"Open Rank"

Posted: 14-Jan-26

Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Categories: Academic/Faculty, Medical - Research

Internal Number: 311791

Employment Type: Permanent Faculty

Vacancy ID: FAC0005787

Position Summary/Description:

The UNC Center for Women's Mood Disorders (CWMD) and the Department of Psychiatry at the UNC School of Medicine are seeking an exceptional scientist for a full-time, open-rank, tenure-track faculty position focused on the neural and molecular mechanisms of cognitive aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk in women. The Department of Psychiatry provides an outstanding environment for translational neuroscience, basic and clinical research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and career development. The CWMD is nationally recognized for its integrative research portfolio examining neuroendocrine, behavioral, and neurobiological processes that influence women's mental health across the lifespan.

This new faculty member will lead an innovative research program investigating mechanisms underlying cognitive aging and AD vulnerability, with a particular emphasis on the menopause transition, neuroendocrine function, neural circuitry, inflammatory and molecular biomarkers, and sex-specific risk pathways. The successful candidate will develop an independent program of externally funded research; contribute to collaborative initiatives within Psychiatry, Neurology, Neuroscience, and the broader UNC Alzheimer's Disease Research Center; and leverage multimodal methodologies such as neuroimaging, molecular assays, and computational approaches.

The faculty member will provide high-quality research mentorship to trainees in the Center for Women's Mood Disorders, including graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, interns, and early-career faculty. Responsibilities include designing and executing research studies; building team science collaborations; conducting data analysis; disseminating results; publishing in high-impact scientific journals; and securing extramural grant funding. This position represents a critical investment in UNC's strategic vision to transform research and care for midlife women and reduce the burden of Alzheimer's disease through precision neuroscience.