Posting Details

Position Information

Posting Number
SRGV8972

Working Title
Associate Dean for Research, School of Medicine

Number of Vacancies
1

Location
Edinburg, Texas

Department
School of Medicine / Research SOM

FTE
1.0

FLSA
Exempt

Scope of Job

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) School of Medicine seeks a dynamic and visionary Associate Dean for Research to serve as a senior academic leader responsible for advancing and integrating the school's research mission. Reporting to the Dean, the Associate Dean will provide strategic leadership across the full continuum of biomedical research-from basic discovery to clinical application to population health impact.

This role is ideally suited for a clinician-scientist with broad experience spanning clinical medicine, basic and translational research, clinical trials, and population health research. The Associate Dean for Research will play a defining role in shaping the next phase of the UTRGV School of Medicine's research enterprise. By integrating discovery with patient care, cancer research across the continuum, maternal health, and population health, this leader will ensure that scientific advances translate into meaningful improvements in outcomes, equity, and community well-being. Through mentorship, collaboration, and strategic alignment, the Associate Dean will help position UTRGV School of Medicine as a nationally recognized institution for impactful, mission-driven research that improves lives across generations.

The successful candidate will foster a strong culture of scholarship, mentorship, and innovation while aligning research growth with the School of Medicine's clinical mission and the health priorities of the Rio Grande Valley.

Description of Duties

• Provides vision and leadership for the School of Medicine's research enterprise across basic, clinical, translational, maternal, and population health domains.
• Aligns research priorities with institutional goals, health system strategy, and regional and national public health needs.
• Strengthens and expand pharmaceutical-sponsored and investigator-initiated clinical trials.
• Advances translational and population health research programs that move discoveries from bench to bedside to community.
• Serves as a key liaison with the UTRGV Division of Research to ensure School of Medicine faculty have seamless access to institutional research tools, support services, and collaborative opportunities that drive interdisciplinary research and innovation within established institutional, state, and federal rules and regulations.
• Mentors medical students, residents, fellows, junior faculty, and early-career investigators.
• Delivers administrative guidance to faculty in securing extramural funding from external sources, to include but not limited to, NIH, NCI, CDC, HRSA, foundations, and industry.
• Promotes team science, interdisciplinary collaboration, and cross-departmental research initiatives.
• Supports clinician-scientists in balancing clinical care, research productivity, and academic advancement.
• Builds and sustains partnerships with industry, federal agencies, foundations, public health entities, and community organizations.
• Collaborates closely with basic science leaders to ensure seamless translation of discovery into clinical and population-level impact.
• Supports regulatory oversight and compliance for human subjects research, clinical trials, and translational studies.
• Contributes to the development and expansion of research infrastructure, shared cores, and data-driven population health platforms.
• Participates in Associate Dean of Research meetings hosted by the Division of Research to remain informed of policy changes, emerging developments, and updates impacting the area, while ensuring alignment with institutional, state, and federal rules and regulations.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Supervision Received

General supervision from assigned supervisor.

Supervision Given

Direct supervision of assigned staff.

Required Education

Terminal degree in Medicine from an accredited university.

Preferred Education

MD/PhD degree from an accredited university.

Licenses/Certifications

None.

Required Experience

• Five (5) years of administrative or leadership experience within an academic medical center or equivalent setting.
• Established record of funded research and peer-reviewed scholarly achievement.
• Experience leading basic, clinical, translational, maternal, or population health research programs, including multidisciplinary teams.
• Demonstrated commitment to mentorship and faculty development.
• Experience mentoring residents, fellows, and physician faculty in clinical, translational, and population-based research.

Preferred Experience

None.

Equipment

Use of standard office equipment.

Working Conditions

Needs to be able to successfully perform all required duties. Work is performed primarily in a general office/clinical environment. Some travel and weekend work is required. UTRGV is a distributed institution, which may require presence at multiple locations throughout the Rio Grande Valley.

Other

• Strong collaborative leadership skills across clinical, research, and community partners.
• Broad expertise across clinical medicine, basic discovery, clinical trials, translational science, maternal health, and population health.
• Deep understanding of patient care realities, clinical workflows, EMR integration, and regulatory requirements.
• Ability to align research priorities with health system goals such as prevention, early detection, maternal outcomes, and chronic disease management.
• Opportunity for continued, limited clinical responsibilities and direct involvement in clinical and/or clinical-basic research, including patient-facing research activities, allowing the Associate Dean to remain engaged in patient care and discovery while leading the research enterprise.

This clinically focused leadership role is designed to complement and partner closely with basic science leadership, ensuring that discovery-driven innovation moves efficiently and effectively from bench to bedside to community.

Physical Capabilities

N/A

Employment Category
Full-Time

Minimum Salary
Commensurate with Experience

Posted Salary
Commensurate with Experience

Position Available Date
05/20/2026

Grant Funded Position
No

If Yes, Provide Grant Expiration Date

Posting Detail Information

Special Instructions to Applicants

Dear Applicant, Human Resources will not be held responsible for redacting any confidential information from the documents you attach with your application. The confidential information includes the following: *Date of Birth *Social Security Number *Gender *Ethnicity/Race Please make sure that you omit this information prior to submission. We are advising that Human Resources will be forwarding your application to the department as per your submission. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at (956)665-8880 and/or [email protected].

Additional Information

UTRGV is a distributed location institution and working location is subject to change based on need.

All UTRGV employees are required to have a criminal background check (CBC). Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Substitutions to the above requirements must have prior approval from the VP of HR & Talent Development .

Quick Link
https://careers.utrgv.edu/postings/51211