Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Social Work

Details

Posted: 16-May-24

Location: Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts

Type: Full-time

Salary: Open

Categories:

Staff/Administrative

Internal Number: 8797

Boston College Introduction

Founded in 1863, Boston College is a Jesuit, Catholic university located six miles from downtown Boston with an enrollment of 9,484 full-time undergraduates and 5,250 graduate and professional students. Ranked 35 among national universities, Boston College has 888 full-time and 1,281 FTE faculty, 2,711 non-faculty employees, an operating budget of $1.4 billion, and an endowment in excess of $3.5 billion.

Job Description

Competitive salary commensurate with relevant experience.

The Postdoctoral Research Fellow will work under the direction of Dr. Kirsten Davison on theFathers & Families study. Funded by National Institution of Child Healthand Development (NICHD), Fathers & Families is oneof the largest studies to date tocomprehensively examine the role of fathers in childhood obesity prevention. Thestudy leverages an existing cohort of adults (the Growing Up Today Study, GUTS),combined with a new cohort of fathers of color, to build a diverse, national cohortof more than 1000 biological, adoptive and social fathers with preschool-agedchildren (ages 1-6 years) and their co-parents. Fathers & Familieswill provide new knowledge on: the role of fathers on young children's emergingdiet and physical activity behaviors; the interplay between fathers' andmothers' health-related parenting on children's health and growth outcomes; andthe role of contextual factors such as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs),mental health and co-parenting quality on fathers' health-related parenting and,in turn, children's health and growth outcomes. Data collection for Fathers& Families concluded in May 2024; the final data set includes data for morethan 1,000 fathers, their co-parents and children assessed annually for up tothree years.
Asa member of a vibrant and diverse research team, including investigators, studentsand research staff from Boston College and collaborating institutions, the postdoctoralfellow will be primarily responsible for overseeing the integrity of theresearch data, serving as the primary data analyst, preparing researchpublications and supporting students and collaborators in their use of the data.
Thesuccessful candidate will have a PhD in nutrition, public health, psychology, ora related field and to have four or more years of experience with childhoodobesity prevention research, or child and family health research more broadly. Extensiveexperience with the analysis of large quantitative data sets, using R, andstrong writing skills are expected.
Thisposition is available starting June 1, 2024. Pending a one-year review,appropriate work authorization documentation and funding availability, it isexpected that the position will be available for up to 2 years. This is afunded full-time research position. While Dr. Davison will provide professionalmentorship and direction on responsibilities and deliverables, the trainee willwork independently and have considerable latitude in determining timeallocation to tasks and the process to achieve expected outcomes.

Requirements

• APhD in nutrition, public health, psychology, social work or a related field isrequired.
• The trainee will have significant experience cleaningand analyzing quantitative, longitudinal data using R studio. Evidence ofsuccessfully publishing research related to childhood obesity prevention in reputablepeer-reviewed journals is also expected.
• The trainee will have 4 or more years ofexperience conducting research, including data analysis and manuscriptpreparation.
  

Closing Statement

Boston College offers a broad and competitive range of benefits depending on your job classification eligibility:

• Tuition remission for Employees
• Tuition remission for Spouses and Children who meet eligibility requirements
• Generous Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• Low-Cost Life Insurance
• Eligibility for both University-Funded 401k and Employer-Sponsored 403b Retirement Plans
• Paid Holidays Annually
• Generous Sick and Vacation Pay
• Additional benefits can be found on https://www.bc.edu/employeehandbook

Boston College conducts pre-employment background checks as part of the hiring process.

Boston College is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer. In concert with our Jesuit, Catholic mission, Boston College is dedicated to the goal of building a culturally diverse and pluralistic faculty and staff committed to teaching and working in a multicultural environment and strongly encourages applications for women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, and covered veterans. To learn more about how BC supports diversity and inclusion throughout the university please visit the Office for Institutional Diversity at https://www.bc.edu/diversity .

Boston College's Notice of Nondiscrimination can be viewed at https://www.bc.edu/nondiscrimination .