Research Coordinator, ELCHA

University of British Columbia - Staff; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of British Columbia seeks a Research Coordinator for the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Aging. This role involves providing research and administrative support, managing financial activities, and coordinating events and projects in a dynamic interdisciplinary environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum of two years of related experience or equivalent education.
• Knowledge of research funding processes is essential.
• Experience working with researchers in an academic community preferred.

Responsibilities

• Manage research and administrative operations for the Kobor Lab and ELCHA.
• Coordinate grant applications and financial activities.
• Lead planning of research seminars and community engagement events.

Skills

Communication

Organizational Skills

Problem Solving

Teamwork

Flexibility

Education

Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline

Master's degree or similar level of education

Tools

MS Word

MS Excel

MS PowerPoint

WordPress

Cyber Impact

Job description

Staff - Non Union

Job Category M&P - AAPS Job Profile AAPS Salaried - Research and Facilitation, Level A Job Title Research Coordinator, ELCHA Department Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Aging | Leadership | Faculty of Medicine Compensation Range $5,365.42 - $7,709.92 CAD Monthly

The Compensation Range is the span between the minimum and maximum base salary for a position. The midpoint of the range is approximately halfway between the minimum and the maximum and represents an employee that possesses full job knowledge, qualifications and experience for the position. In the normal course, employees will be hired, transferred or promoted between the minimum and midpoint of the salary range for a job.

Posting End Date June 2, 2025

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the Posting End Date.

Job End Date

Jun 30, 2025

Job Summary

The Research Coordinator works in close partnership with Principal Investigator (PI), Dr. Michael Kobor to provide research and administrative coordination to the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Aging (ELCHA) and the Kobor Lab. The PI, Dr. Kobor, is the Edwin S.H. Leong UBC Chair in Healthy Aging – A UBC President’s Excellence Chair, and the Director of the ELCHA.

The ELCHA is an interdisciplinary centre at UBC with over 40 Investigators focused on research, training, and knowledge mobilization in the fields of aging and geroscience. The Centre incorporates a holistic, society-to-cell framework to understand how biological, environmental, social, and cultural factors throughout the life course influence aging trajectories. Further, this knowledge is applied to investigate the mechanisms and risk factors for age-associated diseases and to develop and implement new strategies to prevent disease and promote health and well-being with age. The research coordinator will be involved in management and coordination of many activities within the Centre pertaining to events - such as research seminars and symposia- research ethics applications, grant submissions, communications, and outreach activities. The research coordinator will also have the opportunity to work on research and community engagement projects spanning several disciplines, many that are collaborative and involve working with academic researchers, health authority representatives, members of community-based organizations, and trainees at various levels.

In addition to involvement with the ELCHA, the incumbent will provide research management and coordination support for the Kobor Lab. The Kobor Lab investigates how our social environments and life experiences get “under the skin” through biological embedding to influence health and behaviour across the life span. As world-leading experts in social epigenetics, the Lab has established a program of interdisciplinary research with the goal of translating foundational genetic discovery into interventions and policy change to promote healthy life trajectories. The incumbent will manage various financial activities, coordinate grant application processes, and track research metrics and project outcomes for funding reports, and will be part of a dynamic team of trainees and research staff engaged in various collaborative projects in human life course epigenetics, with partners locally, nationally and internationally.

Organizational Status

The University of British Columbia is a global centre for research and teaching, consistently ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world. Since 1915, UBC’s entrepreneurial spirit has embraced innovation and challenged the status quo. UBC encourages its students, staff and faculty to challenge convention, lead discovery and explore new ways of learning. At UBC, bold thinking is given a place to develop into ideas that can change the world.

Our Vision: To Transform Health for Everyone

Ranked among the world’s top medical schools with the fifth-largest MD enrollment in North America, the UBC Faculty of Medicine is a leader in both the science and the practice of medicine. Across British Columbia, more than 12,000 faculty and staff are training the next generation of doctors and health care professionals, making remarkable discoveries, and helping to create the pathways to better health for our communities at home and around the world.

The Faculty—comprised of approximately 2,200 administrative support, technical/research and management and professional staff, as well approximately 650 full-time academic and over 10,000 clinical faculty members—is composed of 19 academic basic science and/or clinical departments, 3 schools, and 25 research centres and institutes. Together with its University and Health Authority partners, the Faculty delivers innovative programs and conducts research in the areas of health and life sciences. Faculty, staff and trainees are located at university campuses, clinical academic campuses in hospital settings and other regionally based centres across the province.

The UBC Vancouver Campus is located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. The City of Vancouver is located on Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations territory.

This position reports to the lead PI, Dr. Michael Kobor (Medical Genetics), with a dotted reporting line to the Research Director of the ELCHA and the Research Manager of the Kobor Lab. The incumbent will work closely with other staff and trainees of the Kobor Lab and Investigators, collaborators and partners of the ELCHA

Work Performed

• Provides overall coordination and management support for research and administrative operations for the Kobor Lab and ELCHA, ensuring seamless workflow and strategic alignment.
• Manages financial activities for the Kobor Lab and ELCHA, including overseeing expenditures, requisitions for payment, travel claims, and credit card payment approvals
• Leads the planning, development and implementation of key events for the ELCHA including research seminars, public talks, annual Research Days, community engagement events, symposia, etc.; Prepares, composes and edits scientific communications for presentations and talks
• Leads the development of communications initiatives for the Kobor Lab and ELCHA including webpages, , newsletters, and social media platforms.
• Engages with a multi-disciplinary and multi-sector team to coordinate collaborative projects, including individuals from health care, government, NGOs, and members of the public, including older adults.
• Responsible for research development activities, including grant writing and submissions, writing reference letters and letters of support, funding reports, research ethics applications, etc;
• Serves as key resource person in responding to inquiries regarding presentations, requests for information, data requests or other materials for the ELCHA and Kobor Lab;
• Develops methods to track research metrics (e.g. grants, awards, publications) for annual reporting to UBC, donors, and various funding agencies. Drafts and prepares documentation on PI’s activities for these reports. Responsible for regular updating of CVs.
• Remains current on policies and new developments pertaining to research awards and identifies and proposes potential new research projects and opportunities for ELCHA members, the Lab, and for trainees within the Lab;
• Occasionally acts as Centre or Laboratory representative in a liaison capacity with other research laboratories and other academic units;
• Assists Research Manager and Research Director with ad-hoc projects, as required.
• Performing other related duties as required.

Consequence of Error/Judgement
Must exercise judgement based upon thorough knowledge of procedures, guidelines and regulations. Errors may impact the ability of research staff to meet critical deadlines, as well as compromise the results of research projects, and therefore impact the credibility and funding of the Principal Investigator, UBC and ELCHA, and other internal and external research partners.

Supervision Received
While this position reports to the Principal Investigator, Dr. Kobor, the incumbent will work under limited supervision and sets own priorities based on workload. The incumbent will receive guidance from, and work closely with, the Research Director of the ELCHA and the Research Manager of Dr. Kobor’s Lab.

Supervision Given
May occasionally supervise student workers.

Minimum Qualifications
Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline. Minimum of two years of related experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

- Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one’s own

- Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion

Preferred Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline, for example genetics, biology, psychology, or neuroscience. Minimum of two year's experience or the equivalent combination of education and experience. A Masters degree, or similar level of education and research experience is preferred
• Knowledge of research funding processes and experience in dealing with funding agencies is essential
• Experience working with research and researchers within an academic community is strongly preferred, including familiarity with CIHR grants processes.
• Familiarity with UBC financial policies and UBC Workday system an asset. Experience with UBC RISe system for research ethics protocols an asset.
• Appropriate knowledge of UBC admin procedures preferred.
• Ability to maintain accuracy and attention to detail. Ability to analyze problems, identify key information and issues, and effectively resolve.
• This position requires flexibility and responsiveness to changing needs. Ability to prioritize and work effectively under pressure to meet deadlines. Strong organizational skills are critical. Ability to anticipate problems and issues and plan ahead.
• Ability to take initiative, be a creative problem solver, manage own workload, and work independently are essential
• Ability to effectively use Outlook, MS Word, MS Excel, MS Powerpoint at an advanced level.
• Ability to work effectively independently and in a team environment.
• Excellent communication skills and strong writing abilities are essential. Familiarity with writing and communications software and programs, for example, Cyber Impact and Canva, are an asset. Familiarity with website development and maintenance on the WordPress platform is preferred.
• Ability to develop and maintain cooperative and productive working relationships. Ability to exercise tact and discretion in communication
• Must conduct all activities in an ethical manner and treat funding information and research data confidentially.