Postdoctoral Fellow

The mission of NICHD’s Epidemiology Branch is to conduct original studies focused on human reproduction, pregnancy, and maternal and child health. Postdoctoral fellowships are now available in research groups led by Dr. Bizu Gelaye, Dr. Edwina Yeung, Dr. Katherine Grantz and Dr. Fasil Tekola-Ayele.

All fellows will have access to population datasets covering areas such as perinatal mental health, fetal growth and development, maternal health across the lifecourse, child health, and health disparities, including extensive genomic and multiomic datasets. Fellows will also have the opportunity to participate in our branch’s ongoing field studies as well.

Our branch is currently interested in the following research areas:

• Understanding the role of preconception and perinatal behaviors and environmental and psychosocial stressors in shaping both short- and long-term maternal and offspring health outcomes
• Understanding how exposure to infertility treatment may lead to long-term health outcomes among children and adults
• Generating fetal growth standards for application in clinical practice, including investigating the role of fetal growth velocity and examining the benefits of customized and individualized fetal growth references
• Understanding genetic and placental epigenetic mechanisms that impact fetal growth and risk of future cardiometabolic disease

In addition to conducting research and publishing in peer-reviewed journals, fellows will also contribute to mentoring laboratory postbaccalaureate fellows and participate in career development activities, including present their research at national scientific meetings and pursing future funding opportunities.

Prospective candidates should have a Ph.D., Sc.D., MD/MPH, and/or equivalent degree in epidemiology, or a closely related field, along with advanced graduate training in epidemiology and/or biostatistics, earned within the last five years. Candidates who are close to completing their graduate degree are also highly encouraged to apply.

Candidates should have experience using a statistical packages such as SAS or R to prepare and analyze large datasets. They should also be creative and disciplined in their scientific thinking, have the ability to identify and address important gaps in current literature, and have excellent time management and communication skills. A demonstrated interest in research areas we are actively exploring, plus strong analytical, written, and oral communication skills and experience with longitudinal data analysis, are all highly desirable.

U.S. citizens and permanent residents are eligible to apply. NIH welcomes foreign nationals with the exception of individuals from this list.