of collaborative laboratories to assure outcomes are achieved.

Assure staff is compliant with UI/UIHC/CCOM policies and procedures.

UNIVERSAL COMPETENCIES

Ability to work with a variety of individuals and groups in a constructive and civil manner while appreciating the unique contribution of individuals from varied cultures, race, creed, color, national origin, age, sex, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Ability to utilize existing resources and learning to achieve or exceed desired outcomes of current and future organizational goals/needs. Able to demonstrate ethical behavior in diverse situations while producing results.

Ability to meet or exceed customer service needs and expectations and provide excellent service in a direct or indirect manner. Ability to effectively transmit and interpret information through appropriate communication with internal and external customers.

JOB FAMILY TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES

Knowledge of formal methodologies, tools and techniques for conducting research, studies and tests.

Knowledge of and the ability to locate, interpret and evaluate research findings compiled and documented by others and use this material to support empirical research.

Knowledge of and ability to utilize tools and techniques for producing well-written, meaningful and usable documentation of research findings.

Knowledge of practices, behaviors, applicable laws, rules, and regulations governing proper research conduct; ability to demonstrate ethical and compliant behavior in diverse situations.

Knowledge of the procedures and programs in place in the organization to ensure employee, student and subject safety (occupational safety, fire, patient, animal, drug, radiation, environmental safety and emergency plans); ability to train others; ability to take appropriate actions in case of emergency.

SUPERVISION RECEIVED

Supervision is received from a designated official. 

SUPERVISION EXERCISED

Functional supervision may be exercised over support staff and students.