Virginia Tech is recruiting a Part Time Research Assistant to join the Addiction Recovery Research Center at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute in Roanoke, Virginia.
The position offers a starting wage of $20 per hour, with compensation potentially increasing based on experience. Successful candidates can work up to 32 hours per week while supporting research examining long-term recovery from addiction, decision-making processes and interventions related to substance use.
The opportunity carries Job ID 537904 and is classified under the Vice President for Research. The position is hourly, part-time and eligible for overtime.
Virginia Tech lists a review date of September 30, 2026.
Background & Job Description
The Research Assistant will join the Addiction Recovery Research Center (ARRC) at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC in Roanoke, Virginia.
ARRC is a research center dedicated to understanding and treating substance use disorders.
The center is recruiting a new part-time Research Assistant who will work primarily on research projects examining:
- Long-term recovery from addiction
- Decision-making processes
- Interventions relevant to substance use
- Tobacco use
- Alcohol use
- Cocaine use
The position provides an opportunity to participate directly in human-subject research while working collaboratively with an established research team.
What Will the Research Assistant Do?
Research Assistants generally support the research team with recruitment, technical activities and data collection for research or laboratory programmes.
For this particular position, the successful candidate will work both collaboratively and independently to collect and organize human-subject data.
The work will support both funded and pilot research projects.
Virginia Tech notes that laboratory and research-support responsibilities within these roles can range from entry-level to advanced-level work.
Tasks and Responsibilities
The successful Research Assistant will perform several responsibilities related to participant recruitment, research administration and data collection.
Specific duties include:
- Making significant contributions to assigned research projects
- Recruiting and screening volunteers for research studies
- Scheduling participant research-study visits
- Confirming appointments with participants
- Collecting data from research participants
- Entering research data
- Administering assessments
- Conducting structured interviews
- Collecting urine or breath samples
- Tracking participant payments
- Making participant payments
- Maintaining accurate and confidential records
- Conducting literature searches
- Gathering background information
- Participating in research-team meetings
- Reporting on research progress and data
The combination of participant-facing and data-management responsibilities means candidates should be comfortable working carefully with research information while communicating effectively with study participants and other team members.
Required Qualifications
Virginia Tech requires candidates to demonstrate an ability to collect and organize experimental data.
Applicants should also possess strong:
- Communication skills
- Interpersonal skills
- Organizational skills
- Teamwork abilities
Candidates must be capable of working independently as well as collaboratively within a research team.
Computer Skills
Applicants need demonstrated computer skills and experience using:
Microsoft applications
The position also requires attention to detail and strong organizational capabilities.
Because the Research Assistant may be responsible for collecting, entering and organizing research information, applicants should be comfortable working accurately with data and computer-based systems.
Ability to Work in a Fast-Paced Research Environment
Virginia Tech specifically requires candidates to demonstrate both the ability and desire to succeed in a:
Fast-paced research environment with multiple concurrent duties.
This is important because the Research Assistant may simultaneously support recruitment, participant appointments, assessments, data collection, payment tracking and research-team activities.
Excellent communication skills are also explicitly required.
Preferred Academic Background
Virginia Tech lists coursework or training in several relevant academic areas as preferred.
These include:
- Psychology
- Biology
- Neuroscience
- Related fields
The vacancy describes these qualifications as preferred rather than required.
Applicants should therefore distinguish between the mandatory requirements and qualifications that can strengthen an application.
Preferred Research Experience
Previous research experience can also strengthen a candidate’s application.
Virginia Tech prefers applicants with demonstrated data-analysis experience.
Experience contributing to:
- Scientific publications
- Scientific presentations
is also preferred.
Candidates with relevant experience should clearly demonstrate it in their application.
Relevant Research Areas
Experience in one or more of several research fields is preferred.
These include:
Psychology, addiction, neuroscience and clinical trials.
Given that the Addiction Recovery Research Center studies substance use disorders and recovery, experience related to these research areas may be particularly relevant to the position.
Laboratory Experience
Virginia Tech also prefers candidates who have experience with basic laboratory protocols.
Relevant experience can include:
- Proper handling of subject specimens
- Data collection
- Participant recruitment
- Assessments
- Data management
The role itself can involve collecting urine or breath samples from research participants, making appropriate laboratory and participant-research experience useful.
Research and Survey Software
Experience with research data and survey platforms is another preferred qualification.
Virginia Tech specifically mentions:
- REDCap
- Qualtrics
- QuestionPro
Experience with similar survey tools may also be relevant.
The university additionally identifies experience with statistical analysis as a preferred qualification.
Social Media Experience
An interesting preferred qualification for this Research Assistant position is social media experience.
Virginia Tech identifies experience with platforms including:
- X/Twitter
- TikTok
This experience may be used to support research-study participation and community engagement.
Applicants with professional, research or community-engagement experience using social media can therefore highlight it where relevant.
Research Assistant Salary
The position has a starting salary of:
$20 per hour
Virginia Tech states that compensation is:
Commensurate with experience.
This means $20 per hour is the starting point stated in the vacancy rather than necessarily a fixed wage for every successful applicant.
The position falls under:
Pay Band 3
How Many Hours Per Week?
The successful Research Assistant can work:
Up to 32 hours per week.
Because the job is hourly and part-time, actual weekly earnings will depend on the number of hours worked and the applicable hourly rate.
At the stated starting rate, someone working the full 32 hours in a week would earn $640 before taxes and deductions.
This $640 figure is a simple calculation based on the advertised $20 starting hourly rate and maximum 32 weekly hours; it is not a separately advertised weekly salary from Virginia Tech.
Overtime Status
The position is classified as:
Non-Exempt: Eligible for overtime
Applicants should note that this does not mean overtime hours are guaranteed.
It means the position is classified as overtime eligible under the applicable employment arrangement.
Appointment Type
Virginia Tech lists the appointment type as:
Restricted
Candidates should review the university’s applicable employment information for what this classification means for the specific appointment.
The supplied vacancy does not provide an end date for the appointment.
Location
The position is based in:
Roanoke, Virginia
The hiring unit is the:
Fralin Biomedical Research Institute
The supplied vacancy does not describe the Research Assistant position as remote or hybrid.
Candidates should therefore not assume that it can be performed remotely.
Criminal Conviction Check
Virginia Tech states that the successful candidate will be required to undergo a:
Criminal conviction check.
Candidates should take this requirement into consideration when applying.
About Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech is a comprehensive land-grant university whose motto is:
Ut Prosim — That I May Serve.
The university takes a hands-on and transdisciplinary approach to education and research.
According to the vacancy information, Virginia Tech offers more than 280 majors and has more than 36,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional students.
Its academic structure includes eight undergraduate colleges, a medical school, a veterinary medicine college, the Graduate School and Honors College.
Virginia Tech also has operations across Virginia, including Blacksburg, the greater Washington, D.C. area, Roanoke, Newport News and Richmond, as well as research institutes and Extension offices.
The university reports conducting more than $650 million in research annually.
About the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute
The Research Assistant will work through the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC in Roanoke.
Within the institute, the Addiction Recovery Research Center conducts research focused on understanding and treating substance use disorders.
For this vacancy, the successful candidate will contribute specifically to projects examining addiction recovery and decision-making, including research related to tobacco, alcohol and cocaine use.
Review Date
Virginia Tech lists the review date as:
September 30, 2026
Interested candidates should take this date seriously and submit their applications as soon as possible.
The source describes September 30 as the review date, rather than explicitly calling it a final closing deadline.
How to Apply
Candidates should apply through the official Virginia Tech employment portal.
Applicants can search using:
Job ID 537904
or the official position title:
Part Time Research Assistant
Candidates should carefully review their application before submitting it and ensure that their research, computer, communication, organizational and data-management experience is clearly represented.
Quick Facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Employer | Virginia Tech |
| Official Job Title | Part Time Research Assistant |
| Job ID | 537904 |
| Location | Roanoke, Virginia |
| Institute | Fralin Biomedical Research Institute |
| Research Center | Addiction Recovery Research Center |
| Employment Type | Hourly Wage/Part-Time |
| Hours | Up to 32 hours per week |
| Starting Pay | $20/hour |
| Salary Basis | Commensurate with experience |
| Pay Band | 3 |
| Overtime Status | Non-Exempt; eligible for overtime |
| Appointment Type | Restricted |
| Research Areas | Addiction recovery, decision-making and substance use |
| Review Date | September 30, 2026 |
| Criminal Conviction Check | Required for successful candidate |
| Application Method | Virginia Tech Jobs portal |
Final Thoughts
The Virginia Tech Part Time Research Assistant 2026 opportunity is particularly relevant to candidates interested in gaining or expanding hands-on experience in behavioral, addiction and clinical research.
Based at the Addiction Recovery Research Center within the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute in Roanoke, the successful candidate will contribute to projects investigating long-term addiction recovery, decision-making and interventions related to substance use.
Responsibilities range from recruiting and screening research participants to conducting structured interviews, collecting data and specimens, maintaining confidential records, completing literature searches and participating in research meetings.
The position starts at $20 per hour, with compensation commensurate with experience, and offers up to 32 hours of work per week.
Applicants do not need to assume that every preferred qualification is mandatory. Virginia Tech separately identifies coursework or training in psychology, biology, neuroscience or a related field, along with several forms of research experience, as preferred qualifications.
The key date to note is September 30, 2026, which Virginia Tech lists as the review date.
Candidates interested in the opportunity should search for Job ID 537904 through the official Virginia Tech employment portal and submit their application according to the university’s instructions.
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