JOIN

**The Close Relationships and Health Lab supports people of all genders, ages, races, nationalities, and ethnicities, along with disabled and LGBTQ+ people.**
 
Lab Mission Statement

Advance science: We investigate the mechanistic pathways linking social interactions to health.

Foster inclusive learning environment: We strive to create an inclusive and cohesive learning environment for lab members by engaging everyone in study design, implementation, and analysis.

Encourage professional development: We will help one another achieve our career goals through professional development activities, letters of recommendation, and independent research opportunities (when possible).

Prospective Undergraduate Students

Every semester we have undergraduate students working as research assistants (RAs) in our lab. The RAs are vital to the lab and help with all aspects of our research. The availability of a position during any given semester depends on the needs of the lab and the number of students who are already involved. If you are interested in a position, please read the description of our research and make sure that you meet our eligibility criteria.

Research Overview and RA Duties:

The research we conduct in the lab falls under the broad category of close relationships and health. Most of the studies we conduct are focused on this topic, and can involve participants ranging from undergraduates to married couples from the community. The RAs we hire are involved in a variety of different activities during a given semester, depending on what they are hired for. For example, students might enter data into the computer, code video tapes, and clean data. They also might interact with participants by conducting interviews, scheduling participants, and administering questionnaires. We collect blood and saliva from our participants; undergraduates are not responsible for collecting blood, but they must be comfortable being around when a blood draw is occurring if they are helping with a study where that is happening.

Eligibility Criteria:

  1. Availability for at least 6 hours per week (9 preferred)
  2. Available for our weekly lab meeting Wednesdays 2:30-3:30pm (only required of students in certain positions; more details provided during interview)
  3. GPA of at least 3.0
  4. Strong attention to detail
  5. Excellent organization skills
  6. Mature, professional, and reliable
  7. Comfortable interacting with strangers (i.e., study participants)
  8. Comfortable being around blood (altough not responsible for blood draws)

How to Apply:

  1. Fill out an online application here (note that you will need to upload an unofficial transcript and a printout or screen shot of your class schedule if it has been set-up already). 
  2. Email projectclosestaff@gmail.com to notify us that you completed an application. 

Questions should be directed to projectclosestaff@gmail.com

Prospective Graduate Students

The lab typically has anywhere from 1-3 graduate students at a time. Students have the opportunity to work with existing data from the lab, and/or to conduct independent, mentored research. Due to the nature of the studies we conduct, graduate students will gain skills in psychology, psychoneuroimmunology, psychoneuroendocrinology, statistics, and health.

Research Overview and Graduate Student Responsiblities:

*Dr. Jaremka is currently accepting applications for a PhD student to begin Fall 2022.*

The research we conduct in the lab falls under the broad category of close relationships and health. Most of the studies we conduct are focused on this topic, and can involve participants ranging from undergraduates to married couples to cancer survivors. Graduate students play an integral role in the lab and are involved in every step of the research process. For example, they work with Dr. Jaremka to develop new research ideas, prepare IRB protocols and study materials, interact with participants, help maintain data integrity, run data analyses, and write manuscripts for publication. We often collect blood and saliva from our participants; graduate students are not typically responsible for collecting blood, although this is a possibility depending on the study and the experience of the student involved.

How to Apply:

  1. Read through Dr. Jaremka's website and her publications to make your research interests match
  2. Learn more about the application requirements via the department's website
  3. Apply via the UD graduate college website