Assistant Professor of Research Director of Mass Spectrometry at the Integrated Molecular Structure Education and Research Center (IMSERC) Facility

Job Summary

The Department of Chemistry at Northwestern University is hiring an Assistant Professor of Research to serve as a member of the scientific directors, specifically the Director of Mass Spectrometry, research-track (non-tenure track) faculty in the Integrated Molecular Structure Education and Research Center (IMSERC) facility, beginning on or before September 1, 2025. This position is a full-time, benefits eligible, 11-month, continuing faculty position with an initial appointment term of three years and with the possibility of promotion to Associate and Full Professor of Research as a career trajectory. The Department of Chemistry fosters a collaborative and dynamic environment dedicated to excellence in scientific research, innovation and education. As part of Northwestern University's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, we support a vibrant undergraduate and graduate program, as well as post-doctoral and visiting scholars training programs.

This position will involve directing the mass spectrometry operations within the IMSERC facility, including, but not limited to, managing 11 mass spectrometers (LC, GC, and MALDI), leading a team of mass spectrometry staff scientists to maintain a 24/7 open-access lab, developing and optimizing analytical methods, providing Ph.D.-level data interpretation, supporting research collaborations, overseeing training and education efforts, classroom and laboratory instruction, and expanding IMSERC's capabilities through outreach, funding acquisition, and strategic growth all inside the analytical focus of mass spectrometry. Additionally, Northwestern University's dynamic academic community provides abundant opportunities for intellectual growth and career advancement. This is a full-time, hybrid-capable position, working under the Professor of Research and IMSERC Director with most days expected to be on-site (about 10-20% work-from-home capability). The target hiring range for this position will be between $90,000-120,000 per year. Offered salary will be determined by the applicant's education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal comparators and alignment with market data. Additionally, hiring rank of Assistant Professor of Research is potentially negotiable if desirable qualifications and experience are highly met or exceeded.

Minimum qualifications include a Ph.D. in Chemistry, Biology, or a related field (preferred), which must be conferred by September 1, 2025, and a primary career interest in mass spectrometry research support and education. Preference will be given to candidates who have demonstrated excellence, breadth, and innovation in mass spectrometry research and experience. A specific desire to recruit an individual having lipidomics and/or mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) expertise would be preferred.

Applicants should submit: (1) a cover letter, (2) a curriculum vitae, (3) a research statement (three pages max) and (4) contact information for and letters from three references, at least two of whom can discuss the candidate's research qualifications specific to mass spectrometry.

POSITION AVAILABLE: On or before September 1, 2025.

TO APPLY: Application materials (cover letter, CV, research statement, and three letters of recommendation) should be submitted to the application link found at https://chemistry.northwestern.edu/about/open-positions.html by June 16, 2025. To ensure full consideration, completed applications should be received by this date. Questions regarding the position should be sent to IMSERC-director@northwestern.edu.

Overview of IMSERC

The Integrated Molecular Structure Education and Research Center (IMSERC) at Northwestern University (NU) supports research across multiple disciplines by providing access to and education on advanced analytical instrumentation and expertise. IMSERC maintains a suite of mass spectrometers, NMR spectrometers, X-ray diffractometers, chromatographs, and optical spectrometers to facilitate research and education. It also offers targeted MS quantitation and screening of drugs and metabolites through the Clinical and Pharmacology Core, housed inside of its MS area.

IMSERC was formed within the Chemistry Department, originally, but it has served the entire Northwestern research enterprise and analytical needs within these technologies for its modern history; thus, its user base encompasses an extremely diverse scope of research needs. IMSERC is the central and only analytical facility within the University for the listed techniques, except MS-based proteomics (which is a unique mass spectrometry facility being separately managed and located in the Chicago campus).

Detailed Roles and Responsibilities of IMSERC Director of Mass Spectrometry

• Manages mass spectrometry operations, overseeing a fleet of 11 instruments including GC-MS, LC-MS, and MALDI MS spectrometers. Includes the day-to-day operations of the mass spectrometry lab, coordinating maintenance, quality checks, and user support both in hands-on and in oversight activities.
• Leads a team of three staff members, providing training and mentorship, supervising user access (performing and ensuring proper training and compliance) , and directs, assists and participates in maintenance instruments.
• Acts as the main steward of the MS area inclusive of (1) configuring the instrumentation to maximize usage, (2) developing and maintain a robust operation of a 24x7 open laboratory environment, (3) overseeing MS staff development and deployment and (4) marketing and growing IMSERC services to target audiences inside and outside NU.
• Oversees all MS-based and associated analyses as well as assay development and study design therein as part of IMSERC's fee-for-service operations.
• Develops methods and procedures for routine and complex sample analysis.
• Provides Ph.D.-level support in data interpretation and troubleshooting.
• Optimizes and maintains protocols for analyzing biological, materials, synthetic and all other research samples.
• Helps users choose the appropriate mass spectrometric techniques for analyzing their samples and assisting in the interpretation of results.
• Serves as the outreach contact for users across NU's Chicago and Evanston campuses.
• Assists with and oversees staff training and troubleshooting of mass spectrometry instrumentation.
• Engages in educational activities, including developing courses with course instructors, training users on mass spectrometry techniques, and assisting with the instruction of undergraduate- and graduate-level courses and seminars on the proper use of the instrumentation and interpretation of results.
• Collaborates with faculty on research projects and authors scholarly publications.
• Attends conferences to present NU research.
• Assists the IMSERC Director in the identification and procurement of state-of-the-art instrumentation (including assisting with writing proposals for grants to purchase this type of equipment).
• May serve as PI and/or Co-PI on grants and projects to acquire new instruments and expand capabilities.

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Chemistry, Biology, Physics, or a related field (preferred); M.S. with significant experience may be considered.
• Extensive experience in mass spectrometry, including hands-on method development, troubleshooting, and user training.
• Proficiency in maintaining and working with a broad swath of MS-based techniques and technologies: Ionization (EI, CI, ESI, APCI, MALDI, APPI), Separations (LC, GC, SFC, GPC), High- and unit-resolution (TOF, QTOF, QQQ, SQ, Ion mobility), Applications (Quantitative, Profiling, etc.). Note: There is a specific de-emphasis on proteomics for this role.
• Strong teaching and presentation skills
• Familiarity with multiple vendors' instrumentation and various separation techniques (GC, LC, electrophoresis).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with any or multiple of the many suite of so-called "omics" applications in MS (outside of proteomics, as this is not the charter of IMSERC), such as lipidomics, glycomics, exposomics, metabolomics (a targeted, analyzer-based metabolomics facility does exist on the Chicago campus), etc.
• Experience with mass spectrometry imaging (preferably MALDI but others are a plus)
• Experience in an academic instruction at undergraduate and graduate levels.
• A solid understanding of complimentary analytical techniques outside of MS is strongly preferred as an advisory role to enable NU researchers to use effectively other resources available at NU to solve research problems.
• Experience in securing research funding.
• Experience in managing a research lab.

Working Conditions

• Travel may be required for conferences, sample analysis and collaboration or vendor demonstrations or trainings (likely not to exceed 5%).
• Flexibility is expected in availability for emergency equipment intervention and recovery.
• Opportunity for remote work not to exceed 20%.

Please read ALL instructions and make preparations before proceeding to the application page:

• Applications will only be accepted via online submission (see link below).
• Please prepare all documents in advance as Adobe PDF files, and please be sure all information is entered correctly and accurately (especially names and email addresses), as there will be no opportunity for online revision after your application has been submitted.
• Please also prepare a list of names and email addresses for your external academic references; your references will be contacted directly by the online system and invited to upload their letters on your behalf.
• All required fields in the application form are marked with an asterisk and must be filled before clicking the "Submit" button.
• Be aware that incomplete applications cannot be saved.

Applications accepted here: Apply for Job

Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected characteristics, including disability and veteran status. View Northwestern's non-discrimination statement. Job applicants who wish to request an accommodation in the application or hiring process should contact the Office of Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance. View additional information on the accommodations process.