Junior Specialist- Adam Lab

Position Overview

The Attention, Distractions, And Memory (ADAM) lab (Principal Investigator: Dr. Kirsten Adam) in the Department of Psychology at UC Davis seeks to fill a full‑time, in‑person position at the Junior Specialist level starting Summer 2026. This position is for one year, with possibility of renewal for a second year. The successful candidate will work on studies investigating visual attention and visual working memory in healthy adults.

The primary methodology will be electroencephalography (EEG), together with eye‑tracking and behavioral measures such as reaction time. Research will be conducted in the PI's lab at the UC Davis Center for Mind and Brain.

The successful candidate will have completed an undergraduate degree in Psychology, Cognitive Science, or a related field, and will have experience conducting cognitive research including testing subjects using EEG and processing EEG data. The principal investigator will provide additional training in EEG data analysis as well as guidance in how to train others in these data collection and analysis procedures.

Research (85%)

• Oversee day‑to‑day running of the lab, including preparation and maintenance of IRB materials and ensuring compliance with protocols, ordering supplies, scheduling of subjects, and maintenance of lab calendars.
• Test participants with EEG and eye‑tracking methods.
• Train students and staff on use of the EEG and eye‑tracking equipment, including testing of participants.
• Train team members in the lab on processing and preparation of EEG, eye‑tracking, and behavioral data.
• Assist with development of scripts and programs for running EEG and behavioral experiments.
• Preprocess EEG data for statistical analysis using the lab's custom code.
• Assess data quality to evaluate need for changes to testing protocols.
• Analyze data using MATLAB and/or Python.
• Maintain calendars and sign‑up forms for organizing undergraduate assistants' time and use of lab testing rooms and other facilities.
• Maintain the lab website and lab procedural documentation (lab wiki).
• Develop experimental stimuli and other research materials using Psychtoolbox (MATLAB) and other software and programming environments.
• Participate in weekly discussions of relevant literature, and conduct literature reviews relevant to the work being conducted.
• Attend live or remote conferences to present the results of the research.
• Contribute to writing and preparation of manuscripts for publication.
• Contribute to preparation of posters and talks for conference presentations.
• Draft and format accessible summaries of research findings for broader university and public audiences.
• Assist in drafting social media communications describing published research studies and lab preprints designed to promote information about research findings and lab scientists to a broad audience.

University and Public Service (15%)

• Train and mentor undergraduate students on participant testing, data coding, and data analysis protocols.
• Train and mentor undergraduate students on use of software.

Basic qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Psychology, Cognitive Science, or a related field.
• Prior experience working with EEG equipment and EEG data.
• Attention to detail and strong organizational skills.

Preferred qualifications

• Familiarity with IRB protocols and procedures.
• Experience with MATLAB, Python, and/or R.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected status under state for federal law.