Job Description

Staff - Non Union
Job Category Non Union Technicians and Research Assistants
Job Profile Non Union Hourly - Research Assistant /Technician 3
Job Title Research Assistant/Technician 3
Department Azar Laboratory | Department of Psychiatry | Faculty of Medicine
Compensation Range $28.10 - $33.14 CAD Hourly
Posting End Date October 9, 2025
Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the Posting End Date.
Job End Date September 30, 2026
This position is expected to be filled by promotion/reassignment and is included here to inform you of its vacancy at the University.
At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.
Job Summary
Dr. Azar's research lab at Vancouver General Hospital's Complex Pain and Addiction Service (CPAS) and UBC Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, conducts clinical and translational research focusing on the development and evaluation of novel opioid agonist treatment protocols and medical devices to improve the health outcomes for patients with mental health and substance use disorders.
The senior-level Research Assistant will be supporting research activities at the Dr.Azar's research lab, such as developing study protocols, assisting Research Coordinator in training junior-level research assistants and volunteers, writing publications, overseeing the progress of projects, recruiting participants and collecting data. Areas of emphasis include but not limited to the development of new technologies to support people who use drugs, such as developing a treatment compliance mobile application, clinical research in addiction psychiatry, randomized controlled trials, and prevention campaigns for youth.
Organizational Status
The Research Assistant 3 will report to the Principal Investigator, Research Manager, Coordinator and Scientist directly. Additionally, the Research Assistant will support and direct any junior-level research assistants, students, and volunteers in their areas of study or work.
Work Performed

• Provides support in developing and implementing recruitment and data collection procedures, which include screening study participants for eligibility, designing data collection tools and storing protocols, and training team members on data collection and secure storing.
• Provide weekly report of the project's progress to the Research Coordinator.
• Support Research Coordinator in providing mentorship and guidance to junior research assistants and volunteers which includes providing supervision in conducting primarily randomized controlled trials and chart reviews and performing regular check-ins with team members to discuss progress and address concerns where needed.
• Maintain a project tracking system and report to Research Coordinator if there are deviations from original plan.
• Troubleshoots problems including but not limited to regularly reviewing team's reports, updates, and performance, investigating the problems, engaging experts, brainstorm potential solutions, as well as implementing and tracking the impact of the proposed solutions.
• Works closely with the Research Coordinator in monitoring the acquisition of research samples and overseeing the accessibility and analysis of data, ensuring compliance with established protocols, such as for a randomized controlled trial to test new induction protocols.
• Provides recommendations aiming to improve the research workflow.
• Writes research publications and involves in other knowledge translation efforts, such as developing poster abstracts and presents at conferences.
• Assists Research Coordinator in preparing ethics and grant application through literature review, tracking deadlines, and arranging for signatures.
• Facilitates the collaborations between the research team and internal and external partners.
• Performs other duties as needed.

Consequence of Error/Judgement
Accountability and responsibility of this position is high. The consequence of error could result in lost data, inefficient workflow, compromised integrity and success of research projects and the research lab.
Supervision Received
The incumbent will be supervised by Dr. Azar and is expected to be self-directed, taking initiative as a collaborative team member. Teamwork is a backbone of the work. This individual will follow established policies, procedures and employee standards of UBC and VCH.
Supervision Given
This position will supervise up to five junior-level research assistants, students, and volunteers at any given time.
Minimum Qualifications
Completion of a relevant technical program or a university degree in a relevant discipline and a minimum three years of related experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one's own
- Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one's own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion
Preferred Qualifications

• Degree in Psychology, Health Sciences, or Statistics preferred.
• Experience in qualitative and quantitative epidemiologic research methods.
• Experience in data collection and management, supervision, and administration, especially in supporting clinician-scientists preferred.
• Experience in patient-facing roles in the field of Addiction Medicine is an asset.
• Experience conducting clinical research at and have knowledge on health authority is an asset.
• Ability to effectively use Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SPSS, Adobe Acrobat at an advanced level.
• Ability to compose correspondence, reports, presentations, and other written materials using clear concise business English.
• Ability to prioritize and work effectively under pressure to meet short deadlines.
• Ability to effectively manage multiple tasks and priorities. Ability to be thorough, accurate, and have a high level of attention to detail.
• Ability to initiate and conduct research projects.
• Ability to identify and analyze key results from scientific, statistical, and quantitative research findings.
• Ability to deal with a range of people in a calm, courteous, and effective manner.
• Ability to analyze problems, identify key information and issues, and effectively resolve.
• Ability to work effectively independently and in a team environment.
• Ability to collaborate with partners from diverse disciplines and partners in health care, academic, and the NGO field are critical.
• The individual must be self-motivated, responsible, and have excellent communication skills.

Skills Required