The College of Health Solutions (CHS) at Arizona State University (ASU) is seeking to fill a postdoctoral scholar vacancy in public health nutrition to join Dr. Punam Ohri-Vachaspati’s research group. To learn more about the group’s work, please visit the ASU Food Policy and Environment Research group’s website at https://asufoodpolicy.org/. This is a 12-month appointment that may be renewed for subsequent one-year terms up to four years, contingent on continued satisfactory performance, the continued availability of funding and the needs of the program, and as long as you are within five years from receipt of the doctoral degree.

The ideal candidate will have a strong interest in examining nutrition policies and food environments and their impact on health outcomes, with extensive training in social determinants of health, research design, and advanced quantitative statistical methods. Mixed methods training with experience in qualitative analysis is a definite plus. Excellent writing skills, both for manuscript writing and proposal development are essential.

The postdoctoral scholar will have the opportunity to work with an excellent, collaborative, multi-disciplinary team and contribute to an NIH funded project examining school nutrition policies and a USDA funded project assessing WIC outreach, among others. They will also have the opportunity to collaborate on future grant applications. The ASU Food Policy and Environment Research Group works on projects examining the impact of federal and state food and nutrition policies on program participation, dietary intake, and health outcomes. The scholar will participate in all aspects of research including data analysis and preparing peer-reviewed publications. They will have the opportunity to collaborate with other team members, help mentor undergraduate and graduate students and present their work at national and international conferences.

At ASU and the College of Health Solutions, we work to maximize opportunities for people of varied backgrounds, abilities and perspectives. We value and encourage inclusive excellence as outlined in our ASU Charter, and strive to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment for all faculty, staff and students — which we believe is critical to our success as a community. All individuals who can strengthen our academic community are encouraged to apply, and will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by law.

About the College of Health Solutions

The College of Health Solutions is committed to translating scientific health research and discovery into practice to improve health outcomes through education, research, and service. We equip students with the knowledge and skills to influence healthier lifestyle choices; develop creative interventions to improve the health of people and populations; analyze and translate large amounts of health data into solutions; and maximize the technology, science, business, and application of diagnostics. Through teaching, academic programs, service and research, all faculty at the College of Health Solutions address one or more of our three major areas of focus: 1) The systems of health care and the health needs of populations; 2) Health and human performance of individuals across the lifespan; 3) Personalized interventions through precision health. Across these areas, we work to address complex and difficult health problems which require transformative collaboration, translational research, and innovation. We are particularly interested in making an impact on populations with significant health disparities.

Our research programs encompass basic science, discovery science, clinical trials, intervention science and measurement of health outcomes. In all cases, our faculty use interdisciplinary approaches to address the complex systems that underpin health problems. We are highly collaborative, transparent and team-oriented. Our innovative organizational structure includes translational teams that move science from labs into communities with evidence-based interventions that make a difference, as well as affinity networks where teams of people work together to improve methodologies and processes. All our programs, in and out of the classroom, are designed with the goal of improving the health of people and communities.

Current training programs include behavioral health, biomedical diagnostics, biomedical informatics, exercise science, health promotion, health sciences, kinesiology, medical studies, nutrition, population health, the science of health care delivery, and speech and hearing science. Our programs are offered at the ASU Downtown Phoenix, Tempe, Polytechnic, West and Lake Havasu campuses, as well as on Mayo Clinic’s campus in north Phoenix.

About Arizona State University

Arizona State University is a new model for American higher education, an unprecedented combination of academic excellence, entrepreneurial energy and broad access. U.S. News & World Report ranks ASU #1 in the U.S. for innovation for ten years in a row. ASU has been named a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) by the U.S. Department of Education, a major milestone in its enterprise wide commitment to increase the inclusivity of its student body. This New American University is a single, unified institution comprising multiple differentiated campuses positively impacting the economic, social, cultural and environmental health of the communities it serves. Its research is inspired by real world application blurring the boundaries that traditionally separate academic disciplines. ASU serves 144,800 students across all campuses and on-line as of the Fall 2023 semester. ASU champions intellectual and cultural excellence, and welcomes students from all fifty states and more than one hundred nations across the globe.

For more information about ASU and the College of Health Solutions, visit http://about.asu.edu/ and https://chs.asu.edu.

Essential Functions

• Conduct research published in premier journals.
• Participate in professional and departmental service.

Required Qualifications

• Doctorate in nutrition, public health, social demography, epidemiology, or related fields that has been conferred within the last five years
• Existing research focus in public health nutrition, or food policy, or community / neighborhood contexts, or social determinants of health
• Strong analytical skills and expertise using statistical packages like Stata, SPSS, SAS
• Demonstrated ability to work, collaborate, and communicate effectively with colleagues, community partners, and staff in a multi-cultural environment.

Desired Qualifications

• Expertise in research methods and study design
• Knowledge of US food and nutrition policies and programs
• Expertise in qualitative research methods
• Potential for high impact research

Applications will be reviewed beginning January 15, 2025. Applications will continue to be accepted on a rolling basis for a reserve pool. Applications in the reserve pool may then be reviewed in the order in which they were received until the position is filled.

To apply, please submit the following:

• A letter of interest including the name of the position for which you are applying, your qualifications and professional experience, and an example(s) of how your work has exemplified Arizona State University’s Charter and its values of Inclusive Excellence
• Curriculum vitae
• Copies of up to three publications;
• Information for three professional references (their position, title, e-mail, phone number). References will not be contacted until the candidate progresses to the latter stages of the search process.

Informal inquiries and questions can be directed to Dr. Ohri-Vachaspati at pohrivac@asu.edu.