A cover letter is required for consideration for this position and should be attached as the first page of your resume. The cover letter should address your specific interest in the position and outline skills and experience that directly relate to this position.
At Michigan Engineering, we develop the talent and technologies that move society forward and serve our state and national interests. Through discovery and innovation, we create the foundational knowledge and practical technologies to solve not only today's most pressing challenges, but also power industries and change lives. Our programs and community are designed to promote personal well-being and achievement-enabling everyone to unlock their potential and contribute with confidence.
The Research Laboratory Specialist Senior will serve as the core operational, medical, and regulatory anchor for a large animal lab within Biomedical Engineering. In this senior role, the Research Lab Specialist will oversee a small NHP colony, while also running precursor-to-GLP sheep and pig studies. Will ensure strict compliance across all regulatory bodies (USDA, IACUC, IBC, EHS) and manage controlled substance compliance. Independently write comprehensive IACUC protocols for PIs transitioning into large animal research. On the medical front, this position will lead pre-operative setup and post-operative recovery for monthly surgeries, performing advanced procedures like ultrasound-guided nerve blocks. Directly train PhD students and pre-veterinary assistants. Finally, handle the lab's administrative foundation by managing supply logistics and executing long-term personnel financial forecasting across multiple grants in coordination with research administrators.
Nonhuman Primate Colony Management:
- Will manage a small NHP colony. This includes fulfilling day-to-day medical needs and coordination with vets.
- Maintain detailed and accurate documentation related to weight, food and water consumption, general hours, and any medical care.
- Personally manages the training of new NHP for poling, chairing, and acclimatization to handling with junior assistants.
- Develops and adapts personalized training plans for individual NHP.
Regulatory:
- Monitors and ensures compliance with all protocols (USDA, IACUC, IBC, EHS, CS) and serves as the primary points of contact for all regulatory inspections.
- Manages controlled drugs compliance across the lab under the PIs CS license.
- Runs precursor-to-GLP sheep and pig studies, regularly monitoring animal health and coordinating with the pathology core.
- Writes and edits full IACUC protocols for NHP, sheep, and pig, often working with PIs who have never previously worked with large animals.
- Trains all lab members in procedures related to safety, including the use of PPE, chemical safety, fire safety, biosafety.
- Writes all new SOPs related to lab procedures.
Medical:
- Is the primary person running approximately 1-2 NHP surgeries per year and 1 sheep or pig surgery every month.
- Can lead every aspect of pre-operative setup and post-operative recovery, with junior assistance. This includes anesthetic induction, intubation, intraoperative sensor placement, vitals monitoring, animal recovery, and post-operative monitoring.
- Delivers medication per veterinary instructions or protocol guidance using all routes in NHP and other large animals, including IV.
- Develops and fabricates novel methods for experimental procedures and improves existing techniques.
- Assists PhD students with all medical procedures used within daily experiments, particularly including ultrasound guided nerve block.
- Serves as the primary liaison supporting 5 or more PIs who wish to perform large animal experiments without running a large animal lab themselves.
Management:
- Supervises and trains PhD students and other lab staff on lab equipment operation, laboratory procedures, laboratory techniques.
- Explains and demonstrates technology and equipment capabilities, operations, limitations and outcomes.
- Directly manages and teaches assistants veterinary procedures. These will usually be students in training for veterinary programs
- Manages lab service assignments across the lab.
Administrative:
- Organizes all lab supplies and associated finances.
- Orders all supplies for the lab, using spreadsheets to monitor purchasing.
- Ensures critical supplies are in stock for lab procedures.
- Maintains a spreadsheet for personnel financial forecasting using remaining funding on grants. i.e. projects that that amount forward in time with personnel.
- Meets regularly with the research administrator for the lab related to post-award management.
- Master's degree and over 15 years of experience working with large animals in a laboratory setting.
- Experience independently managing an NHP lab for at least half of that time.
- 10 years or more of experience working with awake NHP, including training a fresh animal from scratch for pole and collar. Previously trained other people with no experience to handle NHP.
- Primary point of contact for a lab during USDA, IACUC, IBC, EHS, CS inspections for at least 5 years.
- Substantial experience writing and establishing SOPs for a large animal lab. Has independently written full IACUC protocols to assist PIs.
- Previously assisted PIs who have never personally worked with large animals to obtain protocol approvals and obtain data.
- At least 3 years of experience working with large animals in a GLP facility.
- Proficient with ultrasound guided nerve block, all manners of drug delivery in large animals including awake IV.
- Can independently or with junior assistance complete pre-operative setup for large animal surgeries including anesthetic induction, intubation, vitals sensor placement, vitals monitoring.
- Independently handle animal recovery and other post-operative monitoring.
- Previously trained and supervised junior assistants on medical procedures involving large animals.
- Can utilize internal financial spreadsheets for running a lab for purchasing and financial projection.
- Served as the primary day-to-day contact for a research administrator monitoring accounts.
In addition to a career filled with purpose and opportunity, The University of Michigan offers a comprehensive benefits package to help you stay well, protect yourself and your family and plan for a secure future. Benefits include:
- Generous time off
- A retirement plan that provides two-for-one matching contributions with immediate vesting
- Many choices for comprehensive health insurance
- Life insurance
- Long-term disability coverage
- Flexible spending accounts for healthcare and dependent care expenses
- Maternity and Parental Leave
Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.
This is an onsite position-5 days per week.
The University of Michigan conducts background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer and may use a third party administrator to conduct background checks. Background checks are performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days. The review and selection process may begin as early as the eighth day after posting. This opening may be removed from posting boards and filled any time after the minimum posting period has ended.
The University of Michigan is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.
