Postdoctoral Researcher

25647BR

Bureau of Child Research

Position Overview

The Kansas University Center on Developmental Disabilities (KUCDD) is seeking an individual with training as a quantitative methodologist to fill a full-time, grant-funded postdoctoral researcher position. The position requires someone who is interested in joining a collaborative team of data scientists at the center who can balance demands across multiple funded projects in a rapidly evolving, research-intensive environment. The position will be reevaluated each year with the possibility for renewal. As member of a team of data scientists at KUCDD, the individual filling this position will work on projects within KUCDD to contribute to the development of new and existing funded research projects. This individual will engage in various data science activities such as organizing, modeling, and reporting data, support research grant development by conducting power analyses, research design, and data analyses, and author or co-author scientific papers.

Unit Description:
The Kansas University Center on Developmental Disabilities (KUCDD) has a mission to ensure individuals with developmental disabilities have opportunities to make decisions regarding their participation in society and quality of life. KUCDD is recognized as a leading research center in the field of disability, implementing and conducting grant-funded projects focusing on both applied research and interdisciplinary training in disability.

As a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD), funded by the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, the core functions of the KUCDD are: (a) Community Services, including technical assistance, community education, and direct services; (b) Information Dissemination; Interdisciplinary Training; and (c) Research. KUCDD is part of the Life Span Institute (LSI), a hub of research activity at the University of Kansas.

KUCDD is committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive work culture that respects all individuals. In a continuing effort to enrich its academic environment and provide equal educational and employment opportunities, KUCDD actively encourages applications from members of underrepresented groups in higher education, including people with disabilities.

Job Description

Under the supervision of the Director of KUCDD, the postdoctoral researcher will be focused on building their data science portfolio while advancing research in the disability field. As a postdoctoral researcher at KUCDD, the individual will gain extensive grant writing experience, increase their publication record, and sharpen their data science skillsets with real data. As a member of the data team at KUCDD, responsibilities will include:

• 50% – Data Science Support for Project Implementation: With mentorship from other members of the data science team, the individual in this postdoctoral researcher position will contribute to writing and sharing scripts to clean, organize, analyze, and report data using major statistical packages such as SAS, R, or Mplus. They will learn to prepare and share datasets (along with data dictionaries) in public data repositories, contribute to assisting different research teams in problem-solving the collecting, managing, and analyzing of data to advance research agendas, and participate in knowledge dissemination activities by contributing to the methods and results-related parts of analysis outputs (e.g., journal publications, conference presentations) across a range of funded projects for multiple research teams affiliated with KUCDD.
• 20% – Contribution to Grant Preparation Activities: With mentorship from other members of the data science team, the individual in this postdoctoral researcher position will gain hands-on experience in actively supporting and learning from investigators affiliated with KUCDD in the development of grant applications, including, but not limited to, selecting research designs, designing analysis plans, and running simulation-based power analyses.
• 20% – Dissemination of Research Findings: With mentorship from other members of the data science team, the individual will contribute to the statistical analyses related to ongoing Center grant-funded data collection. They will learn to prepare statistical methods and results sections for manuscripts submitted for publication or presentations for conferences or other professional meetings that are accessible to a general audience.
• 10% – Service and Establishment of a Personal Line of Inquiry: The individual in this postdoctoral researcher position will promote testing/disseminating statistical methods/applications relevant to their own interests, including publishing methods papers and/or measurement papers in scientific journals and conferences. They will stay current with advances in statistical methodologies/techniques by reading and reviewing published research, attending appropriate workshops and lectures on quantitative topics, and participating in study groups at KUCDD focused on statistical methodologies/applications. They will find ways to provide service to the profession, university, and community/public service, such as, for example, serving as an ad hoc methods reviewer of journals in disability.

Required Qualifications

A doctoral degree in quantitative methods in Educational Research, Psychology, or other related social and behavioral science field at the time the position starts. Doctoral candidates (ABDs) who defend their dissertations before the posted position start date will also be considered.

Created at least one online survey questionnaire using platforms like Qualtrics or Survey Monkey, as evidenced by application materials.

At least 2 years of applied experience with a major statistical package such as SAS, R, or Mplus, as evidenced by application materials.

Experience performing data queries when given data spreadsheets, writing scripts to merge two data sets, recoding variables, and creating composite scores, as demonstrated by application materials.

Experience interpreting output from advanced statistical analyses, such as applications of multilevel modeling, structural equation modeling to disability research, or related applications as demonstrated by application materials.

NOTE: To be appointed at the Postdoctoral Researcher title, it is necessary to have the PhD in hand. Appointments made without a diploma or certified transcript indicating an earned doctorate are conditional hires and are appointed on an acting basis.

Preferred Qualifications

Completed coursework in advanced statistical methods, such as, Bayesian statistics, multilevel modeling, or structural equation modeling.

Contributed to the methods section of at least one previously submitted grant application.

At least two application publications with advanced statistical analyses, such as a publication using multilevel modeling or structural equation modeling.

At least two methods-focused publication, such as, a measurement validation study or simulation-based research.

Contact Information to Applicants

Tyler Hicks, Ph.D.
Assistant Research Professor, University of Kansas
Director of Quantitative Research, Kansas University Center of Developmental Disabilities
[email protected]

Additional Candidate Instruction

In addition to the online application form, applicants should include the following information in their application: 

A cover letter addressing how required and preferred qualifications are met. 

Unofficial doctoral program transcripts.

C.V. 

Contact information for three professional references. At least one of the references must be a current or former supervisor. 

• Application deadline is July 20th. To be considered, please apply by this date. 

Advertised Salary Range

$55,000-$60,000

Application Review Begins

21-Jul-2023

Anticipated Start Date

07-Aug-2023

Limited Term End Date

31-Jul-2024

Primary Campus

University of Kansas Lawrence Campus

Employee Class

U-Unclassified Professional Staff

Work Schedule

40 hours/week

Conditions of Employment

Contingent on Funding, Limited Term

Work Location Assignment

Hybrid

Disclaimer

The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, and genetic information in the university’s programs and activities. Retaliation is also prohibited by university policy. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies and are the Title IX coordinators for their respective campuses: Director of the Office of Civil Rights & Title IX, [email protected], Room 1082, Dole Human Development Center, 1000 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045, 785-864-6414, 711 TTY (for the Lawrence, Edwards, Parsons, Yoder, and Topeka campuses); Director, Equal Opportunity Office, Mail Stop 7004, 4330 Shawnee Mission Parkway, Fairway, KS 66205, 913-588-8011, 711 TTY (for the Wichita, Salina, and Kansas City, Kansas medical center campuses).