Research Assistant

A global higher education leader in innovative teaching, research and public service, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill consistently ranks as one of the nation's top public universities. Known for its beautiful campus, world-class medical care, commitment to the arts and top athletic programs, Carolina is an ideal place to teach, work and learn.

One of the best college towns and best places to live in the United States, Chapel Hill has diverse social, cultural, recreation and professional opportunities that span the campus and community.

University employees can choose from a wide range of professional training opportunities for career growth, skill development and lifelong learning and enjoy exclusive perks that include numerous retail and restaurant discounts, savings on local child care centers and special rates for performing arts events.

Primary Purpose of Organizational Unit

Our mission is to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians and others whom we serve. We accomplish this by providing leadership and excellence in the interrelated areas of patient care, education and research.

Patient care: We promote health and provide superb clinical care while maintaining our strong tradition of reaching underserved populations and reducing health disparities across North Carolina and beyond.

Education: We prepare tomorrow`s healthcare professionals and biomedical researchers from all backgrounds by facilitating learning within innovative and integrated curricula and team-oriented interprofessional education to ensure a highly skilled workforce.

Research: We develop and support a rich array of outstanding health sciences research programs, centers and resources. We provide infrastructure and opportunities for collaboration among disciplines throughout and beyond our university to support outstanding research. We foster programs in the areas of basic, translational, mechanistic and population research.

Position Summary

UNC seeks a temporary Research Assistant to join Dr. Marissa Hall's Policy Insights Lab ( ). The lab conducts research to inform food, tobacco, and alcohol policies designed to improve public health.

The Research Assistant position is an excellent opportunity to gain experience in conducting research and working with an interdisciplinary research team that values high quality research with public health impact and a supportive and collaborative working environment. This is 11 months but has the potential to extend to up to two years depending on fit and project needs. This is an in-person position at our study office in Raleigh, NC. The position may require some evening and weekend hours.

The Research Assistant will support an NIH-funded research study testing a campaign to encourage people who smoke menthol to quit smoking. The study will also evaluate the impact of banning menthol cigarettes. The Research Assistant will contribute to data collection in the UNC Mini Mart. The Mini Mart is a physical convenience store laboratory that provides a controlled environment in which researchers can study the impact of policies and interventions on consumer behavior. In a randomized trial, participants will attend 2 in-person visits at our study office, take surveys regarding their tobacco use, and shop in the UNC Mini Mart. The position involves recruiting and screening study participants, scheduling study visits, consenting eligible participants, implementing the study protocol (including online surveys and in-person data collection), disbursing study incentives to participants, assisting with data entry, and other administrative tasks.

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

Bachelor's degree; or equivalent combination of training and experience. All degrees must be received from appropriately accredited institutions.

Management Preferences

• Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills
• Comfortable working in teams or independently
• Exceptional attention to detail
• Proficient using Microsoft Suite (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and Outlook)
• Experience or interest working in tobacco control research or public health research
• Experience working with human subjects research

Special Physical/Mental Requirements Campus Security Authority Responsibilities

Not Applicable.

Special Instructions Quick Link Temporary Employment Policies

Temporary Employment Policies