Join Our Lab

We  seek postdoctoral fellows with expertise in spinal cord injury and cell transplantation and/or microphysiological systems (MPS) development

Requirements: 

• A PhD in a scientific field such as biomedical engineering, biology, neuroscience, or related areas 

• Experience with planning and implementing in vivo spinal cord injury research, including rodent care, surgery, immunohistology, and relevant quantitative analyses. Experience with cell transplantation and mammalian cell culture are preferred but not required

• Experience with design and fabrication of MPS systems for high throughput screening applications. Experience with hPSC differentiation and co-culture, particularly for neural and immune cells is preferred but not required. 

• Ability to act independently when writing and submitting manuscripts, and contribute to grant applications as pertinent to career goals

• Cultural competency and willingness to mentor junior lab members

If you would like to join our lab as a postdoctoral scholar, please send Dr. Iyer an email expressing your interest with a CV and cover letter. The short cover letter should detail (1) a brief summary of your doctoral research, (2) why you are interested in our laboratory, (3) potential projects you'd like to work on, and (4) your short- and long-term career goal. Please also include your CV summarizing past academic, professional and research experience along with the names of three potential references.

Though we are targeted in our search for postdocs at this time, we welcome inquiries from applicants from a broad variety of backgrounds. In particular, senior graduate students interested in transitional postdoctoral fellowships, including NIH-funded F32 fellowships through NINDS, are encouraged to contact Dr. Iyer as early as possible to discuss potential applications to meet eligibility guidelines. Prospective postdocs interested in academic careers are also strongly encouraged to apply for the Tufts IRACDA Program, which provides financial and structured professional support to help participants launch an independent research program.

We expect to recruit 1-2 graduate students in the 2024-2025 academic cycle. Interested MS students must plan to complete a thesis. Particular projects and expectations are aligned with funding and student goals.

We currently recruit students through the Tufts Biomedical Engineering Department, but welcome students from the Tufts Medical School Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences programs, particularly Neuroscience.  Prospective graduate students should formally apply to the appropriate degree-granting programs for admission to Tufts. We would be happy to hold discussions pertaining to specific lab projects upon admission.

If you are a PhD student who would like to join or rotate through our laboratory, please send Dr. Iyer an email expressing your interest with a CV and cover letter. The short cover letter should detail (1) your research interests, (2)  your short- and long-term career goals, (3) why you are interested in our laboratory, and (4) potential projects you'd like to work on. Please also include your CV summarizing past academic, professional and research experience along with the names of two potential references. In particular, senior undergraduate students interested in fellowships, including NSF GRFP or DoD NDSEG are encouraged to contact Dr. Iyer as early as possible to receive mentorship and discuss potential applications to meet eligibility guidelines.

We will not be taking on students this summer, but feel free to apply and we will reach out when positions open again!

Our lab is highly interdisciplinary and welcomes trainees from diverse backgrounds and levels of experience. We have high expectations, and train undergraduates so that are able to operate on par with graduate students. This requires significant mentored time and access to lab resources. To ensure that mentor-mentee relationships are mutually beneficial, we require the following: 

Minimum year-long commitment: We expect that new students will start with the idea that they are making a year-long commitment (2 consecutive semesters, Spring/Fall or Fall/Spring), and ideally will plan to spend at least one summer in the lab to maximize project productivity.

Weekly commitment: We are looking for students who can spend 10 hours a week, and at least two separate blocks of 3-4 hours in the lab. These blocks should be M-F between 8 am and 6 pm. Hours may become more flexible once lab mentors have assessed and affirmed research independence.

Laboratory meeting: The group meets weekly (day/time varies depending on semester). We expect that all lab members attend unless they have a course conflict. Every lab member is expected to participate in journal club, and present research updates as appropriate. Undergraduates should also plan to attend subgroup research update meetings with their lab mentor and PI as schedules permit.

Excitement about research: We do not expect undergraduates to have any particular research experience before coming into the lab, but we do look for students who are passionate about getting involved, ask good questions, and are able to give, receive, and reflect constructive criticism. Integrity, reliability, and a growth mindset are key to lab success.

There are likely more excellent candidates than we have the capacity to host in the lab at once. Because good mentorship is very important to us, we seek to optimize mentor-mentee pairings based on mutual interests and research capacity. We will review applications and make interview requests based on the needs within the lab on a rolling basis.

Please do not be discouraged from future research opportunities if we do not reach out immediately!

If interested, find our application here!