Research Assistant/Associate/Full Professor – Radioisotopes, 2024

Knoxville Academic Units : UT-ORII Matrixed to the Department of Nuclear Engineering

This position is a component of the University of Tennessee Oak Ridge Innovation Institute’s (UT-ORII) Development and Advancement of Radiopharmaceutical Therapies (DART) Convergent Research Initiative (CRI).

This position will reside at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) and have regular collaborations with and visits to Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL).

The position’s faculty appointment will be with UT-ORII and closely matrixed to the Department of Nuclear Engineering, both at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

This position will be part of the DART team, which will include 20 members who will develop novel alpha-emitting radionuclides that are targeted to tumor cells.

The position will contribute to the CRI’s development and use of radioisotopes in all related fields, such as, but not limited to radiopharmaceutical development including preclinical translational research.

Preference will be given to candidates with demonstrated research success in one or more of these areas with the vision to develop collaborative research activities and who are committed to high-quality undergraduate and graduate student education.

The new hire research faculty will collaborate on DART research projects, proposal preparation, submission, and student mentoring at the graduate level.

Co-investigators of the project will provide mentoring and necessary infrastructure to the hire. Applicants will be considered at all faculty ranks.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage NE small animal PET / CT and related animals.
• Develop and lead research studies in radioisotopes.
• Develop a strong collaboration with the DART team and related investigators.
• Develop applications for extramural funding.
• Present findings to peer groups at conferences and to audiences of the CRI and UT-ORII meetings.
• Mentor and train graduate students.

Required :

• Doctorate degree in a relevant field.
• Demonstrated experience in small animal PET / CT imaging and image processing and analysis.
• Ability to advise / train graduate students in the use of preclinical animal models for radiopharmaceutical development and small animal PET / CT image processing.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with researchers from diverse backgrounds.
• Ability to work independently as well as part of a collaborative research team.
• This position requires the ability to be granted a site-access badge for Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Preferred :

• Demonstrated success in more than one area of radioisotope research.
• A clear path to independence as a researcher is desired, though an on-ramp’ through collaboration with more senior investigators is also encouraged.
• Demonstrated commitment to student education and mentorship.

Additional Information About Position

• This is a 12-month, non-tenure track position.
• The appointment will be with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
• The position will be implemented as an initial three-year contract with full salary support for the first year, followed by a gradual decrease in salary coverage such that the successful applicant will receive 50% salary support in year 5 (if renewed after the third year) and is expected to receive extramural funding by year 3 or earlier.
• The applicant will be expected to recruit multiple graduate students by year three.
• Continuation of the position will depend on the success of the hire and the team in attracting multi-year funding.
• A competitive startup package including support for PhD students and budget for equipment will be offered.
• Salary and title / rank will be determined commensurate with experience.
• Benefits will be typical of exempt employees at the University of Tennessee.
11 days ago