Post Doctoral Research Fellow

The General Hospital Corporation; Belmont (MA); On-site; USD 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

The McLean Hospital Corporation seeks a Postdoctoral Research Fellow to lead a longitudinal, multimodal neuroimaging study of adolescents and young adults with pelvic pain. The role integrates structural MRI, resting-state and task-based fMRI, quantitative sensory testing, and comprehensive clinical and psychosocial assessments across multiple time-points.

The fellow will manage protocol execution, data acquisition, image processing, and data analysis, with dual affiliations at McLean Hospital

Responsibilities

• Lead the longitudinal imaging study, coordinating neuroimaging data collection and quality control
• Oversee study timelines, participant retention, and scanner scheduling
• Supervise and train research staff and students involved in recruitment, assessment, and scanning
• Assist with progress reports and grant renewals/new proposals
• Work with collaborators to recruit participants and matched controls
• Implement developmentally appropriate clinical, psychological, and sensory assessments
• Ensure trauma-informed interactions with participants and families
• Oversee acquisition of high-quality MRI data and monitor motion
• Develop reproducible preprocessing and analysis pipelines
• Contribute to analyses of connectivity, activation, and brain structure
• Apply longitudinal modeling and contribute to predictive modeling
• Lead first-author manuscript preparation and present findings

Job description

Site: The McLean Hospital Corporation

Job Summary

Postdoctoral Research Fellow: Longitudinal Neuroimaging of Pelvic Pain in Adolescents and Young Adults

Clinical and Translational Pain Research Laboratory, McLean Hospital (Mass General Brigham / Harvard Medical School)

Position Summary

The Clinical and Translational Pain Research Laboratory at McLean Hospital seeks a postdoctoral fellow to lead a longitudinal, multimodal neuroimaging study of adolescents and young adults with pelvic pain. The study integrates structural MRI as well as resting-state and tasked-based fMRI, quantitative sensory testing, and detailed clinical and psychosocial assessment across multiple time-points. The fellow will take a central role in the day-to-day operational aspects of the study including protocol execution, data acquisition, image processing, and eventual participation in data analysis, and manuscript preparation. A post-doctoral fellow typically holds dual affiliations at McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School.

This is an ideal position for an early-career scientist who wants to build an independent research program at the intersection of pain, neurodevelopment, and women's health. The fellow will work closely with both Principal Investigators - Drs. Laura Payne and Christine Sieberg, who are pain researchers and Co-Investigator Dr. Edina Szabo (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center), along with a collaborative network of clinicians and imaging scientists across the Mass General Brigham system. The position is designed to support the fellow's development toward independent funding (e.g., F32, K-series) and a faculty career.

About the Laboratory

Dr. Payne's and Dr. Sieberg's studies evaluate how chronic pain develops, persists, and can be treated, with a particular focus on under-recognized pain conditions affecting girls and women. The lab has a strong mentorship culture, and trainees are encouraged to develop their own lines of inquiry within the lab's broader scientific mission.

Key Responsibilities

Study Leadership and Management

• Serve as the lead scientist for the longitudinal imaging study, coordinating all aspects of neuroimaging data collection, quality control, and data management
• Oversee study timelines, participant retention across follow-up visits, and scanner scheduling in partnership with the research coordinator and McLean Imaging Center
• Supervise and train research assistants, graduate students, and undergraduate trainees involved in recruitment, assessment, and scanning
• Assist with progress reports and contribute to grant renewals and new proposals

Participant Recruitment and Assessment

• Work with clinical collaborators to identify and recruit participants and matched pain-free controls
• Implement and oversee a developmentally appropriate battery of clinical, psychological, and sensory assessments (quantitative sensory testing), including pain characteristics, menstrual and pubertal history, mood, anxiety, trauma exposure, sleep, and functioning
• Ensure sensitive, trauma-informed, and developmentally appropriate interactions with participants and families, particularly given the intimate nature of the clinical conditions studied

Neuroimaging Acquisition and Analysis

• Oversee acquisition of high-quality structural, resting-state, and task-based fMRI data, in coordination with Dr. Szabo.
• Implement strategies to minimize and monitor head motion, including real-time motion monitoring and standardized quality control
• Develop and maintain reproducible preprocessing and analysis pipelines (e.g., fMRIPrep, FreeSurfer, CONN, FSL, SPM, or equivalents) with version-controlled code
• Assist with analyses of functional connectivity, task-evoked activation, brain structure, and their relationships to clinical trajectories in collaboration with the research team
• Apply longitudinal modeling approaches (e.g., linear mixed-effects, latent growth, or related methods) that account for developmental change, repeated measures, and attrition
• Contribute to multivariate and predictive modeling aimed at identifying neural markers of pain persistence and resolution

Dissemination and Scholarly Development

• Lead the preparation of first-author manuscripts for peer-reviewed publication, and contribute to collaborative papers
• Present findings at national and international scientific meetings (e.g., International Association for the Study of Pain, U.S. Association for the Study of Pain, International Pelvic Pain Society)
• Contrib