Advice on securing post-bacc paid RA opportunities?

[elmo]

Any good advice on how to find paid full-time RA opportunities post-undergrad?

[oddity]

The Cognitive Development Society listserv (https://cogdevsoc.org/listserv/) often posts full-time paid positions. There are probably other similar ones for other areas of psych too. Most fall positions will already be full by now, but if you're looking for something later, they all tend to pop up during the winter/spring. 

Ask people (professors, grad students, lab staff, etc.) who are in your area of psych. These positions really depend on how much funding is available to the PI so it's good to have insider info about current staff leaving a position or if a grant is coming through to fund a new person. You can also look on lab websites and try to find out how long current lab managers/research staff have been there. I think most lab managers stay for about 2 years before heading off to grad school so you can get a sense if they might be leaving. Also, incoming junior faculty often get start-up money for a lab manager so it's great to make connections with post-docs or people on the job market! 

People love hiring someone they already know will do a good job, so the best way to get a full-time job is to volunteer in the lab you want to work in first. My lab always considers the current unpaid RAs before someone totally new. You need to go above and beyond what you're required to do (e.g. data entry, coding, running subjects) in order to prove yourself though. Anticipate what the grad students and post-docs need and make their lives easier because PIs will often consult them before hiring.
It can be financially difficult to volunteer without the guarantee of a job, but if you do some research into the lab first about potential funding, you'll have a better shot. I didn't know about my PI's funding situation before I started, but I mention to our RAs that we try to hire from within and when there will most likely be paid opportunities. I had been out of school for several years with no research experience and asked to volunteer twice a week, while I waitressed on the other days. After a few weeks, they offered a part-time lab manager gig and once a big grant came through, I asked to become full-time. The person who eventually took over my job was an undergrad RA in the lab for a year. He knew I was planning to go to school soon and made it pretty clear that he was interested in taking over.

Hope that helps!

[dancedementia]

There is also this tried and true job board. It's full of spam, but you can easily pick out the legitimate posts by how many views there are.

http://post-bacc-ra-opportunities.1115000.n5.nabble.com/

[psycinfo]

I'm not sure what area you are interested in, but if it is social, I recommend the SPSP Job Board:

https://my.spsp.org/Careers/Job-Search

I don't think you have to be a member of SPSP to look at it, but if you are a member you can sign up for the list serv and they email you all of the new positions posted every other Friday. I found my current job (lab manager) through this along with many others that I applied for and had interviews with. I will note that most of these are Lab Manager/Coordinator positions, but if you can secure one of these over an RA position it will only benefit you in the long run. Most of these types of positions are filled now and the best time to begin looking is late winter/early spring. Most are looking to bring on new staff by August. 

Good luck!

 

[Psychophys]

I'm aware of a cog neuro lab that is currently looking for someone to be a full-time lab manager.  Private message me if you're interested.

[higaisha]

harvard has one on their site, routinely updated.

https://undergrad.psychology.fas.harvard.edu/post-graduate-research-jobs