Postdoctoral Fellow

About VCU

At VCU, we are UNCOMMON and UNLIKE any other university. A premier, urban, public research university nationally recognized as one of the best employers for diversity and classified by Carnegie as R1 and Community Engaged. VCU is a great place to work. It's a place of opportunity, where your success is supported and your career can thrive.

About School of Pharmacy

The School of Pharmacy has a 125-year tradition beginning with the Medical College of Virginia and continuing to the present. Ranked in the top 20 of Schools of Pharmacy nationwide, the school is dedicated to graduating outstanding future pharmacists and scientists who will improve human health, foster exemplary research, and provide sustaining contributions to inter professional patient care. The University recognized the School of Pharmacy as the highest-ranking academic unit for Inclusive Excellence.

Some postdoctoral scholars are eligible for a generous benefits package that includes choices for health, vision, and dental coverage, life-insurance, short and long-term disability coverage, retirement planning, tax-deferred annuity and cash match programs, flexible spending accounts, tuition benefits, significant paid-time off and more. Postdoctoral scholars should clarify with their mentor if their appointment is as a postdoctoral scholar-trainee on a training grant, or a postdoctoral scholar-fellow who is an employee on a research grant. Please note: Benefits associated with postdoctoral appointments terminate when the appointment ends. Explore our benefits further here: https://hr.vcu.edu/current-employees/benefits/postdoctoral-employee-benefits/

About the Role

A postdoctoral fellow position is immediately available in the laboratory of Dr. Jiong Li's lab in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and the Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center (NCI designated) at Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr Li's lab is focused on transcriptional and epigenetic regulation of cancer stem cells in colorectal cancer and head and neck cancer.

Key responsibilities

Identify novel therapeutic targets

Develop new therapeutics (e.g., PROTACs) for cancer therapy using pre-clinic models

Elucidate the molecular mechanisms of immune checkpoint inhibition in head and neck cancer

Required Qualifications

• PhD or MD degree with a background in molecular signaling, molecular biology, cell biology, and/or cancer cell biology
  
• Strong communication skills
  
• Ability to work independently and as part of team
  
• Willingness and ability to assist mentor junior scientists.
  
• Demonstrated experience working in and fostering a diverse faculty, staff, and student environment or commitment to do so as an employee at VCU
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Research experience in animal models would be highly desirable.