Professional Researcher Full-time

Professional Researcher

Assistant or Associate Professional Researcher in the laboratory of Dr. Varghese will perform independent research on programs related to musculoskeletal health, regeneration, and orthopedic pain. The individual will also assist in supervising graduate and undergraduate student researchers as well as junior lab members, preparing manuscripts for publication in scientific journals, and contributing to grant proposal development and extramural funding efforts. This position requires a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering/Biotechnology or related field and a minimum of 10 years of experience in orthopedic research and regenerative medicine. The Assistant or Associate Professional Researcher position is a non-Senate position for 12-months in the first instance. Step is commensurate with experience.

Start Date; July 15, 2026

The assigned project is focused on musculoskeletal health and disease, including orthopedic pain. In this role, the candidate will lead the design, execution, and analysis of both in vitro and in vivo studies aimed at understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying musculoskeletal health, regeneration, and orthopedic pain, as well as developing new therapeutics. The candidate will be responsible for conducting animal studies, tissue collection and processing, comprehensive tissue characterization, and behavioral and functional analyses using advanced histological and molecular techniques. The candidate will also perform in vitro studies.

Specific Responsibilities include:

Responsibilities of this position include study design, data acquisition, statistical analyses, and literature review and manuscript and grant preparation.

Additional Duties: • Supervision of undergraduates, graduate students and new postdoctoral trainees in the lab.• Ability to work on multiple projects efficiently and effectively.• Ability to work independently on scientific projects.• Assist with preparation of grant proposals.• Preparation of manuscripts for publication in scientific journals.• Required to communicate well with other scientists and engage in collaborative projects.• Candidate should have 5 years research experience in biomedical engineering and neuroscience in an academic setting or equivalent.• Candidate should have extensive experience in animal studies, behavioral analyses, histochemical analyses and image processing.• The candidate will report directly to the Principal Investigator and will successfully carry out experiments and analyze the data generated with minimal supervision.• Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously.• Ability to help and train various personnel in technical skills and make significant contributions to the design and execution of other laboratory members' experiments.

Qualifications

Basic qualifications

Ph.D. or similar

Preferred qualifications

Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering/Biotechnology or related field and a minimum of 10 years of experience in orthopedic research and regenerative medicine.

Application Requirements

Document requirements

• Curriculum Vitae – Your most recently updated C.V.
• Cover Letter (Optional)
• Statement of Research (Optional)
• Reference check authorization release form – Complete and upload the reference check authorization release form
• UCLA Mission Statement – As the nation's premier public research university, UC's mission is the creation, dissemination, preservation and application of knowledge for the betterment of our global society. We have a particular responsibility to the people of California which we express in the excellence of the education we provide, the impact of the research we do, the comprehensive, life-saving medical services we provide, and the public service mission we are devoted to. The University of California promotes the social mobility of its students, equips them with the tools and experience that furthers their ambitions, and regards their accomplishments across the life span as evidence of the profoundly positive impact of higher education.
• The UCLA campus has expressed these goals in its strategic plan as follows:
• Deepen our engagement with Los Angeles Expand our reach as a global university Enhance our research and creative activities Elevate how we teach Become a more effective institution
• Prompt for candidates for recruitment: Reflecting on your personal and professional experiences, highlight your past contributions and future commitments to advancing UCLA's mission as embodied in the 2023-28 strategic plan. These accomplishments and ambitions may be discussed in the context of describing your teaching, scholarship, and service
• Statement of Teaching (Optional)

Reference requirements

• 3-5 required (contact information only)

Please provide the name and contact information of references.