The Behavioral Research in Technology & Engineering (BRiTE) Center in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington is seeking candidates for one or more full-time positions at the rank of Acting Assistant Professor focused on digital mental health research

Acting Assistant Professors hold annual appointments that align with a 12-month service period (July 1-June 30) and may be reappointed to subsequent annual terms. Faculty with 12-month service periods are paid for 11 months of service over a 12-month period (July-June), meaning the equivalent of one month is available for paid time off. Positions would be anticipated to start during or after Summer 2024.

Behavioral Research in Technology & Engineering (BRiTE) Center

The BRiTE Center is looking for individuals with a strong commitment to one or more of the following research areas:

• Mobile health (mHealth)
• Global mental health/ digital research in Low-and-Middle-Income-Countries (LMIC)
• Data-driven digital assessment, monitoring, and treatment of serious mental illness (SMI)
• Natural Language Processing (NLP)
• Digital phenotyping, predictive modelling and/or other forms of data-intensive analytics
• Digital health applications in criminal justice settings
• Digital mental health and climate change.  

Led by Dr. Dror Ben-Zeev, the BRiTE Center is a mission-driven, grant-funded research center that brings together a diverse group of researchers, clinicians, technologists, patients and mental health advocates with a common goal of improving the lives of those suffering with mental illness, their families, and communities. Harnessing the Pacific Northwest’s innovative spirit, we work with academic partners, industry, healthcare systems large and small, colleagues and collaborators from low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), paraprofessionals, and individuals invested in developing creative technologies to improve population mental health, in our lifetime. BRiTE is a collaborative and fast-paced center that values innovation, teamwork, productivity, scientific rigor, and real-world pragmatism. BRiTE investigators conduct cutting-edge research designed to invent and re-invent the future of mental healthcare using digital technology.

Faculty hires will receive mentorship and support consistent with their stage of professional development. Investigators with a demonstrated record of publication, grant-writing, and grant acquisition will be particularly competitive. New faculty will be fully or partially supported with existent Center resources for the first 1-3 years of their employment but will be expected to develop an independent grant-funded program of research. Faculty with clinical training will have the option to engage in clinical services that are consistent with their background and training in one of the many treatment settings affiliated with the Department.

New faculty members will have the opportunity to have meaningful roles on federally-funded projects conducted by multidisciplinary teams (psychology, informatics, computer science, biostatistics, human centered design, global health), gain experience using digital interventions to support care for people experiencing psychiatric symptoms, and engage with colleagues from LMIC settings in trainings and digital health research activities; primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East.

Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences

The Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences is an integral component of the UW School of Medicine and shares UW Medicine’s mission to ‘Improve the Health of the Public.’ We accomplish this by providing the best care we can today, conducting research to develop better treatments for tomorrow, and inspiring and training the next generation of health care professionals for the Pacific Northwest. Our core values include openness, transparency, integrity, engagement, collaboration, and mutual respect. Our department is the third largest within the School of Medicine.

As the only academic psychiatry department serving Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho, we are committed to improving access to psychiatric care and consultation throughout the greater Pacific Northwest. Our educational programs include a required medical student clerkship for 260 medical students per year at some 30 sites across the WWAMI region, a nationally competitive psychiatry residency program with more than 90 psychiatry residents in Seattle and in two regional residency tracks in Idaho and Montana, subspecialty fellowships in addiction, child and adolescent, consultation-liaison, perinatal mental health and geriatric psychiatry, a nationally renowned scientist-practitioner psychology internship program, and numerous postdoctoral clinical and research fellowships.

Living in Seattle

The Evergreen State is an outdoor enthusiast’s dream with its geological diversity, including mountains, deserts, rainforests, and a Pacific coastline. It offers the Olympic Mountains, the San Juan Islands and Mount Rainier. Over the past decade, Seattle has become one of the most exciting and fastest growing cities in the world. Seattle is a vibrant city with a diverse range of businesses such as Boeing, Starbucks, Microsoft, Amazon, Expedia, Nintendo, and Zillow. It is a young and educated city, a place that is constantly changing as it changes the world, and all this innovation happens in a spectacular natural setting surrounded by lakes, oceans, forests and mountains.

Salary

The base salary range for appointment at the rank of assistant professor will be:

PhD candidates: $8,500–$10,417 per month ($102,000–$125,004 annually)

MD candidates: $16,667–$20,000 per month ($200,004-$240,000 annually)

Salary will be commensurate with experience and qualifications, or as mandated by a U.S. Department of Labor prevailing wage determination.