How to Apply
Position Summary
Postdoctoral research fellowships are available at the University of Kansas through the NIH-Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Award (IRACDA) program. This fellowship offers three years of salary support to outstanding candidates seeking postdoctoral research training along with an opportunity to obtain mentored teaching experience at a nearby tribal college, Haskell Indian Nations University (HINU), in preparation for an academic career. Postdoctoral research training is provided under the guidance of KU faculty who are internationally recognized for their research in a broad range of disciplines including organic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, pharmaceutical chemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, chemical biology, biochemistry, molecular & cellular biology, genetics, and evolutionary biology. Fellows will receive mentorship on becoming educators and will gain experience by teaching at HINU, located about 2 miles from KU. The starting salary for trainees is $58,656 per year, along with excellent fringe benefits and a small allowance for research supplies and travel to an annual IRACDA meeting.
Eligibility & Required Qualifications
- Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents
- Applicants must have PhD in biology, chemistry, or a related discipline
- Applicants must be within 2 years of obtaining their PhD at the time of appointment
- Applicants must complete their doctoral degree before beginning postdoctoral training
- Applicants must have submitted or published at least one first-authored paper
Note: To be appointed, it is necessary to have the PhD in hand. Appointments made without a diploma or certified transcript indicating an earned doctorate are conditional hires.
Preferred Qualifications
Special interest in developing an academic career in both research and teaching, demonstrated ability to work in a team environment, and excellent oral and written communication skills are preferred.
Deadline
The selection committee will begin reviewing applications after February 1st. Selected scholars start in September 2025.
Application Process
To ensure your eligibility for the KU-IRACDA program, please confirm that you meet the following criteria:
- Educational Qualifications: Possess a Ph.D., M.D., or equivalent doctoral degree in a relevant field.
- Citizenship Status: Be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or non-citizen national.
- Recent Doctoral Completion: Have completed your doctoral degree within the past two years.
- Research Experience: Demonstrate experience in initiating and executing a research project, evidenced by a first-author publication or preprint.
A research lab and mentor should be identified before applying to the program, and applicants should contact their potential research mentor before completing the official online application. Applicants can find a list of KU faculty members participating as mentors on the Find a Mentor page. Potential mentors must have funding to enable IRACDA Fellows to do research in their labs and must be publishing recently and regularly. For questions and guidance on mentor selection, contact the program director, Dr. Stuart MacDonald at sjmac@ku.edu. Once a mentor has agreed to provide the research training, the applicant can start the application process.
Please ensure all required documents are prepared for upload before beginning the online application process.
- Curriculum Vitae (CV): Provide a comprehensive overview of your academic and professional background.
- Cover Letter: Outline your career goals and explain how the experiences offered by the KU-IRACDA program will assist you in achieving these objectives.
- Research Descriptions:
- PhD Research: Summarize your doctoral research in a document not exceeding two pages.
- Proposed Research at KU: Detail your proposed research project at KU in a document not exceeding one page.
- Academic Career Goals Statement: Describe your academic career interests and your aspirations for a career that integrates research and teaching in a document not exceeding one page.
- First-Author Publication/Preprint: Include a copy of a first-author publication or preprint to demonstrate your research experience.
- Letters of Recommendation: Provide contact information for three academic references who can speak to your qualifications and potential.
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