Research Assistant Professor

University of Rochester: Office of the Provost: University of Rochester Medical Center: School of Medicine and Dentistry: Biochemistry and Biophysics

Salary Range or Pay Grade

$52,000.00 - $113,000

Description

The Center for Advanced Research Technologies (CART) at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) seeks an experienced and highly motivated Technical Director to lead the operations of the Cryo-Electron Microscopy (Cryo-EM) Resource Center. This individual will provide scientific, technical, and operational leadership for a growing cryo-EM facility that supports a vibrant research community.

The Cryo-EM Resource Center is in the process of installing a Thermo Fisher Scientific Glacios 3 cryo-TEM, equipped with a Selectris energy filter and Falcon 4i direct electron detector. The Technical Director will play a central role in overseeing instrument commissioning and maintenance, method development, user training, and day-to-day operational management. The successful candidate must be highly responsible, reliable, and technically oriented, with excellent interpersonal skills.

The Technical Director will have the opportunity to shape the direction of a growing cryo-EM program and play a key role in advancing cutting-edge research. This role offers a supportive, collaborative environment and excellent opportunities for career advancement.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee the installation, calibration, commissioning, and ongoing optimization of the Glacios cryo-EM platform with Selectris energy filter and Falcon 4i detector, along with additional planned instrumentation acquisitions.

• Develop, validate, and maintain cryo-EM workflows for sample preparation, data acquisition, and data quality assessment.

• Collaborate effectively with the Director of CART, the Scientific Director of the Cryo-EM Resource Center, and adjacent CART core facility leaders.

• Provide expert consultation to investigators on experimental design, sample suitability, data collection strategies, and optimization for cryo-EM and cryo‑ET applications.

• Stay current with advances in cryo-EM instrumentation, detectors, image processing software, and best practices, and implement improvements as appropriate.

• Oversee daily operations of the Cryo-EM Resource Center, ensuring high instrument uptime, data quality, and efficient scheduling.

• Establish and enforce standard operating procedures (SOPs) for instrument use, safety, and maintenance.

• Coordinate instrument maintenance and service contracts, working alongside service engineers and support teams to ensure optimal instrument performance, proactive maintenance, and rapid troubleshooting.

• Coordinate the transfer and storage of instrument data in collaboration with networking and IT support teams.

• Manage facility budgets, recharge rates, usage reporting, and contribute to long-term planning for facility growth.

• Design and deliver comprehensive training programs for new and existing users, including sample preparation, microscope operation, and data acquisition.

• Supervise and mentor facility staff, as applicable.

• Promote a collaborative, inclusive, and service‑oriented environment for internal and external users.

• Assist users with troubleshooting experimental challenges during data collection.

• Collaborate with URMC faculty on grant proposals, methods development, and interdisciplinary research projects.

• Contribute to publications, core facility acknowledgments, and center-related research outputs, as appropriate.

• Represent the Cryo-EM Resource Center within URMC and to external partners, vendors, and scientific communities.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. in structural biology, biophysics, biochemistry, cell biology, or a related field, or equivalent advanced degree with significant cryo-EM experience.

• Extensive hands-on experience operating cryo-electron microscopes for high-resolution structural biology.

• Demonstrated expertise in cryo-EM sample preparation, data collection strategies, and data quality metrics.

• Proven ability to lead a shared research facility or complex scientific instrumentation environment.

• Strong communication, organizational, and interpersonal skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct experience using EPU and SerialEM.

• Familiarity with cryo-EM data processing pipelines and software (e.g., RELION, cryoSPARC).

• Previous involvement in grant writing, core facility management, or service center leadership.

• Experience with micro‑ED data collection workflows.

• Experience with cryo-electron tomography (cryo‑ET), cryo‑FIB/SEM, and correlative workflows is a plus, as the facility plans to expand to support these capabilities.

Application Instructions

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The referenced pay range represents the University’s good faith and reasonable estimate of the base range of compensation for this faculty position. Individual salaries will be determined within the job’s salary range and established based on (but not limited to) market data, experience and expertise of the individual, and with consideration to related position salaries. Alignment of clinical incentive-based compensation may also be applicable and will be discussed during the hiring process.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

EOE, including disability/protected veterans

The University of Rochester is committed to fostering, cultivating, and preserving an inclusive and welcoming culture to advance the University’s Mission to Learn, Discover, Heal, Create – and Make the World Ever Better. In support of our values and those of our society, the University is committed to not discriminating on the basis of age, color, disability, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, military/veteran status, national origin, race, religion/creed, sex, sexual orientation, citizenship status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law (Protected Classes). This commitment extends to non-discrimination in the administration of our policies, admissions, employment, access, and recruitment of candidates for all persons consistent with our values and based on applicable law.