Research Assistant - ON SITE

Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center:  Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery, and patient care, VUMC is a community of individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. Vanderbilt Health is committed to an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and where your uniqueness is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt’s mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.

Organization:

Hearing And Speech

Job Summary:

Job Title: Research Assistant (RA)
Location: Vanderbilt Wilson Hall, 111 21st Ave. S., Nashville, TN
Work Hours: Flexible 8-hour shift between 7:00 AM - 5:30 PM, Monday through Friday, with occasional overtime, including weekends and holidays.

Are you passionate about research and excited to contribute to groundbreaking studies in hearing and hearing loss? Join our team as a Research Assistant and play a pivotal role in advancing our understanding of auditory function in macaque monkeys!

Position Overview:
As a Research Assistant, you will be an integral part of our dynamic and collaborative team, supporting a project that investigates normal hearing and hearing loss in non-human primates. Your responsibilities will span a variety of tasks designed to ensure the smooth operation of our laboratory and the success of our research initiatives.

Key Duties/Tasks:

Actively participate in behavioral and physiological experiments.
Train macaque monkeys for various behavioral tasks with patience and precision.
Perform data collection, analysis, and ensure timely and accurate data entry.
Maintain detailed and organized records of experiments and findings.
Handle macaque monkeys professionally and responsibly, including providing environmental enrichment.
Assist in maintaining laboratory operations by performing additional duties as needed.
Stay adaptable and eager to learn advanced technical skills as required for the role.
Follow standard operating procedures (SOPs) and contribute to the development of new SOPs when necessary.
Collaborate effectively and courteously with other team members.
What We’re Looking For:
We’re seeking a motivated, detail-oriented individual with excellent communication skills, a strong work ethic, and a willingness to multitask in a fast-paced research environment. You’ll need patience, enthusiasm, and a deep interest in working with animals, specifically monkeys, as well as the ability to work occasional overtime, including weekends and holidays.

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent experience).
Willingness to work with animals, specifically macaque monkeys.
Physical ability to lift up to 65 pounds.

Preferred Qualifications:
Programming or engineering experience.
Familiarity with MATLAB.
Previous experience in electrophysiology, programming, or working with animals/nonhuman primates.
A genuine interest in research and enthusiasm for working closely with monkeys.

Why Join Us?
This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge research in auditory science while working in a supportive, collaborative, and intellectually stimulating environment. You’ll have the chance to develop new skills, gain hands-on experience, and play an essential role in advancing our understanding of hearing loss and its implications.

If you’re ready to make a meaningful impact and are eager to grow in your research career, we encourage you to apply today!

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DEPARTMENT SUMMARY

The Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center has served Middle Tennessee and beyond since 1951. We diagnose and treat hearing, speech, language and cognitive problems that affect communication in adults and children. Our team of more than 100 experts includes audiologists, speech-language pathologists, teachers of the deaf, occupational therapists, physical therapists and social workers. We offer every patient compassionate, personalized care. Additionally, Bill Wilkerson is a teaching site for deaf educators, audiologists, speech-language pathologists and physical therapists.  For more information, please visit https://www.vanderbilthealth.com/service-line/hearing-and-speech.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Under supervision, run experiments, assays, and record results
• Read and fol