Opportunities

Rural Significance

Significant and unique challenges of rural health.

Unique challenges to rural health include limited access to diagnostics and treatments, uneven understanding of underlying causes and outcomes, and a sense of isolation in the absence of connection to healthcare, education, and research resources.

Significant opportunity to recruit and retain those who identify with the state of Montana.

Our recent recruitment process, resulted in more than 175 applications, with those who identify with the state of Montana greatly over-represented.

Significant combination of strengths and resources.

We bring to the table, the first center in Montana to combine the basic and translational research strength of the only independent biomedical research institute in the state, with training opportunities and research resources of the only nonprofit medical school in the state, and the clinical strength of the largest comprehensive health provider system in central Montana. This combination enables new opportunities as we move forward in terms of: Faculty recruitment, building of research infrastructure in a rural medical setting, training for physician scientists, internship and educational opportunities for faculty and students in adjacent regions, and for Montanans to access resources often confined to distant medical center strongholds.

Careers

  • Post-Doctoral Researcher

    Join us in Montana!

    Postdoctoral Researcher Positions in Biomedical and/or Rural Health Research

    LOCATION

    McLaughlin Research Institute (www.mclaughlinresearch.org)

    Great Falls, Montana

    Just beyond the Rocky Mountain Front nestled among the river bottoms and sweeping plains of central Montana, the McLaughlin Research Institute for Biomedical Sciences has been conducting biomedical research since 1954. Located just 125 miles from Glacier National Park and 225 miles from Yellowstone National Park, the McLaughlin Research Institute has a unique mission in biomedical and rural health research that encompasses basic, translational and clinical science in a unique geographical area of the United States. The city of Great Falls, Montana, provides a high quality of life with abundant outdoor opportunities.

    We invite your application to join us as a postdoctoral research scientist at the McLaughlin Research Institute, a partnering institution with Touro University - Montana. With the addition of the Touro medical school and establishment of an NIH Center for Biomedical Research Excellence, postdoctoral scientists have the opportunity to transition to full time positions as primary investigators, research science faculty or teaching faculty positions. Postdoctoral positions at the McLaughlin Research Institute provide ample opportunity for seamless growth in a variety of career trajectories in a well-funded biomedical research institute. Salary is commensurate with experience.

    REQUIRED EDUCATION, KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS:

    § Ph.D., D.V.M and/or M.D. and research experience in biochemistry, molecular biology, immunology, genetics, cell biology, computational biology, public health, psychology or related field.

    § Strong verbal and written communication skills

    § Strong organizational and supervisory skills

    § Knowledge of, or willingness to learn, institutional regulatory document submission

    Application Instructions

    To apply, please send the following to Rebecca Brown at rebecca@mclaughlinresearch.org

    and address any questions to Rebecca Brown or Renee Reijo Pera at reneer@mclaughlinresearch.org

    § CV

    § Cover Letter

    § List of 3 Professional References

    Application review starts immediately and continues until the position is filled.

    We encourage you to visit our website and contact individual scientists for more information, as needed. Current faculty members include Drs. Andrea Grindeland, Brenda Canine, Mikael Klingeborn, Moses Leavens, Renee Reijo Pera, Teresa Gunn, and Tiffany Hensley-McBain.

  • Faculty Position(s) in integrated Biomedical and Rural Health Research

    The McLaughlin Research Institute in Great Falls, Montana, and the TouroCOM – Montana invite applications for two to three faculty positions, open-rank at the assistant, associate or full professor level. We seek individuals who can take advantage of the unique environment and the recent establishment of a Center of Excellence in biomedical and rural health research in Great Falls, MT. Areas of Institute strengths and strategy for future development include epidemiology, rural health, women’s health, behavioral health, neurology, psychiatric/psychology, or related areas. We are undergoing a time of expansion built on a foundation of translational research in neurological and neurodegenerative disease. Applicants with an interest in basic, translational, clinical, and/or computational approaches to solving complex human health problems are encouraged to apply.

    The McLaughlin Research Institute provides a novel environment for scientific studies and has been in operation for >70 years. The recent addition of the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, Montana campus, adjacent to the Institute provides for a vibrant environment of research, education and outreach. Candidates should possess a medical or doctoral degree and have a record of research excellence. Successful candidates are expected to develop a productive research program that can compete successfully for grant funding. Willingness and ability to establish both intramural and extramural collaborations is essential. Medical school teaching of appropriate classes within the expertise of the successful candidate is expected.

    Great Falls is a small city on the Missouri River located near Montana’s Rocky Mountain front, approximately 125 miles from Glacier National Park and 225 miles from Yellowstone National Park. The city provides a high quality of life with abundant outdoor opportunities. Faculty benefit from interactions with the Scientific Advisory Committee, the university system of Montana and the support of local organizations. For specific questions about the Institute or TouroCOM-MT, please visit our webpages at: www.McLaughlinResearch.Org or https://tourocom.touro.edu/about/location--contact/

    This is a unique opportunity to join us and take part in building the future of biomedical research in Montana and to bridge the urban and rural gap in biomedical research and healthcare systems. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis as they are received. Applications should include a curriculum vitae and description of research and be sent to:

    Renee A. Reijo Pera, PhD

    Email: reneer@mclaughlinresearch.org; McLaughlin Research Institute

    1520 23rd Street Southl Great Falls, MT 59405

    The McLaughlin Research Institute and TouroCOM – Montana are equal opportunity/affirmative action employers.

  • No open positions.

    To learn more about what we do, see here.

Summer Internships for
High School & College Students

We are committed to serving as an educational resource for students and teachers in Montana. We offer summer internships for high school and college students, and also high school teachers as merited.  Successful applicants will spend 8 weeks, from Monday, June 16, 2025 through Friday, August 8, 2025, in the laboratory of one of the Institute’s faculty or in the Animal Resource Center actively engaged in a current research project under the direction of the scientist, postdoctoral fellow, or research assistant.

In addition to providing hands-on experience in investigatory science, the students will observe and interact with other high school and college students in a laboratory-learning environment rather than a classroom. Journal clubs and seminars supplement the research experience. Each student will give a formal presentation at the end of the 8 weeks summarizing his/her project.

Requirements

Students who have completed their junior or senior year of high school or freshman through senior year of college are eligible. Students should be on track for four years of math, biology, chemistry and/or physics.

Due to liability reasons, we will only accept local high school students unless proof of supervised accommodations can be provided.

Successful applicants to the program must agree to fully commit 8 weeks of their summer to the internship.

Applications will open December 1, 2024 and close March 10, 2025.

Application

Applications will open December 1, 2024 and close March 10, 2025. Decisions will be made by late March; each applicant will be contacted via email regarding their application status. Thank you for your interest in the summer internship program!

Internships begin Monday, June 16, 2025 and final presentations will be held Friday, August 8, 2025.

TO APPLY: Include a letter of application highlighting your interest in science, a resume, high school or college transcripts, and two letters of recommendation, preferably from instructors in the science/math disciplines. Recommendation letters should be sent from the recommender’s email address and written on the recommender’s institutional letterhead. Please email all materials to admin@mclaughlinresearch.org

Transcripts can be mailed to:

MRI Internship Program
1520 23rd Street South
Great Falls, MT 59405

Questions?

Email us at: admin@mclaughlinresearch.org

Summer research internships for talented high school students have been available since 1954, when Great Falls High School student, Irving Weissman, worked in the lab of the Institute’s founder, Dr. Ernst Eichwald.  Dr. Weissman now chairs the Institute’s Scientific Advisory Committee, is a Professor at Stanford University and has co-founded several start-up companies.

Our internship program is made possible by the generous support of the community including: Gene Thayer, Randy Gray, David and Tanya Cameron, and Irv and Ann Weissman.

Program

Successful applicants will spend 8 weeks, from Monday, June 16 2025 through Friday, August 8, 2025, in the laboratory of one of the Institute’s faculty or in the Animal Resource Center actively engaged in a current research project under the direction of the scientist, postdoctoral fellow, or research assistant.

This is an in-person experience participating in cutting edge research at a center with world-renowned scientists and ties to prestigious research universities. Many of our interns have gone on to successful careers in research or medicine.

High School interns will receive a $3,500 stipend

College interns will receive a $4,600 stipend

Join our study!

In collaboration with Great Falls Clinic, Dr. Tiffany Hensley-McBain has launched a study investigating genetic and biological mechanisms of chronic inflammatory conditions, in which participants come in for a single blood draw.

Call Rebecca Brown, Clinical Research Coordinator, at (406) 454-6045

Or click the link below to join the HERO Registry for participation in this or future clinical studies!