Staff Research Associate II

Position Definition:

The Stress, Trauma, and Resilience Program (STaR Lab) at the San Francisco VA Health Care System (SFVAHCS), in partnership with Northern California Institute for Research and Education, Inc. (NCIRE) and University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), is seeking an experienced Staff Research Associate II (SRA II) to support and help manage clinical and experimental studies on trauma- and stressor-related disorders in Veterans, with a particular focus on PTSD, sleep disturbance, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and fear learning.

Our overarching goal is to develop mechanism-informed, pharmacologically augmented psychotherapies that directly target the neural systems involved in these conditions, with a focus on enhancing fear extinction and related learning processes. Ultimately, we aim to translate this work into more targeted, effective treatments for Veterans with PTSD, insomnia, TBI, and other trauma-related difficulties.

This role is ideal for someone seeking a 50% research / 50% administrative position who has solid prior research experience and wants to play a central role in clinical trial coordination, psychophysiology data collection, and multi-site study operations. Highly motivated candidates may have opportunities to co-author publications and contribute to presentations.

Essential Functions:

Research (~50%)

• Coordinate and support augmented psychotherapy trials that combine evidence-based PTSD treatments (e.g., exposure-based therapies) with medications that target mechanisms underlying the disorder, including those that facilitate fear extinction.
• Administer, pilot, and analyze remote psychophysiological fear-conditioning paradigms, including online and lab-based experimental tasks.
• Set up, monitor, and troubleshoot psychophysiological recording sessions using systems such as Biopac and Lab Streaming Layer (LSL)-based data pipelines.
• Acquire, process, and organize multi-modal psychophysiological signals, including electrodermal activity (EDA), electromyography (EMG), heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV), facial coding outputs, and remote photoplethysmography (PPG) signals derived from video.
• Conduct and score clinical interviews and self-report measures assessing PTSD symptoms, trauma exposure, mood, and sleep-related functioning (training provided as needed).
• Collect, process, and analyze sleep-related data, including actigraphy and EEG-based measures.
• Assist with and increasingly take ownership of data management and analysis (e.g., REDCap, spreadsheets, data quality checks, and basic statistical software).
• For candidates with appropriate clinical training, there may be opportunities to be involved in structured clinical assessment and to receive training in manualized, exposure-based psychotherapy protocols, delivering supervised, protocol-guided treatment components as part of the trial.

Administrative (~50%)

• Coordinate day-to-day study operations, including participant recruitment, screening, scheduling, and follow-up, ensuring that visit windows and protocol requirements are met.
• Maintain and organize regulatory documents (IRB submissions, amendments, renewals, consent forms) in collaboration with the PI and regulatory staff.
• Serve as a key liaison with a multidisciplinary team of investigators, clinicians, coordinators, and collaborators across sites.
• Track enrollment, timelines, and milestones; assist with and help prepare progress reports, RPPRs, and other grant-related documentation.
• Support NCIRE and VA administrative processes, including onboarding of staff/volunteers, purchasing, and meeting organization (e.g., agendas, notes, action items).

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Neuroscience, Biology, Public Health, Social Work, or a related field; a Master’s degree or PhD is a plus. Individuals with clinical training, particularly in fields such as social work, clinical psychology, or counseling psychology, would also be a good fit, especially if they are interested in integrating clinical assessment and structured psychotherapy into research.
• At least 2–3 years of experience in research or clinical trial settings, preferably involving mental health, neuroscience, or related clinical populations.
• Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to manage multiple tasks and deadlines.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Demonstrated interest in trauma/PTSD, fear learning, psychophysiology, and/or sleep-related processes.
• Experience with clinical trial management or coordination (e.g., tracking visit windows, managing protocols, interfacing with sponsors/regulatory teams) is strongly preferred.
• Experience with psychophysiological data collection or analysis (e.g., Biopac, LSL, EDA, EMG, HR/HRV, facial coding, or remote PPG from video) is strongly preferred; enthusiasm for further developing these skills is essential.
• Experience with data analysis or programming tools (e.g., MATLAB, Python, R) is highly desirable.
• Clinical experience with trauma-exposed populations (e.g., Veterans, survivors of interpersonal violence, first responders) is highly beneficial for this role.
• Comfort working with Veterans and individuals with trauma histories, with professionalism, empathy, and strong interpersonal skills.

VA Onboarding Requirements:

NCIRE is an affiliate organization of the San Francisco VA Health Care System (SFVAHCS), which requires all candidates to complete SFVA onboarding in addition to NCIRE's onboarding process. The SFVA is a federal agency that requires a federal background check, occupational health clearance, vaccines and immunizations, and drug testing for certain positions. Drug testing may include screening for marijuana which remains an illegal substance according to federal law.  The failure to pass required drug testing will disqualify candidates from employment.

The base wage range for this position is $25.24 - $40.60 per hour. The wage actually offered to a successful candidate will take into account various relevant and non-discriminatory business factors including, without limitation, the candidate’s geographic location, job-related experience, knowledge, and skills, and education, as well as internal equity considerations. A successful candidate may also be eligible to earn additional compensation including bonuses.

NCIRE is an Equal Opportunity Employer.  This position requires access to United States Government research under the Veterans Administration. Per Veterans Administration regulations surrounding access to US research, qualified US Citizens will be selected over other individuals eligible to work in the United States.  If you are eligible to work in the United States, you may still be considered for this position but only if no qualified US citizens apply.