Assistant Laboratory Director

About the role

The Department of Chemistry at the University of Chicago seeks an Assistant Laboratory Director to support undergraduate laboratory offerings. Reporting to the Instructional Faculty, this role involves managing laboratory sections, developing labs, and supporting faculty.

Responsibilities

• Designs, constructs, and maintains labs each quarter, including preparing lab manuals and developing new labs.
• Collaborates with faculty instructors to develop and support lecture demonstrations.
• Defines resource and operational objectives for teaching laboratories and lecture demonstration facilities.
• Trains and manages graduate and undergraduate teaching assistants, laboratory managers, and technicians.
• Develops lab curriculum for general and organic chemistry.
• Assists with the pedagogical development within the Chemistry department.
• Provides administrative support for general and organic chemistry courses.
• Oversees the preparation of chemical solutions and other materials needed for experiments.
• Prepares the laboratories for class each day and oversees proper setup.
• Oversees and generates assignments for Laboratory Manager direct reports.
• Prepares and tests lecture demonstrations to ensure consistency with course content.
• Works with faculty or staff to determine the suitability of demonstrations for specific lectures.
• Informs faculty of new demonstration developments and materials.
• Uses best practices and laboratory knowledge to promote safety in handling hazardous equipment and materials.
• Performs other related work as needed.

Requirements

• Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in a related field.
• Minimum requirements include 5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in chemistry or a related field.
• Research laboratory experience.
• Relevant experience handling and managing chemicals.
• Background managing chemical inventory and purchasing.
• Background managing laboratory technicians.

Skills

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively to resolve problems.
• Proactive in anticipating future needs.
• Gathers feedback and adjusts as needed.
• Stays organized and manages and prioritizes work.

Benefits

• Benefits Eligible Yes
• Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.