Postdoctoral Fellow

A global higher education leader in innovative teaching, research, and public service, the? University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill?consistently ranks as? one of the nation's top public universities.

Known for its beautiful campus, world-class medical care, commitment to the arts and top athletic programs, Carolina is an ideal place to teach, work and learn. Located in one of the best college towns and best places to live in the U.S., Chapel Hill has diverse social, cultural, recreation and professional opportunities that span the campus and community.

The UNC School of Education , one of the longest-standing professional schools at the nation's first public university, ranks among the top schools of education in the U.S. and offers a full range of degree programs, from undergraduate to doctorate; forward-thinking certificate and licensure programs; and in-person, online, and HyFlex offerings. Faculty members generate knowledge across a number of fields, including human development, educational technology and entrepreneurship, teaching and learning, school counseling, school psychology, administration, educational policy and leadership, and more; they also prepare students to become the most highly effective educators to lead in classrooms, schools, districts and beyond, as well as future scholars and researchers.

The School of Education is an academic unit reporting to the Provost. The School is a major center of research, teaching, and public service within the State of North Carolina, the nation, and the world. The School offers a full range of undergraduate and graduate programs. The mission of the School of Education is to conduct research, and generate basic and applied knowledge about human development, educational technology and entrepreneurship, teaching and learning, school counseling, school psychology, administration, as well as educational policy and leadership; prepare leaders in the profession of education by conducting outstanding research, teaching, and service; and assist in the development of strong and effective public schools in North Carolina. In order to fulfill its mission, the School is organized into three academic divisions: (1) Culture, Curriculum, & Teacher Education ( CCATE), (2) Learning, Development & Psychological Sciences ( LDPS), and (3) Educational Policy, Organization, & Leadership ( EPOL).

The UNC School of Education at houses a world-class collaborative research faculty, numerous post-doctoral fellows and research scientists; and strong school partnership and outreach networks through alumni, and three regional school consortia (20 school districts). The School is a leader in integrating behavioral health considerations into K-12 public school training, practice, and research, aiming to solve pressing problems, through innovation, and by asking and answering tough questions, towards maximizing the potential of every learner. The UNC Department of Psychiatry has over 150 faculty members who are among the nation's leaders in exploring the mechanisms that will ultimately explain human behavior and mental illness. The department is a collaborative, multidisciplinary team with faculty members from a variety of backgrounds including psychiatry, psychology, epidemiology, education, obstetrics and gynecology, health services delivery, social work, nursing, genetics, and nutrition.

Fellowship Aims

1. To provide the fellow with research training and experience in preparation for a research career in adolescent mental health interventions.

2. To provide the fellow with broad post-doctoral training in the area of research and clinical practice addressing school and clinical-based suicide prevention and intervention, assessment of suicidal thoughts and behaviors with a high-risk population, and interdisciplinary treatment for child/adolescent mental health disorders.

3. To provide the fellow with a strong working knowledge of research involving technology (including virtual reality) and commercialization.

Fellowship Timeline

The duration of the fellowship is 1 year with possibility to extend to a second-year contingent upon satisfactory progress.

Research Activity Plan

Research will involve several ongoing projects, with examples including:

The postdoctoral fellow will work with the supervisors to oversee implementation of several investigations occurring in hospital and school settings. This will involve overseeing research assistant recruitment and follow-up procedures and conducting clinical interviews, as well as intervention delivery.

In addition to experiences included in coordination of the primary research project, the experience will consist of promoting development of the fellow's independent program of research (subsumed under grant writing and manuscript preparation described below). The nature of this independent research program will be collaboratively determined by the fellow and supervisor(s) and will involve the production of a traditional scientific product (e.g., manuscript, presentation at a national professional meeting, grant application, instrument development); the independent program of research may involve new directions taken using resources (i.e., data, research population, etc) provided by the mentorship team and/or may involve continued development of the trainee's prior work (i.e., publication of dissertation).

The fellow will be exposed to various aspects of research via participation in the following supportive research activities:

The fellow will be provided specific opportunities to develop an independent program of research:

Although the focus of this position is towards development in research, the fellowship will involve activities supporting eligibility for psychology licensure that includes clinical rotations and clinical interviewing and intervention delivery described previously that is part of research activities with Dr. Marraccini. Clinical rotations will be selected to enhance research goals and occur at Department of Psychiatry CAP Division where the fellow will provide support and services in the Child and Adolescent Inpatient Psychiatry Units under the supervision of Drs. Meyer and Janos.

Supervision will be provided in the form of weekly individual supervision (one hour each, with Dr. Marraccini primary research supervisor and Drs. Meyer and Janos providing clinical supervision as described above).

Every 6 months for the duration of the fellowship, the fellow and the supervisors will provide formal evaluations, and evaluations of the program relative to the goals and learning objectives of the fellowship.

PhD in school, clinical, or counseling psychology

For information on UNC Postdoctoral Benefits and Services click here

If you experience any problems accessing the system or have questions about the application process, please contact the University's Office of Postdoctoral Affairs at (919) 962-9982 or send an email to opahr@unc.edu.

Please note: The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs will not be able to provide specific updates regarding position or application status.

The University is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all to apply without regard to age, color, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.