About this role
Overview
- This position is open to current employees of SDSU and SDSU Research Foundation and applications will be accepted until 4:30 pm on November 13, 2026.
- The salary for the position is $21.50 per hour + benefits
The San Diego State University Center for Behavioral Teratology is focused on understanding the consequences, risk/resiliency factors, and interventions to reduce the severity of prenatal drug effects. The primary focus is on researching the effects of prenatal alcohol exposure on brain and behavioral development, but other drugs of abuse (i.e. cannabis and nicotine) and developmental disorders are also examined. The Center has both a clinical research and preclinical research component. The Center includes three primary PIs, support staff, and trainees from post-doctoral fellows to high school students. The goal of the Center is to improve identification and treatment of individuals affected by prenatal drug exposure.
Under the direction of Dr. Jennifer Thomas, the Research Assistant I associate will work as part of a large interdisciplinary group, which includes faculty, research staff and graduate and undergraduate trainees.
Responsibilities
Responsibilities
Experiment Implementation 40%
- Assist with research projects; design and implement research projects; perform library research
- Manages Data Collection, including drug treatments and behavioral testing
- Contributes to Data Management, verification, and maintenance
- Maintains equipment and resources in the lab
Project Management 40%
- Assists in mentoring of students
- Performs various editorial duties; writes, reviews, and edits various materials for publication
- Supervise junior RAs and other trainees
- Ensures regulatory compliance
- Trains new students
Administrative Tasks 15%
- Inputs and retrieves data using computers
- Performs various administrative duties while assisting in lab management
- Attends and participates in meetings and training groups
Other Duties as Assigned 5%
Qualifications
Knowledge and Abilities:
- Ability to interact effectively with co-workers, clients and study participants
- Ability to understand and follow posted work rules and procedures
- Ability to relate well to others within the project environment.
- Ability to display motivation and strong interpersonal skills
- Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing
- Ability to display organization, meet deadlines, display detail orientation, possess good judgment and common sense
- Ability to demonstrate a high level of cross-cultural sensitivity
- Ability to use a variety of software packages including, but not limited to, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SPSS
- Ability to oversee data management
Preferred Qualifications
- Equivalent to graduation from a four-year university;
- Experience with developmental science and behavioral analyses;
- Willingness to work a flexible schedule, including occasional weekend and evening hours, to accommodate outreach events and/or data collection;
- Experience with animal models of drug exposure;
- Experience with Behavioral Testing;
- Experience with wet lab procedures like western blot and ELISA.
ADDITIONAL APPLICANT INFORMATION
- Candidate must reside in California and live within a commutable distance from SDSU at time of hire.
- Job offer is contingent upon satisfactory clearance based on background check results (including a criminal record check).
- San Diego State University Research Foundation is an equal opportunity employer. Consistent with California law and federal civil rights laws, SDSU Research Foundation provides equal opportunity in employment without unlawful discrimination or preferential treatment based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin or any other categories protected by federal or state law.
- Employment decisions are based on an individual’s qualifications as they relate to the job under consideration. Our commitment to equal opportunity means ensuring that every employee has equal access to resources and support.
- SDSU Research Foundation complies with Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, the California Equity in Higher Education Act, California’s Proposition 209 (Art. I, Section 31 of the California Constitution), and other applicable state and federal anti-discrimination laws including grant or contract terms and conditions related to funded program activities. Further the SDSU Research Foundation maintains a Nondiscrimination Policy that prohibits discriminatory preferential treatment, segregation based on race or any other protected status, and all forms of unlawful discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in all programs, policies, and practices.
- SDSU Research Foundation makes all employment decisions including, but not limited to, applicant screening, hiring, promotion, demotion, compensation, benefits, disciplinary actions, and terminations on the basis of merit.