Senior Research Technician

Job Description

Job Description

Senior Research Technician 

Parma Lab

MONELL CHEMICAL SENSES CENTER

The Monell Chemical Senses Center, founded in 1968, is the world’s first nonprofit scientific institute devoted exclusively to basic research on the chemical senses: taste, smell, and chemosensory irritation. Research at Monell contributes to a wide range of scientific and practical knowledge, including taste and smell loss with COVID-19. With more than fifty Ph.D.-level scientists, the Center is making major progress toward understanding how the chemical senses function and their importance in everyday life. The Center is located in Philadelphia's University City. For more information on Monell, please visit our website at 

Smell and taste are among the most overlooked health signals. Our lab is changing that by building tests, clinical trials, and data infrastructure that make chemosensory measurement part of routine care. Our portfolio spans National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded clinical trials, digital smell-data platforms, and industry-partnered sensory studies.

We are looking for a Senior Research Technician with strong experience conducting research with human participants. Your primary responsibility will be recruiting, scheduling, and testing participants across concurrent studies, with careful attention to participant experience, protocol fidelity, and data quality. You will work independently within established protocols and help coordinate routine lab activities, working closely with the Principal Investigator (PI) and other team members. This is a primarily hands-on, participant-facing research position, with additional responsibility for routine study coordination.

Qualifications

Candidates should be proficient in or willing to learn the following:

• Lead recruitment, screening, scheduling, informed consent, and in-person and remote testing across multiple concurrent protocols, meeting enrollment targets and timelines.
• Administer validated smell and taste assessments and psychophysical procedures with rigor and consistency and ensure fidelity across testers.
• Assist with Institutional Review Board (IRB) submissions, amendments, and study records; keep documentation current and promptly flag protocol deviations or other concerns to the Principal Investigator (PI).
• Maintain Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) study records, perform routine data-quality checks, and help prepare datasets for analysis.
• Maintain testing calendars, prepare study materials, monitor supplies, and keep testing spaces organized and ready for participant visits.
• Help onboard students and newly appointed team members to establish testing procedures, document competency, and model good participant care and research practices.
• Support analyses, figures, manuscripts, and conference presentations, with opportunities for co-authorship.

Required

• B.A. or B.S. in Psychology, Neuroscience, Biology, Public Health, or a related field.
• At least 3 years of hands-on research experience with human participants, including recruitment, consent, and data collection.
• Working knowledge of Institutional Review Board (IRB) processes and human-subjects protections (current Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI Program) or Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training).
• Exceptional organization and attention to detail, reflected in meticulous records, version control, and reliable tracking systems.
• Clear, warm, and professional communication with participants from multiple backgrounds, including vulnerable populations.

Application Instructions

Please apply through our Career Center by following the link below.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Monell provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.