Scientific Director of the Brain and Behavior Institute
Time Type: Full Time
Posting Open Date:
Position Summary:
Organizational Statement Summary:
The University of Maryland (UMD) is seeking an energetic, visionary, and internationally recognized leader to be the Scientific Director of the Brain and Behavior Institute (bbi.umd.edu) (BBI). The appointment will be at the level of tenured Full Professor with an anticipated start in summer 2027.
BBI’s mission is to advance campus neuroscience by fostering research collaborations, excellence, and achievements across the physical and life sciences, engineering, computer science, and the humanities, and by developing novel approaches to investigate the workings of the brain in health and disease. BBI is a large, interdisciplinary, campus-wide research institute that includes over 200 affiliated faculty in more than 50 departments across ten Colleges and Schools.
Candidates should demonstrate a state-of-the-art research program with relevance to theoretical and/or computational neuroscience. However, investigators working in other related fields will be considered. Experience in managing and developing core facilities similar to those at Maryland (e.g., genomic analysis, small animal fMRI and neuroimaging) is a desirable skill. Candidates are expected to have a strong funding record, leadership experience, and a successful history of working with a diverse group of experimentalists in interdisciplinary neuroscience. The successful candidate should also demonstrate the ability to conceive, develop, and lead large-scale, multi-PI and center-level grant proposals that advance ambitious interdisciplinary research programs. Integrating the utilization of core facilities, workshops and seed grants into promotion of new interdisciplinary endeavors would be ideal. In general, the scientific director will build upon BBI’s established strengths in fostering groundbreaking research through new interdisciplinary collaborations; work to promote the field of theoretical/computational neuroscience across campus and beyond; create opportunities for fundraising; extend a history of community outreach; and lead a research group that exemplifies scientific and technological excellence.
The successful candidate will maintain an internationally visible, externally funded research program and lead a research group that exemplifies scientific rigor, technological innovation, collaborative scholarship, and excellence in training. The Director will work closely with BBI faculty affiliates, university leadership, and regional partners to establish new research directions, recruit and support outstanding scholars and trainees, and increase the national and international visibility of neuroscience at UMD.
Located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, BBI benefits from close collaborative ties with neighboring institutions such as the National Institutes of Health; National Institute of Standards and Technology; Walter Reed National Military Medical Center; the Children’s National Medical Center; Janelia Research Campus (HHMI); and the UMD School of Medicine, Baltimore, to name a few. In recent years, BBI has developed rapidly to support and facilitate new and exciting interdisciplinary research projects among an energetic group of UMD faculty, researchers, and students. In College Park, BBI intersects with diverse research and educational programs, centers, and institutes such as the Institute for Systems Research; the Maryland Neuroimaging Center; the Maryland NanoCenter; the Maryland Institute for Physical Science and Technology; the Brin Mathematics Research Center; the UMD Institute
for Advanced Computer Studies; the Neuroscience and Cognitive Science (NACS) graduate training program; and the neuroscience undergraduate major. NACS, as a large interdisciplinary graduate program, can partner with BBI in recruiting graduate students and postdoctoral fellows who can support the scientific mission of BBI. The newly established Institute of Health Computing and the Artificial Intelligence Interdisciplinary Institute of Maryland will also provide excellent opportunities for integration and collaboration.
Minimum Qualifications:
PhD
Responsibilities:
(34%) Provide leadership, create and refine a vision for the next era of BBI growth and significant impact. Promote external visibility of BBI and its capabilities. Cultivate strong partnerships with government sponsors.
(33%) Foster the growing research of BBI and its infrastructure needs. Recruit, retain, and mentor the most brilliant minds working on brain and behavior research. Steward the human and material resources of BII with administrative and financial acumen, ensuring its capacity for further growth.
(33%) Provide sound financial management and ensure funding to match BBI’s most ambitious goals. Work closely with project leaders, technical staff, and administrative personnel to maintain a careful accounting of finances while ensuring research projects' budgets are adhered to.
Minimum Qualifications:
Minimum Qualifications:
PhD
Additional Job Details:
Required Application Materials:
Cover letter, CV, list of references
Best Consideration Date: NA
Posting Close Date:
2/1/2027
Open Until Filled:
Yes
Job Risks:
Department: BSOS-College of Behavioral & Social Sciences
Worker Sub-Type: Faculty Regular
Salary Range: $285,000-$335,000
Financial Disclosure Required:
Benefits Summary:
https://umd.app.box.com/s/ox92cc1ffddbmae5f2fdquioadurmie0
Background Checks
Offers of employment are contingent on completion of a background check. Information reported by the background check will not automatically disqualify anyone from employment. Before any adverse decision, the finalist will have an opportunity to provide information to the University regarding disclosable background check information. The University reserves the right to rescind the offer of employment or otherwise decline or terminate employment if the information reported by the background check is deemed incompatible with the position, regardless of when the background check is completed.
Employment Eligibility
The successful candidate must complete employment eligibility verification (on Form I-9) by presenting documents that establish identity and work authorization within the timeframe required by federal immigration law, and where applicable, to demonstrate renewed employment authorization. Failure to complete employment eligibility verification or reverification within the timeframe set forth by law may result in suspension or termination of employment.
EEO/AA Statement
The University of Maryland, College Park is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer; all qualified applicants, including veterans and people with disabilities, will receive consideration for employment. UMD is actively engaged in recruiting, hiring, and promoting underrepresented communities. Please read the entire University of Maryland Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Statement of Policy.
Women, Minorities, Disabled, Veterans, and LGBTQ+ Welcome!
Diversity Statement
The University of Maryland, College Park, an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, age, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, creed, marital status, political affiliation, personal appearance, or on the basis of rights secured by the First Amendment, in all aspects of employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.
Title IX Non-Discrimination Notice
The University of Maryland (UMD) does not discriminate on the basis of sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, race, color religion, national origin, ethnicity, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, age, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law in its programs and activities. Specifically, Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in UMD programs and activities, including with respect to admission and employment.
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