Postdoctoral Scholar - Department of Epidemiology

At VCU, we take pride in our deep commitment to our postdoctoral
community. In 2026, the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA)
named VCU as one of only 12 recipients of its inaugural
Institutional Policy Awards, in recognition of our transformative
efforts to elevate quality of life and workplace equity for
postdocs. VCU postdocs are Virginia state employees, with benefits
mirroring 12-month faculty. We adhere closely to the NPA’s
guidelines for best practices in postdoc training. We work closely
with our local NPA chapter, the VCU Postdoc Association, to make
this a welcoming and productive place to complete your
training!

VCU is a leading public research institution committed to serving
both its students and the broader community. Energized by its urban
setting in Richmond, VCU is a hub of innovation—pushing boundaries,
challenging convention, and embracing bold, forward-thinking ideas.
As a Carnegie ranked - R1 institution ranked among the top 50
public research universities nationwide, VCU secured more than $506
million in sponsored research funding from federal and other
sources in FY2024, a nearly 50% increase since FY2020. We strive to
provide research opportunities at all levels of learning as One VCU
with opportunities in undergraduate and graduate programming - we
believe that every VCU Ram is a Researcher!

The central heart of research innovation and infrastructure at VCU
is the Office of the Vice President of Research and
Innovation

(OVPRI), whose mission is to foster transformative research,
discovery and innovation through excellence in service. In addition
to supporting schools and departments throughout the research
lifecycle.

The Department of Epidemiology is a premiere public health program
located in the School of Public Health, recognized for its rigorous
research and innovative experiential training for a new generation
of public health professionals. It is aligned with renowned

centers and institutes that provide a platform for investigators
from multiple disciplines to collaborate on cutting-edge and
innovative research.

The Center on Society and Health (CSH), located in the School of
Public Health, works to raise awareness about factors outside of
health care that shape health outcomes and to explore ways to
improve population health and wellbeing. CSH’s vision is to open
opportunity for all members of society and facilitate the creation
of partnerships that work across sectors to help stakeholders align
incentives and advance health.

Position Summary:

The Department of Epidemiology at the Virginia Commonwealth
University School of Public Health is seeking a highly motivated,
research-focused Post-Doctoral Fellow to join the research program
led by Dr. Emily Zimmerman. The fellow will contribute to a
portfolio of federally funded research focused on community
engagement and community-based participatory research (CBPR),
mixed-methods research, social drivers of health, and improving
substance use treatment research through integration of the
perspectives of people with lived experience.

The fellow will be based in the Department of Epidemiology and will
participate in departmental research and professional-development
activities, while also having opportunities to engage with the
Center on Society and Health, where Dr. Zimmerman holds an
affiliated appointment and directs community engagement. This
structure will provide the fellow with access to a
multidisciplinary research environment, departmental colleagues and
postdoctoral researchers, and collaborators across the School of
Public Health, VCU, and community and clinical settings.

The position is particularly well suited for an early-career
scientist seeking intensive mentorship while developing an
independent program of research. The fellow will have opportunities
to lead manuscripts, develop grant applications, conduct and
evaluate

community engaged research, contribute to ongoing federally funded
studies, present findings at national and international scientific
meetings, and develop research aligned with their own emerging
scientific interests.

Research Program

Candidates should have expertise or a developing research program
focused on the experiences of underserved populations and community
and stakeholder engagement processes and outcomes. Candidates whose
interest aligns with one or more of the

program's currently funded research areas are particularly
encouraged to apply.

Current areas of research include:

• Building capacity for people in recovery to meaningfully

collaborate in research.

• Examining patients' experiences related to substance use

treatment.

• Developing, implementing, and evaluating substance use-related

pilot interventions.

• Supporting community-university partnerships and building

capacity for collaborative research.

• Implementing and evaluating community-based participatory

research projects.

• Evaluating partnership processes, outcomes, and

sustainability.

The successful candidate should have research interests that
complement one or more

areas of the program, including:

• Community engagement methods (best practices, principles,

methodologies)

• Community engaged partnership development
• Community engaged research
• Evaluation of program or partnership processes and

outcomes

• Disparities related to substance use treatment
• Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods data collection

and analysis

• Social drivers of health
• Epidemiology
• Social theory
• Prevention and intervention science
• Translational science

The fellow will be expected to contribute intellectually to the
research program while developing a coherent and increasingly
independent line of scholarship.

Duties and Responsibilities:

The Post-Doctoral Fellow will participate in the scientific
activities of ongoing research studies and receive structured
mentorship in scientific writing, grantsmanship, analysis, study
design, and career development.

Responsibilities will include:

• Leading and contributing to peer-reviewed scientific

manuscripts.

• Developing publications using existing and newly collected

research data.

• Developing research questions, collecting data, and conducting

quantitative, qualitative, and/or mixed-methods analyses.

• Contributing to federal and foundation grant applications.
• Developing independent fellowship, career-development, or

research proposals appropriate to the fellows' career stage.

• Conducting targeted and systematic reviews of the scientific

literature.

• Supporting IRB submissions, protocol modifications, regulatory

documentation, and research compliance.

• Supporting the design, implementation, and evaluation of

studies addressing substance use treatment interventions.

• Participating in participant recruitment, baseline and

follow-up assessments, and study retention activities, as
appropriate.

• Contributing to data management, quality assurance, research

documentation, and reproducible analytic workflows.

• Providing capacity building and technical assistance to

community-university partnerships to support the implementation and
evaluation of CBPR projects.

• Collaborating with multidisciplinary investigators within the

Department and School of Public Health, across VCU, and with
clinical and community partners.

• Participating in departmental and School of Public Health

research seminars, professional-development activities, and other
scholarly activities.

• Presenting research findings at local, national, and

international scientific meetings.

• Participating in regular research and mentorship meetings with

Dr. Zimmerman and other members of the research team.

The fellow will be encouraged and supported to develop an
independent scientific identity, establish a focused program of
research, build a scholarly portfolio, and pursue external funding
during the fellowship.

Minimum Qualifications

• Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in public health,

epidemiology, psychology, social science, behavioral science, or a
closely related field by the position start date.

• Research experience relevant to community engagement, CBPR, and

underserved populations.

• Demonstrated scientific writing expertise, evidenced by

peer-reviewed publications.

• Evidence of the ability to lead or make substantial

contributions to scientific manuscripts.

• Strong research skills and experience analyzing social,

behavioral, clinical, or public health data.

• Strong understanding of research design.
• Excellent organizational and project-management skills.
• Excellent communication.
• Excellent interpersonal and collaborative skills.
• Ability to work effectively both independently and within

multidisciplinary research teams.

• Demonstrated experience working in and fostering an environment

of respect, professionalism and civility with a population of
faculty, staff, and students from all backgrounds and experiences,
or a commitment to do so as a post doc at VCU.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Research expertise in substance use disorders and/or services

for people with

substance use disorders.

• Experience examining health disparities from a socio-ecological

perspective.

• Experience with longitudinal, experimental, clinical,

community-based, or intervention research.

• Experience with quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods

research.

• Experience working with community partners or conducting

community-engaged research.

This is a restricted position with no set end date and continued
employment is dependent upon project need, availability of funding,
and performance.

FLSA Exemption Status: Exempt

ORP Eligible: Yes

Flexible Work Arrangement: Fully Onsite

Contact Information:
Contact Name: Cian Brooks

Contact Email: Brookst10@vcu.edu