Job Vacancy Announcement - Health Scientist Administrator

Division of Translational Research (DTR)
The Division of Translational Research (DTR) at NIMH directs, plans, and supports programs of research and research training that translate knowledge from basic science to discover the etiology, pathophysiology, and trajectory of mental disorders and develop effective interventions for children and adults.

DTR supports integrative, multidisciplinary research in the following areas: the phenotypic characterization and risk factors for psychiatric disorders; neurobehavioral mechanisms of psychopathology; trajectories of risk and resilience based on the interactive influences of genetics, brain development, environment, and experience; and design and testing of innovative neuromodulatory, psychosocial and psychopharmacological interventions.

DTR is looking for Program Officers with expertise in development, particularly the use of imaging to understand neurodevelopment, anxiety and related disorders, and the development and testing of novel psychosocial interventions. Candidates with expertise in related fields that emphasize multidisciplinary approaches to understanding the underlying causes of and developing effective treatment for mental disorders will also be considered. Familiarity with the current literature on the biology of mental illness is essential.

Office of Technology Development and Coordination (OTDC)
The NIMH Office of Technology Development and Coordination (OTDC) supports basic and applied research related to the development of scientific tools, technologies, and approaches related to brain and behavioral research, including software (e.g., neuroinformatics tools and resources), hardware (e.g., devices and instrumentation), and wetware (e.g., novel genetic methods or bioactive and molecular imaging agents). A Health Scientist Administrator will manage a portfolio of activities. It is very likely that those activities will include participation in the NIH BRAIN Initiative . Experience in the following areas is preferred:  informatics, MRI imaging technology, or technology relevant to understanding and manipulating cells and circuits in the brain.

Office for Research on Disparities and Global Mental Health (ORDGMH)
The NIMH Office for Research on Disparities and Global Mental Health (ORDGMH) coordinates the Institute’s efforts to reduce mental health disparities both within and outside of the United States. The office’s combined focus on local and global mental health disparities reflects an understanding of how the rapid movements of populations, global economic relationships, and communication technologies have created more permeable borders and new forms of interconnectedness among nations and people. These trends both require and enable researchers to address the variations in incidence, prevalence, and course of mental disorders and access to care across diverse populations using a global perspective.

The incumbent of this Health Scientist Administrator ORDGMH position serves as a Program Officer who will be responsible for providing scientific leadership and guidance to the planning, development, implementation and evaluation of biomedical research relevant to mental health disparities in and outside of the United States at NIMH. The incumbent will serve in a broad range of multifaceted activities that enable the NIMH to achieve its mission in reducing mental health disparities globally and domestically. The incumbent will report to the ORDGMH Director and plans, administers, stimulates, develops, conducts, and supports research grants, contracts and cooperative agreements, and organizes conferences and workshops focused on mental health disparities research.

Division of Services and Intervention Research (DSIR)
The core mission of the NIMH Division of Services and Intervention Research (DSIR) is to foster innovative research aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of existing treatment and preventive interventions, improving the delivery and quality of evidence-based services, and accelerating the dissemination, implementation, and continuous improvement of optimized practices in diverse settings.

DSIR seeks to fill a Health Science Administrator (HSA) position within the Treatment and Preventive Intervention Research Branch. As HSA, the candidate will have overall responsibility for providing scientific leadership to the planning, development, organization, administration, and evaluation of extramurally-funded research projects aimed at:

• (a) refining treatment and preventive interventions to increase potency and efficiency;
• (b) tailoring existing and new interventions to optimize outcomes across stages of development and phases of illness progression;
• (c) testing interventions for effectiveness in community practice settings; and
• (d) accelerating broad implementation of promising interventions through deployment-focused studies. Training in mental health intervention development and testing through randomized controlled trials is desired, as well as demonstrated experience and a strong track-record in the initiation, oversight, evaluation, and conduct of intervention research.

Experience is preferred in one or more of the following areas: clinical trials methods and designs for testing personalized intervention approaches, use of innovative platforms (e.g., practice-based networks) for conducting T2 intervention science, emerging modalities/technologies that might be used to optimize therapeutic outcomes, and/or pharmacologic or combined intervention approaches for the treatment of children/adolescents, and/or early intervention or prevention approaches across the lifespan.  

Division of Neuroscience and Basic Behavioral Science
The NIMH Division of Neuroscience and Basic Behavioral Science is recruiting a Program Officer for the Translational Genomics Program within the Genomics Research Branch. The Branch plans, supports, and administers programs of research including the identification, localization, and function of genes and other genomic elements that produce susceptibility to mental disorders. Research projects use genetic epidemiological methods, population based sampling, longitudinal cohort and extended family study designs, and genomic and functional validation approaches to identify genetic, biological and environmental risk factors and biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, drug efficacy and pharmacogenomics of mental disorders. The Branch also supports the creation and distribution of research resources, including the development of novel statistical and bioinformatics tools and the NIMH Human Genetics Initiative, a repository of biosamples and associated clinical information for use in genomics studies of mental disorders. The Program Officer will provide leadership in establishing goals and directions for genetic research in mental disorders by planning, administering, conducting, and supporting research grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements and by organizing conferences and workshops.

The NIMH Division of Neuroscience and Basic Behavioral Science is recruiting a Program Officer to guide research training and career development programs within its Office of Research Training and Career Development. The Office fosters the research training of new investigators and enhances the career development of early-career investigators in the research areas supported by this Division. The Program Officer will serve as a senior program expert for the education and research training of individuals in mental health-related basic science research, stimulating and fostering highly qualified and productive research investigators in scientific disciplines relevant to the mission of the NIMH.

Division of AIDS Research
The NIMH Division of AIDS Research supports research to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS worldwide and to decrease the burden of living with HIV/AIDS. DAR-supported research encompasses a broad range of studies that includes basic and clinical neuroscience of HIV infection to understand and alleviate the consequences of HIV infection of the central nervous system (CNS), and basic and applied behavioral science to prevent new HIV infections and limit morbidity and mortality among those infected. DAR places a high priority on interdisciplinary research across multiple populations, including racial and ethnic minorities, over the lifespan.