Post-Doc Fellow for Pain Science Research

at  University of Colorado

JOB SUMMARY:

The Ashar lab in the Division of General Internal Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine is seeking to fill a Postdoctoral Fellow position focused on the brain mechanisms of primary (nociplastic) chronic pain and its treatment. This is an opportunity to contribute to the development of novel paradigms for pain neuroimaging and treatment. Primary responsibilities include oversight of brain imaging studies, including a) a precision fMRI neuroimaging study investigating chronic knee pain and longitudinal effects of treatment on brain function, with intensive brain measurement of a small number of patients, b) investigation of shared representations of pain and pain-related fear in prefrontal cortex (fMRI), and c) a randomized trial testing effects of treatment on clinical outcomes and EEG markers of tonic pain in a post-surgical chronic pain population.
Responsibilities will be tailored to match the interests and training goals of the post-doctoral fellow. There will be ample opportunities to support other emerging lines of research in the lab on interoceptive function and chronic pain, brain mechanisms of cannabis-based pain relief, and psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy for chronic pain and other psychiatric conditions. Opportunities for manuscript preparation, conference submissions are available, as well as support for preparing grant applications. The Postdoctoral Fellow will collaborate with Dr. Joseph Frank, director of the Chronic Pain and Wellness Center at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus Veterans Administration. The postdoc will also collaborate with neuroimaging groups at other institutions involved in ongoing projects. The position is in-person or hybrid, and the applicant must be available to work on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus several days a week.

Key Responsibilities:

• Oversight of brain imaging studies, including study design and data collection of fMRI investigations
• Analyze multiple datasets, including resting and task-based fMRI, features extracted from audio-video recordings, and/or natural language data
• Coordinate research assistants working on projects
• Prepare manuscripts for publication

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Applicants must meet minimum qualifications at the time of hire.

• Doctorate degree in a relevant field (e.g., psychology, neuroscience, computer science, medicine)
• Record of first-author publications in peer-reviewed journals
• Prior experience with fMRI study design and analysis

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Experience with fMRI study design, data collection, and analysis
• Experience with clinical trials
• Demonstrated interest in chronic pain
• Experience with software/scripting (MATLAB, Python, and/or R is preferable)
• Experience with statistical analysis
• Experience with the CanlabCore toolbox

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Proficiency or expertise with software/scripting (MATLAB, Python, and/or R)
• Statistical expertise
• Ability to communicate effectively, both in writing and orally.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with employees at all levels throughout the institution.
• Outstanding customer service skills.
• Demonstrated commitment and leadership ability to advance diversity and inclusion.

• Oversight of brain imaging studies, including study design and data collection of fMRI investigations
• Analyze multiple datasets, including resting and task-based fMRI, features extracted from audio-video recordings, and/or natural language data
• Coordinate research assistants working on projects
• Prepare manuscripts for publicatio