Jobs › Shirley Ryan AbilityLab

Post-Doctoral Fellow, Research - CBM

Shirley Ryan AbilityLab · Chicago, IL · $47,300–$78,700 a year · Full time

Posted Aug 5, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026

Apply at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab

Likely interview questions for this role

Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.

About your past

Tell me about your doctoral research and how it connects to computational or biomedical work in rehabilitation.

What they are checking: Whether their background fits the lab and they can see where their skills apply to rehab problems.

Tell me about a paper you led from start to finish.

What they are checking: Whether they can drive research to publication, which is central to a postdoc role.

What grant or fellowship would you apply for during this postdoc, and why?

What they are checking: Whether they are planning their path to independence through funding.

What would you do

A clinician on your team doesn't trust your model's results. How do you respond?

What they are checking: Whether they can explain their methods clearly and take clinical concerns seriously.

You're asked to help on a project outside your expertise. What do you do?

What they are checking: Whether they are willing to learn new areas and collaborate across a research team.

About the work

How would you design a study that uses wearable sensor data from patients to measure recovery?

What they are checking: Whether they can plan data collection, outcomes and analysis that work with real patients outside the lab.

Walk me through how you'd handle messy real-world clinical data with missing values and noise.

What they are checking: Whether they clean and model clinical data carefully instead of assuming it behaves like lab data.

How do you validate a model so you're confident it will work on new patients?

What they are checking: Whether they avoid overfitting by using proper validation, such as testing on held-out participants.

What programming languages and tools do you use for your analyses?

What they are checking: Whether they have the technical skills to work independently on data and models.

How do you protect patient privacy when working with clinical research data?

What they are checking: Whether they understand IRB rules and data protection when using health information.

Practice this interview out loud.

Offer builds a real interview for this exact role at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab from your resume and this job description, asks the questions one at a time, and tells you what landed. The first one is free.

Practice this out loud

The full job description

As published by Shirley Ryan AbilityLab.

Shirley Ryan AbilityLab is the global leader in physical medicine and rehabilitation for adults and children with the most severe, complex conditions. By joining our team, you’ll be part of our life-changing mission and vision. You’ll contribute to an innovative, multifaceted culture that is second to none — one that embraces collaboration, excellence, discovery and compassion. You’ll play a role in something that’s never been done before as we integrate science and clinical care to help patients achieve better, faster outcomes — as we Advance Human Ability, together. Job Description Summary The Post-Doctoral Fellow, Research will assist in the design, development, execution, and implementation of scientific research and/or development in collaboration with a research team. The Post-Doctoral Fellow, Research will consistently demonstrate support of the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab statement of Vision, Mission and Core Values by striving for excellence, contributing to the team efforts and showing respect and compassion for patients and their families, fellow employees, and all others with whom there is contact at or in the interest of the institute. The Post-Doctoral Fellow, Research will demonstrate Shirley Ryan AbilityLab Core Attributes: Communication, Accountability, Flexibility/Adaptability, Judgment/Problem Solving, Customer Service and Core Values (Hope, Compassion, Discovery, Collaboration, and Commitment to Excellence) while fulfilling job duties. Job Description The Post-Doctoral Fellow, Research will: • Ensures the design, development, execution and implementation of scientific research and/or development in collaboration with a research team. • Investigates the feasibility of applying a wide variety of scientific principles and theories to potential inventions and products. • Maintains substantial knowledge of state-of-the-art principles and theories. • Assists with development of collaborative projects within and outside the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab and test ideas for new projects development. • Applies for fellowships and grants for external lab funding and career development. • Participates weekly lab meetings, journal clubs and seminars. • Builds and maintains a well-organized and accountable journal of own laboratory protocols, experiments, results and analyses. • Develops, submits and publishes results of research projects scientific journals and presents data to public conferences/seminars when needed. • Performs all other duties that may be assigned in the best interest of the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. Reporting Relationships: • Reports directly to the assigned Principal Investigator Knowledge, Skills & Abilities Required: • Requires the academic knowledge associated with a doctorate degree • Typically, less than 4 years of postdoctoral training. • Excellent oral and written communication skills in English. • General knowledge or interest in rehabilitation and specific knowledge in biomedical or clinical principles. • Strong interpersonal and organizational skills needed to participate as a creative member of a growing research team. • Ability to exchange ideas and to work closely with clinicians, patients and professional organizations. • Willingness to network within the Institute and to independently strengthen/develop new external collaborations. • Ability to timely plan and to coordinate project completions. Working Conditions: • Normal office environment with little or no exposure to dust or extreme temperature. The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified. Pay and Benefits*: Pay Range: $47,300.00 - $78,700.00 Benefits: Shirley Ryan AbilityLab offers a comprehensive benefits program that is competitive with our industry peers in our geographic locations: https://www.sralab.org/benefits *Benefits and benefits’ eligibility can vary by position. Actual compensation will be determined by equity and qualifications of the role. Equal Employment Opportunity Employer Shirley Ryan AbilityLab is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. All applicants will be afforded equal employment opportunity without discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, marital status, national origin or ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, military status, order of protection status, unfavorable discharge from military service, or any other characteristics protected by law. EEO is the Law | EEO is the Law - Know Your Rights | View our Full Policy Shirley Ryan AbilityLab is an Affirmative Action Employer as required by law.

Apply at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab