Vanderbilt University

Position Title/Short Description

Full Text of JOE Listing:

The Vanderbilt LGBTQ+ Policy Lab (https://www.vanderbilt.edu/lgbtq-policy-lab/) is seeking applications for a postdoctoral scholar position in the areas of LGBTQ+ health inequities, policies, and populations to begin in Summer 2023. The ideal candidate is an empirical social scientist who has an interest in studying the causes and consequences of LGBTQ-related public policies (e.g., same-sex marriage, non-discrimination, transgender sports bans, ‘Don’t Say Gay’ laws, ‘bathroom bills’, religious freedom exemptions, and others) on a range of social, economic, political, health, education, and demographic outcomes. Experience with programming in STATA, SAS, or R and handling large datasets is highly preferred; experience with qualitative research is a plus. A PhD in demography, economics, education, health services research, law/jurisprudence, LGBTQ studies, political science, public health, health policy, public policy, sociology, or a related field is required.

Responsibilities include:
1. Carrying out a full-time active research program focusing primarily on LGBTQ+ health, LGBTQ+ politics and policies, and/or LGBTQ+ populations, including solo publications and/or joint papers with Vanderbilt LGBTQ+ Policy Lab faculty and external collaborators.
2. Attending a weekly colloquium series on LGBTQ+ health inequities, policies, and populations.
3. Guest lecturing in courses related to LGBTQ+ inequities, policies, and populations.
4. Serving as a liaison to campus and community leaders on LGBTQ+ policy topics.
5. Mentoring, with supervision from LGBTQ+ Policy Lab faculty, undergraduate and graduate student research.

The Vanderbilt LGBTQ+ Policy Lab brings together experts from multiple units including: economics; medicine, health & society (MHS); sociology; education; divinity; health policy; law; medicine; political science; religious studies; public policy studies (PPS); gender and sexuality studies; and psychology and human development. Vanderbilt LGBTQ+ Policy Lab Faculty have secured over $5 million in external funding to support research on LGBTQ+ inequities, health, policies, and populations. Our faculty’s research has been published in high-impact journals such as the Harvard Law Review, JAMA, LGBT Health, Industrial and Labor Relations Review, and The New England Journal of Medicine; covered by NBC, the New York Post, and the Washington Post; and cited in Supreme Court briefs on marriage equality and LGBTQ employment nondiscrimination. Previous postdoctoral fellows trained in the LGBTQ+ Policy Lab have secured tenure-track faculty positions at R1 universities; won prestigious awards including the Vanderbilt Postdoctoral Fellow of the Year award; and published in top-tier journals such as JAMA Pediatrics.

All postdoctoral scholars will be supervised by a Director (Kitt Carpenter) or Associate Director (Tara McKay and Gilbert Gonzales) of the Vanderbilt LGBTQ+ Policy Lab and one or more affiliated faculty mentors depending on discipline. For example, while candidates with economics PhDs will work closely with Kitt Carpenter and/or Marcus Dillender; candidates with sociology PhDs may work more closely with Tara McKay; and candidates with public health, epidemiology, or health policy PhDs may work more closely with Gilbert Gonzales and/or Kirsty Clark.

The one-year postdoctoral fellowships will begin 7/1/2023 (or possibly earlier if mutually agreeable), with an initial end date of 6/30/2024, and carry the possibility of a one-year renewal. [Our preference is for candidates to be able to spend both academic year (AY) 23-24 and 24-25 at Vanderbilt.] Each position carries a twelve-month salary of $67,500, office space, health insurance, and eligibility for other benefits (https://www.vanderbilt.edu/postdoc/faqs/). These full-time and in-residence positions require a physical presence in Nashville for the term of the fellowship.

Applicants should provide a cover letter describing interesting in the position and future research plans, CV, a research paper or writing sample, and three references at: https://apply.interfolio.com/111367. Applications will be reviewed immediately and until the positions are filled.