Basic Sciences Faculty - Multiple Positions - Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Medicine, a premier academic medical center in Richmond, and the VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center are seeking highly qualified PhD, MD, or MD/PhD funded investigators with research interests in the cancer field. Preference will be given to those focusing on lipid and other cancer cell signaling and metabolism, chemical biology, tumor immunology, and/or integrative genomics. These faculty positions are at the rank of Associate or Full Professor and may be tenure-eligible for qualified candidates. Appropriate academic department assignment will be based on the expertise and training of the candidate.

The VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center is an NCI-designated cancer center hosting over 1,000 researchers conducting basic, population, translational, and clinical cancer research. Massey provides support for shared resources including Flow Cytometry, Microscopy Core Laboratory, Cancer Mouse Models Core, Biostatistics, Cancer Informatics Core, Clinical and Translational Research Laboratory, Tissue and Data Analysis and Acquisition Core Laboratory, and Transgenic/Knockout Shared Resource. The center also has a comprehensive Clinical Trials Office offering administrative, regulatory, and nursing support.

About the role

This senior-level faculty position will play a key role in advancing the research mission of the VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center. The faculty member will collaborate with other center members to harness VCU’s intellectual talent and scientific resources, focusing on solving critical challenges in cancer research. They will serve as a basic science investigator with expertise in cancer cell signaling, lipid and cancer-related metabolism, integrative genomics, tumor immunology, or chemical biology. The role includes teaching responsibilities at the graduate level and mentoring students and trainees.

Responsibilities

• Share a deep commitment to effective instruction, training, and mentoring of medical students, graduate students, undergraduates, and post-doctoral fellows in the laboratory.
• Provide laboratory research opportunities to fellows and mentor junior faculty.
• Contribute to VCU’s national reputation through research and scholarship, including extramural funding, high-quality publications, citations, and national recognition via honorific awards and committee leadership.
• Publish in peer-reviewed journals and submit grant applications for extramural funding in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Genetics, or Cancer Biology.
• Establish and maintain a vigorous, extramurally funded research laboratory focused on lipid and cancer cell signaling and metabolism, chemical biology, tumor immunology, and/or integrative genomics.
• Direct the research lab, comply with all regulatory requirements, and supervise laboratory personnel.
• Write and submit multiple grant applications and publish multiple manuscripts annually.
• Serve as a Principal Investigator (PI) on peer-reviewed grants and comply with all institutional and sponsor terms and conditions.
• Participate in Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center Core Grant application preparation, including providing updates on active research, grants, and publications.
• Engage with other Massey Cancer Center members in collaborative research projects and center activities.
• Serve on institutional committees, study sections, review groups, as a journal editor, or on editorial boards.

Requirements

• Terminal degree in basic, translational, or clinical sciences.
• Extensive cancer-relevant research experience.
• Nationally recognized scholarly/research portfolio with a strong track record of continuous NCI funding.
• Extensive publication experience.
• Proven trainee and faculty mentorship skills.
• Track record working in multi-disciplinary fields.
• Experience in coordinating collaborative grants and managing trans-disciplinary research.
• Demonstrated ability to work in and foster an environment of respect, professionalism, and civility with faculty, staff, and students from diverse backgrounds.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working in a matrix environment within academic medicine.
• Proven success in collaborating with multi-disciplinary teams.
• Established track record of leading inter- and multi-disciplinary teams as PI of multi-investigator projects such as P01s and SPOREs.

Benefits

All full-time university staff are eligible for VCU’s robust benefits package, which includes:

• Comprehensive health benefits.
• Paid annual and holiday leave granted up front.
• Generous tuition benefits.
• Retirement planning and savings options, including tax-deferred annuity and cash match programs.
• Employee discounts and well-being resources.
• Abundant opportunities for career development and advancement.