Department Faculty of Law - Health Law Institute
Posted date August 6, 2025
Closing date August 27, 2025
Position Type

POSITION

The University of Alberta’s Health Law Institute (HLI) is seeking a Research Associate to lead media analysis projects under the Institute’s interdisciplinary research portfolio. Projects currently funded explore a range of health and science policy issues and are funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Stem Cell Network (SCN), the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS), and the Canadian Biomedical Research Fund. Special emphasis will be placed on how science is communicated to the public via legacy and new media and the issues that arise from the proliferation of mis-and-disinformation.
The successful candidate will lead research activities under the direction of the HLI’s Research Director/Principal Investigator and work closely with the broader HLI team, including fellow Research Associates, the Executive Director and hired students. They will also be responsible for fostering strong working relationships with project collaborators and partners, as well as supervising and supporting HLI research assistants.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Hold a graduate degree in science communication, journalism, health communication, public health, media studies, or related fields.
• Possess qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods research skills.
• Experience with developing comprehensive media coding frameworks is required.
• Knowledge of data anonymization methods.
• Experience writing and publishing manuscripts, including navigating peer-reviewed journal manuscript tracking platforms.
• Knowledge of health topics including cancer, vaccines, stem cells (regenerative medicine), alternative medicine preferred.
• Knowledge of and experience with various communication channels, including digital and social media.
• Experience in content creation, working with the media and public engagement.
• Have excellent interpersonal and communication skills (both written and verbal) and possess the ability to translate complex scientific information into accessible language.
• Have high-level organization skills and a demonstrated track record to meet deadlines and milestones.
• Capacity to work independently on multiple projects simultaneously.
• Have experience managing projects and contributing to successful grant applications.
• Have the ability to work effectively independently, as well as within a team environment.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience building and maintaining databases from web sources (e.g., Reddit, Amazon, Twitter, search engine results). Databases must be comprehensive and capture all required data in local/cloud storage in order to maintain data integrity over time.
• Experience in qualitative and quantitative research methods, including the use of data analytic and statistical software to perform data analysis (e.g. STATA, SAS, R, Python, Microsoft Excel, Google Applications (e.g. Sheets)).
• Experience designing visualizations for qualitative and quantitative data analysis would be an asset (e.g. STATA, SAS, R, Python, Microsoft Excel, Google Applications (e.g. Sheets)).
• Experience with coding and querying databases (Python, R, SQL) and creating customized scripts for data pipelining would be a strong asset.
• Experience navigating ethical frameworks relating to privacy and data anonymity would be an asset.
• Additional language proficiency would be an asset; additional language proficiency in French would be a strong asset.
  At the University of Alberta, we are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible hiring process for all candidates. If you require accommodations to participate in the interview process, please let us know at the time of booking your interview and we will make every effort to accommodate your needs.
  We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those individuals selected for an interview will be contacted.
  All University employees have a responsibility to foster a workplace that prioritizes safety in all its forms—physical, cultural, and psychological. This is achieved by promoting a safe environment, adhering to all safety laws, policies and procedures, completing all required safety training, identifying hazards and implementing controls, reporting incidents, and contributing to a culture of inclusivity and respect, while endeavoring to ensure that all colleagues feel valued and safe to express their thoughts, perspectives and concerns.
  The University of Alberta is committed to creating a university community where everyone feels valued, barriers to success are removed, and thriving connections are fostered. We welcome applications from all qualified persons. We encourage women, First Nations, Métis and Inuit persons, members of visible minority groups, persons with disabilities, persons of any sexual orientation or gender identity and expression, and all those who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas and the University to apply.
  L’Université de l’Alberta s’engage à créer une communauté universitaire où chaque personne se sent valorisée, où les obstacles à la réussite sont éliminés et où des connexions enrichissantes peuvent se développer. Nous accueillons les demandes de toutes les personnes qualifiées. Nous encourageons les femmes; Premières nations, Métis et Inuits; membres des groupes minoritaires visibles; personnes handicapées; personnes ayant une orientation sexuelle ou une identité et une expression sexospécifique; et tous ceux qui peuvent contribuer à la diversification des idées et à l’université à postuler.
  Note: This opportunity will be available until midnight August 27, 2025, Edmonton, Alberta local time

• Work closely with the Research Director (Principal Investigator) and broader team planning research activities and project design of funded research projects.
• Set research activity objectives in consultation with the Research Director.
• Develop/design research methods and data collection protocols most appropriate for grant identified research goals.
• Perform online and social media data collection and advanced analysis of research results.
• Lead and/or assist in the development and production of research grant applications.
• Lead and/or assist in the writing and submission of research papers for peer reviewed journals.
• Present research results at conferences, symposia, project meetings, and public events.
• Oversee, mentor and support the work of research assistants.
• Have experience creating and disseminating engaging content (e.g. blog posts, social media updates) and working with both legacy and new media providing interviews and/or commentaries to inform scientific communities and engage the public.
• Work with large interdisciplinary teams, collaborating on the development of research activities and events (e.g. workshops, webinars).
• Provide progress updates to the Research Director and broader team on a regular reporting basis.