AcademicJobsOnline.org

The University of Massachusetts Chan School of Medicine (UMass Chan) is seeking applicants for a faculty cluster hire comprised of 9 tenure track positions at the assistant or early associate professor level. This faculty cluster will support our institutional mission to advance the health and wellness of our diverse communities throughout Massachusetts and across the world by leading and innovating in education, research, health care delivery and public service, in accordance with our strategic plan  (IMPACT 2025).

We are especially eager to consider applicants who will support and elevate the UMass Chan commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and foster an environment of inclusive collaborative excellence where all faculty can thrive.

The cohort will be offered structured mentorship and sponsorship through a career advancement program that will empower their scientific and professional development as well as facilitate their social and cultural integration into our larger UMass Chan scientific community.  

Successful applicants will be brought on as a part of an interdisciplinary life sciences, bench to community, faculty cohort. We are particularly interested in the broad areas of Neuroscience, Immunology/Infectious Disease, and Health Equity, all of which are areas of scientific strength and projected growth at UMass Chan. 

Cluster Descriptions

Neuroscience Cluster:  The Neuroscience Cluster at UMass Chan Medical School brings together a broad range of disciplines to address the most challenging aspects of neuroscience, from understanding the function of the healthy brain to developing treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, psychiatric conditions such as depression, anxiety and addiction, and the devastating results of traumatic brain injury, stroke and cancer. Our strengths in these and other areas, along with a spectrum of advanced tools and resources, will provide a platform to advance knowledge, the treatment of patients, and ultimately improve the quality of life for all.

Immunology/Infectious Disease Cluster:  Investigators across UMass Chan are leveraging state of the art technologies to understand the initiation, regulation and resolution of inflammatory responses in infection, inflammation and autoimmunity. Collectively, using basic, translational, and clinical research these groups aim to devise new approaches for diagnosing and treating human disease through a deeper understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms regulating the innate and adaptive immune response.

Health Equity Cluster:  Eliminating health disparities and improving the health and welfare of our local and regional communities and communities around the world is at the heart of the UMass Chan mission. Our health equity investigators conduct epidemiological, translational and implementation research, including work focused on social determinants and behavioral intervention trials for disease prevention and management among populations that bear the greatest burden of disease. This community-engaged, population-based work is done in partnership with clinical and public health organizations, local and State government agencies, and other local and global partnerships. 

We will consider candidates in basic, clinical, translational, implementation and community research. Cohort recruits will have academic appointments in one or more of the following departments: Biochemistry and Molecular Biotechnology,  Dermatology, Family Medicine and Community Health, Medicine, Neurobiology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, Program in Molecular Medicine, and Psychiatry.  Recruits also may be affiliated with ongoing programs and institutes including the NeuroNexus Institute, the Autoimmune Therapeutics Institute, the Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, the Institute for Drug Resistance, and the emerging UMass Chan Health Equity Collaboratory, among other.  With a strong culture of collegiality that reaches departmental and disciplinary boundaries, UMass Chan is an engaging community that embraces the exponential power of team science, transdisciplinary research, interaction and collaboration, and innovation.

UMass Chan is a world-class research institution, consistently producing noteworthy advances in clinical and basic research. In 2020, UMass Chan ranked 21^st in the National Institutes of Health Blue Ridge rankings among all 140 United States medical schools. These rankings place our school 2^nd in New England and 8^th among all public medical schools in the U.S.  UMass Chan also is routinely ranked by the magazine U.S. News & World Report in the top 10 percent of the nation’s medical schools and schools of osteopathic medicine, for its excellence in primary care education. UMass Chan has outstanding core facilities, including Bioinformatics, Advanced MRI, CryoEM, Electron Microscopy, Large Scale AVV Manufacturing, Tissue Repository, Deep Sequencing, Advanced Quantitative Imaging, Flow Cytometry, Transgenic animal modeling core, Biosafetly Level 3 (BSL3) and Mass Spectrometry core facilities. Our research programs are central to the Massachusetts   Life Sciences Initiative. UMass Chan Medical School is one of five campuses in the UMASS system and there are extensive inter-campus collaborations with the Amherst, Dartmouth, Lowell, and Boston campuses, and with our surrounding communities.

UMass Chan is located in the heart of New England, in Worcester, MA. The second largest city in New England, Worcester is rich in history and cultural diversity and provides a myriad of social, cultural and recreational amenities. Our region offers a broad range of excellent primary and secondary schools, as well as several highly regarded colleges including Clark University, The College of the Holy Cross, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute. The area boasts numerous restaurants, theater groups and concert venues, and a variety of affordable housing options from newly renovated condominiums to gracious Victorian homes. Worcester’s central location provides easy access to the major travel hubs of Boston and Providence, as well as a large variety of opportunities for outdoor activities including beaches, lakes, farms, and mountains. The newly constructed Polar Park is home to the Woo Sox, the minor league AAA partner to the Red Sox in Boston, supporting a revitalization of the city that has resulted in new jobs, breweries, restaurants, and rapid growth in real estate.

Application Instructions

Applications submitted by December 15^th will be given primary consideration for the first cluster of three faculty members. However, applications will continue to be accepted until the positions are filled.

Applications should be submitted through AcademicJobsOnline.org

Inquiries, but not application materials, may be directed to Margaret Gradie at margaret.gradie@umassmed.edu

Required application materials include:

1.       An anonymized research statement (maximum 3 pages) that emphasizes the applicant’s vision and plan for their independent research as well as the applicant’s most significant accomplishments. *

2.       A one-page cover letter with a description of the applicant’s research areas and how their planned research program fits within this Initiative’s areas of interest. Please also indicate potential department(s) of interest.

3.       The applicant’s CV.

4.       A diversity, equity and inclusion statement that describes the applicant’s understanding of diversity, as well as past experiences and future plans to advance diversity, equity and inclusion.

5.       Names of at least 3 professional references who are familiar with the applicants work and potential for success.

*Submitting an anonymized Statement of Research:  In order to ensure a fair assessment of applications and mitigate unconscious bias, we ask applicants to submit an anonymized statement of research. The statement can refer to the applicant’s experiences and qualifications but do not include the names of any researchers who performed the work, institutions where the work was done, funding organizations, or include the references of their publications.

Examples:

Traditional, non-anonymized: "As a [Named Fellowship] postdoc in Professor X's lab at University of Z, I designed and built a new instrument that can [do something amazing]. I used this to discover [important finding].

Anonymized: "As a postdoc I designed and built a new instrument that can [do something amazing]. I used this to discover [important finding].

Applications will be reviewed in two stages: round one will be a review of the anonymized research plan and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion statement. The second round will be a full review of all materials submitted. Please submit all requested documents together; the non-anonymous materials will be separated before any documents are seen by the review committee. 

As an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer, UMass Chan recognizes the added value of a diverse community and encourages applications from individuals with varied experiences, perspectives and backgrounds.