Behavioural Neuroscience Technologist
Required Position
Full-Time Appointment
Responsibilities
The School of Natural Sciences offers undergraduate and graduate programs in a variety of disciplines, including Behavioural Neuroscience, Biology, Chemistry, and Forensics, among others. Reporting to the Dean of the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Architecture, the Behavioural Neuroscience Technologist will participate in the offering of the Behavioural Neuroscience program by providing and managing in-lab instruction; setting up and preparing experiments in advance of neuroscience lab sections; assisting in the operation and maintenance of neuroscience teaching and research equipment. The technologist will also be responsible for other duties as part of the School of Natural Sciences, including the delivery of packages within the School; managing teaching assistants in the School; and assisting other technologists in the School in managing high-enrollment lab sections in Biology and Chemistry.
- Provide lab expectations and NSCI lab instruction at the undergraduate level;
- Deliver information sessions at the beginning of each lab. During these sessions, theory required to complete the labs, safety procedures as well as experimental procedures are taught to the students by the technologist;
- Ensure that students perform experiments in a safe manner;
- Guide students on how to format the lab reports;
- Inspect and comment on experimental data collected during experiments;
- Set-up in-person experiments ahead of each lab session;
- Set-up class lists for all lab sessions; record students’ marks and place them in D2L for students to read;
- Handle sensitive and confidential information;
- Alongside the professor in charge, prepare and periodically revise the NSCI lab manual;
- Working alongside the professor in charge, create/modify NSCI lab experiments as needed;
- Participate in the repair and maintenance of teaching and research lab equipment;
- Communicate with students enrolled in the NSCI lab component;
- Deal with students' complaints in a professional and fair manner;
- Manage the NSCI lab’s D2L page; enter lab grades on D2L and communicate these grades to students;
- Provide final NSCI lab grades to the professor in charge for final submission to Self-service;
- Alongside the professor in charge, recruit TAs for the NSCI lab;
- Coordinate with TAs for marking lab reports;
- Meet with TAs and GTAs weekly to go over the material;
- Assist TAs in completing GTA paperwork or payroll paperwork;
- Communicate health and safety rules and regulations to students enrolled in NSCI labs;
- Manage the inventory of NSCI teaching and research lab equipment and supplies;
- Contact vendors for information on equipment and/or supplies for teaching and/or research;
- Purchase NSCI equipment and supplies following LU purchasing policy;
- Assist faculty in setting up research experiments;
- Participate in the repair and maintenance of teaching/research lab equipment;
- Assist NSCI faculty members and undergraduate/graduate students in preparing applications for Research Ethics review and Animal Care protocol review;
- Attend training sessions on D2L, Occupational Health & Safety, Hazardous waste management, etc., provided by Laurentian University;
- Keep up to date with the latest developments in neuroscience, electrophysiology and related fields relevant to the position;
- Participate in the management of 1st year undergraduate BIOL and CHMI lab sessions;
- Be responsible for managing TA and GTA positions in the School of Natural Sciences (lab safety instructions, help prepare TA/GTA contract, coordinate with instructors for TAs/GTAs duties);
- Responsible for the delivery of packages received at the School of Natural Sciences;
- Participate in SoNS outreach activities; and
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
- Master Degree from the field of Behavioural Neuroscience or related discipline;
- One to three years of experience in a life science laboratory environment;
- Good organizational skills to manage multiple NSCI lab sessions;
- Interpersonal and communication skills to deal with students, TAs, GTAs, Profs, etc.;
- Problem solving and troubleshooting skills to quickly find the failure of a lab experiment or piece of equipment;
- Special lab skills: extensive experience in electrophysiology research; demonstrated ability to maintain and troubleshoot complex electrophysiology equipment;
- Legal skills: must be familiar with: OSHA regulation that apply to Lab TA, Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), because of involvement with students; Laurentian University Health and Safety Policies; WHMIS; LUSU collective agreement;
- Computer skills: ablilty to use Matlab, office products (Word, Powerpoint, Excel), to produce material for lab, to track student lab marks, to track departmental equipment, Advance knowledge of D2L to send updates to students;
- Current First Aid and CPR Certification is required; and
- Ability to work fluently (verbal and written) in both official languages, French and English, is required.
THIS POSITION IS DESIGNATED AS ONE THAT MAY REQUIRE A DIFFERENT WORK WEEK AND/OR HOURS OF WORK.
The current Schedule is Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. (summer hours), or Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (winter hours). Upon four weeks’ notice, the work week and/or hours of work may be changed. (This may include evening and/or weekend shifts.)
Apply Now
Applications will only be accepted through our online form.