Neurology - Assistant Research Scientist/Engineer

The Assistant Research Scientist supports the University of Iowa Health Care Department of Neurology’s Cerebrovascular and Neurointerventional Laboratory by providing senior-level scientific oversight and operational leadership for a multitude of investigator-initiated, multi-center, and international research projects. This role acts as scientific partner to the Principal Investigator (PI), Dr. Santiago Ortega-Gutierrez, and plays a central role in shaping the Laboratory’s research strategy, collaborations, and academic productivity. This role, in close collaboration with Dr. Ortega-Gutierrez, coordinates daily laboratory operations, as well as planning research strategy, developing and executing grants, preparing manuscripts, and acting as a mentor to other lab members.  This position may participate in travel for scientific meetings or collaborative activities.

Responsibilities Include:

•       Provide functional and administrative leadership for the scientific operations of the lab, ensuring alignment with PI priorities and funded deliverables.

•       Supervise and mentor a multidisciplinary research team, including postdoctoral fellows, research fellows, PhD students, and trainees.

•       Oversee the analytical strategy for large-scale datasets, including clinical (e.g., Epic/EMR) and neuroimaging data, ensuring rigorous validation and appropriate methodological approaches.

•       Collaborate with dedicated statistical staff to guide modeling, interpretation, and quality control, even when analyses are not personally coded.

•       Ensure the scientific integrity and consistency of multicenter and international collaborations, including retrospective consortia.

•       Plan, lead, and document regular lab meetings; manage timelines, milestones, and deliverables across projects.

•       Provide direction, assignments, feedback, coaching, and counseling to support performance and professional development.

•       Manage day-to-day scientific operations to ensure projects progress on schedule and within scope.

•       Partner closely with the PI to identify and pursue high-impact funding opportunities (i.e., NIH, foundations, industry, and collaborative grants).

•       Contribute substantively to grant proposal development, including drafting specific aims, research strategy sections, protocols, and supporting documents.

•       Translate complex clinical and translational concepts into clear, compelling scientific narratives suitable for competitive funding applications.

•       Support the development and refinement of study protocols, analytical plans, and research documentation.

•       Contribute to progress reports, renewals, and compliance documentation required by funding agencies.

•       Ensure adherence to safety, regulatory, and institutional research guidelines as applicable to scientific activities.

•       Lead the writing, submission, and revision of high-impact manuscripts for top-tier neurology, stroke, and neurointerventional journals.

•       Coordinate authorship, timelines, and scientific content across multicenter collaborations.

•       Contribute to new and continuing research grant applications to support the lab’s funding portfolio.

•       Co-lead execution of funded projects, including participation in Multi-PI R01–level grants, ensuring scientific aims are met. Specifically, the candidate will collide the execution of Addressing the paradox of poor outcomes despite successful recanalization in stroke, and RO1 Predictors of outcomes in patients undergoing mechanical thrombectomy you seem machine learning methodologies.

•       Prepare manuscripts as contributing or senior author, as appropriate.

•       Present research findings at departmental seminars, national and international scientific meetings.

  
  
  Principal Investigator:

  Dr. Santiago Ortega-Gutierrez, MD, MS

  Clinical Professor of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Radiology

  University of Iowa Health Care

   

   

  Pay Grade: 5A - https://hr.uiowa.edu/pay/plans 

  Percent of Time: 100%

  Please note: This is a specified term position that will last 12 months. An extension may be reviewed after the initial 12 months but is not guaranteed.

Required Qualifications:

• MD or PhD in Neuroscience, Biomedical Engineering, Epidemiology, or related scientific field
• 1+ years’ postdoctoral or equivalent research experience in neuroscience. Experience in clinical or translational research preferred .
• Record of peer-reviewed scientific writing, including first-author or senior-author publications
• Demonstrated experience in grant writing and research development.
• Experience serving as mentor in research settings and contributing to a collaborative research environment.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills

• Strong project management skills and familiarity in utilizing virtual collaboration systems (e.g. , Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Project, etc.) or similar platforms

  
  
  Desired Qualification:

• Professional background in cerebrovascular disease, stroke, or neurointerventional research.
• Experience interpreting and critically evaluating advanced statistical and large-scale (“big data”) outputs.
• Familiarity with neuroimaging techniques and analysis workflows.
• Experience working with electronic medical record (Epic, etc.) data, registries, or clinical trial data sets.
• Experience with multi-center or international research collaboration
   

Please attach a resume as part of the application process. Job openings are posted for a minimum of 7 calendar days. This job may be removed from posting and filled any time after the minimum posting period has ended.

Successful candidates will be required to self-disclose any conviction history and will be subject to a criminal background check and credential/education verification. Up to five (5) professional references may be requested at a later point in the recruitment.

If your H-1B petition is subject to the September 19, 2025, Presidential Proclamation, please note that the department will not cover the $100,000 payment associated with H-1B sponsorship, either at the time of hire or for international travel purposes. We encourage you to explore alternative pathways for work authorization. Our team is available to help identify options that may be suitable for your situation.

Please direct questions to Lydia Davidson at lydia-davidson@uiowa.edu.