VIPBG News

The Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics is pleased to invite applications for postdoctoral training with a focus on mental health. The Institute offers a rich interdisciplinary training environment. Institute faculty include leaders in the fields of behavioral and psychiatric genetics and represent a wide range of scientific backgrounds from molecular and statistical genetics to epidemiology, psychology, and psychiatry.

Currently funded research at VIPBG includes molecular-genetic studies of schizophrenia, major depression, anxiety and panic disorders, PTSD, substance use disorders and development of statistical methods. VCU’s pioneering twin studies of complex traits – including adolescent behavioral development, adult psychiatric and substance abuse disorders, and pertinent epidemiological risk factors – have given rise to exceptional resources for data analysis. Our collaborative studies of neuroimaging and neurocognition include the NIH funded ABCD study (abcdstudy.org); the Psychiatric Genetics Consortium subgroups and UK Biobank, among others.

Faculty are at the forefront of developing methods and software for statistical genetic analyses of complex traits. These include extensions of structural equation models to use data collected from twins and relatives to resolve competing models about causation and individual variation. New methods for analyzing the contributions of measured genetic and environmental factors to individual differences in behavioral and psychiatric outcomes are continuously being developed, tested and applied to many genomic data types (genome wide array, rare variants, sequencing, pharmacogenetic, copy number and epigenetic).

Postdoctoral training is tailored to the trainee’s experience and needs, with an emphasis on tutorials and collaborative research. Suitable backgrounds for students include, but are not limited to, mathematics, statistics, psychology, psychiatry, biology and genetics. A broad array of courses and workshops may be attended as desired. Future employment prospects are exceptionally good; high demand in the fields of genetics, psychology and statistics are supplemented by industry demands for statistical geneticists.

Further information on the Institute, its faculty and research may be found at vipbg.vcu.edu. Training positions are funded by an NIMH training grant in psychiatric and behavioral genetics, and restricted to US citizens or Permanent Residents. Inquiries should be addressed to:

Prof. Michael C. Neale, Director NIMH Training Program
Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics
Box 980126
Richmond VA 23298-0126 USA
Contact: Michael C. Neale, Ph.D.