Faculty Leadership Position

Clinical Neuroscience Research

Virginia Tech

 Virginia Tech (VT) seeks to recruit an innovative physician-neuroscientist to its new Patient Research Center (PRC) at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC (FBRI - https://fbri.vtc.vt.edu/) for a tenured or tenure-track faculty leadership position at the associate or full professor level. The PRC initiative has received substantial funding support to launch this major exciting new program.

The successful physician-scientist candidate will preferably have both earned M.D and Ph.D. degrees and have completed clinical residency/fellowship in an appropriate sub-specialty from among disciplines including adult or child neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry or neuroradiology as well as have an extramurally funded research program that includes human patient based clinical research in either ambulatory, in-patient and/or remote tele-health settings. Applications from investigators using innovative contemporary approaches to study human brain and/or behavioral function in health and disease with inclusion of clinical research trials in their program are welcomed. The faculty member will join 44 other faculty led teams at the FBRI, including 30 neuroscience research teams and will serve as the founding leader of the neuroscience section of Virginian Tech’s new PRC. The PRC will have an initial focus on neuroscience research and will join several other highly successful centers at the FBRI including: the Center for Human Neuroscience Research, the Center for Neurobiology Research, the Center for Health Behaviors Research, the Addiction Recovery Research Center and the Neuromotor Research Clinic. The PRC will subsequently expand to include human patient research in cardiovascular research and cancer research.

The primary responsibility for the position is leading-edge research with some additional leadership/administrative duties, particularly as the program grows. While the position is focused on research, it is appreciated that the individual will likely want to maintain some involvement in patient care including some fraction of their effort (10-30%) devoted to a sub-specialty clinic, that can be arranged with our clinical partners, the Carilion Clinic (https://www.carilionclinic.org/). The position will also allow for leadership in the identification and recruitment of additional faculty into the PRC.

The position will be located at the FBRI on Virginia Tech’s health sciences and technology campus in Roanoke, Virginia, immediately adjacent to the VTC School of Medicine and the Carilion Clinic and Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital. In addition to the position at the FBRI, the faculty member will also have a tenured or tenure-track (as appropriate) appointment in a VT department from among multiple colleges including the school of medicine (https://medicine.vtc.vt.edu/).

The successful candidate will join a dynamic and growing community of scholars including scientists, physicians and physician-scientists focused on next generation approaches to human brain research directed at having dramatic impacts on prevention, diagnoses, treatment and cure of disorders that may manifest early in development, throughout adulthood or during the aging process. Areas of research emphasis could include disorders that impact: cognition, decision-making, emotions and social interaction, learning and memory, movement control and planning, and/or sensation/perception. 

Research infrastructure at the FBRI currently includes over 300,000 square feet of lab, core facilities and office space (http://fralinbiomed.info/buildingtour). Facilities at the research institute include multiple human subject research-dedicated 3.0T MRIs, high field MR guided PET and MR-guided focused ultrasound for animal research, optically pumped magnetometers (OPM-MEG) for individual human subject and dyadic studies, multiple cellular/molecular imaging facilities including transcriptomics and genomics analysis as well as multiple behavioral testing suites for animals and humans, in addition to two human whole room calorimeters, DEXA facility and metabolic kitchen and dining areas for the study of human eating behaviors.

Virginia Tech does not discriminate against employees, students, or applicants on the basis of age, color, disability, sex (including pregnancy), gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, ethnicity or national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, or military status, or otherwise discriminate against employees or applicants who inquire about, discuss, or disclose their compensation or the compensation of other employees or applicants, or on any other basis protected by law. For inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies, contact the Office for Civil Rights Compliance and Prevention Education at 540-231-2010 or Virginia Tech, 220 Gilbert Street, Suite 5200, Blacksburg, VA 24061.

Applications will be reviewed continuously until the position is filled. It is expected that initial interviews will begin in May, 2025. To apply, please submit your application, including curriculum vitae, detailed statement of research accomplishments at www.jobs.vt.edu, posting #532772.  To complete the application, the applicant should also have at least three references post their letters of support to the same site.

Inquiries about the position should be directed to the Executive Director of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute (FBRI) at VTC, Dr. Michael J. Friedlander at friedlan@vtc.vt.edu