New

Research Assistant

Columbia University
United States, New York, New York
Dec 20, 2025
Job Type: Support Staff - Union Bargaining Unit: SSA Regular/Temporary: Regular End Date if Temporary: Hours Per Week: 35 Standard Work Schedule: Building: Salary Range: $33.90- $33.90 The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training. The above hiring range represents the University's good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting. A strong internal candidate has been identified for this position, however, we are still accepting applications from other qualified candidates. Position Summary Our goal is to identify computational principles underlying learning and decision-making behavior and inform our understanding of mental disorders through the study of variation in their neural realization. We aim to translate our computational findings to develop improved diagnoses and personalized treatments for mental illness. To this end, we bridge computational models that target various levels of analysis, including the algorithms (e.g., reinforcement learning models) and their neural implementations (e.g., biophysical models), as well as models of machine intelligence (e.g., deep convolutional neural networks). We test the models' predictions in our empirical studies with human participants (e.g., neuroimaging), as well as through close collaborations with basic and clinical neuroscience/psychiatry laboratories. We are affiliated with the Department of Psychiatry, the Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, the Data Science Institute, and the Zuckerman Institute at Columbia. We welcome graduate students from various programs at Columbia, including the Ph.D. Program in Neurobiology and Behavior. This job is a full-time position as a research assistant who will contribute to the coordination of behavioral and neuroimaging studies in humans. The duties include interfacing with study participants, maintaining the IRB protocol, computer programming for behavioral task design and fMRI, and coordinating various studies at the lab. Responsibilities Performing online experiments (e.g., Amazon, M-Turk) 20% Performing fMRI experiments with human participants 20% Performing Data analysis pipelines and analyze fMRI data 20% Maintaining research computing platforms and data servers 15% Recruiting, scheduling, and administering tasks 5% Perform other related duties and responsibilities as assigned/requested 20% Minimum Qualifications Bachelor's degree and at least one and one-half years of related experience or equivalent in education, training and experience. Preferred Qualifications Experience in administering behavioral, clinical, and cognitive batteries and assessments. Proficiency in using various research systems, including REDCap along with experience in research compliance and administrative management systems. Experience in Python, R, and MATLAB for data analysis. Experience in administering and developing fMRI and MRI-based tasks and protocols. Strong decision-making skills, attention to detail, and the ability to solve problems independently. Experience in operating specialized research software, such as eye-tracking software (e.g., SR Research Experiment Builder, EyeLink Data Viewer) or similar tools used for tracking and analyzing visual attention and gaze patterns. Other Requirements Must successfully complete online systems training requirements. Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.