Research Health Science Specialist

Full Job Description

This position serves as Without Compensation Research Assistant within the Office of Research and Development (ORD).

The VA Research Program strives to promote Veteran-centered care to improve patient experiences and outcomes across VA healthcare and community settings, and to advance value-driven care by providing Veterans the highest quality care at the lowest financial burden.

Please note, there is not pay associated with this position. To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/06/2026.

Experience: Do you have experience in working with mouse models? Do you have effective verbal and written communication skills, strong work ethic, creativity and enthusiasm?

Do you posses any type of work that demonstrates investigating the mechanisms underlying genomic instability, immunobiology, and oncogenesis?

Able to find novel treatments and strategies for prevention and treatment of cancer. Designing and executing experiments for multiple projects. Analyzing and interpreting experimental results.

Presenting work at international conferences, and writing manuscripts for submitting to peer reviewed journals. Training and mentoring new research fellows, technicians and summer students.

AND Education: All qualified applicants must meet this Basic Requirement for the WOC-Research Assistant, 0601.

Do you possess a bachelor or graduate degree from an accredited college or university in a field related to the medical field, health sciences, or allied sciences?.

(Copies of transcripts are required at the time of application) Selective Factor Do you have a minimum of five years of professional experience in biochemistry, immunology, and cell and molecular biology, applying these disciplines in a research or laboratory setting?

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week.

Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities.

Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: The work is predominantly sedentary. Typically, the employee sits comfortably to do the work.

However, there will be some walking, standing, bending and carrying of items of moderate weight such as large binders, banker style file boxes, meeting materials, papers, books or small parts.

Hand and eye coordination for delicate testing procedures may be the only special physical demand required to perform the work. Major Duties:

Duties includes but not limited to: Designing and executing experiments for multiple projects Analyzing and interpreting experimental results Presenting work at international conferences Writing manuscripts for submitting to peer reviewed journals.

Training and mentoring new research fellows, technicians and summer students