Description

Applications are invited for a Postdoctoral Research Associate position at Purdue University, co-mentored by Nan Kong, PhD (Biomedical Engineering and Industrial Engineering), and Serena Guo, MD, PhD (Pharmacy Practice). The project will develop a causal multimodal foundation model integrating electronic health record (EHR) trajectories, molecular profiles, and longitudinal wearable/mobile sensor data to estimate treatment effects and identify heterogeneous treatment responses.

The fellow will combine representation learning, causal inference, longitudinal modeling, and operations research, with interdisciplinary mentorship and professional development to support an independent academic career.

Research Areas: The fellow will contribute to the following interconnected areas:

1. Multimodal foundation models and transferable patient representations across temporal scales, missingness patterns, and measurement processes
2. Causal inference for longitudinal treatment effects, addressing confounding and clinical treatment selection
3. Treatment-response heterogeneity and operations research methods for individualized treatment decision-making

Primary Responsibilities:

1. Develop and evaluate new methods combining multimodal representation learning and causal treatment-effect estimation.
2. Integrate and analyze biomedical data; assess model transferability, uncertainty, and subgroup treatment responses.
3. Lead manuscripts, contribute to grant proposals and reproducible research tools, and collaborate across engineering, data science, and health sciences.

Application Materials: Curriculum vitae; cover letter describing research interests, relevant methodological and computational experience, and career goals; and contact information for three references.

How to Apply: Please email your application materials to Dr. Nan Kong and Dr. Serena Guo using the contact information provided, or apply through the AMIA Career Center. General postdoctoral applications are separate from the Gilbreth Fellowship application process.

Co-Mentors / Application Contacts:

1. Nan Kong, PhD — Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Industrial Engineering; nkong@purdue.edu
2. Jingchuan Serena Guo, MD, PhD — Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice; serena.guo@purdue.edu

Requirements

1. PhD in operations research, industrial or biomedical engineering, biomedical/health informatics, computer science, statistics, biostatistics, computational biology, or a related field. Candidates nearing completion of their doctorate are welcome to apply; the degree must be completed by the appointment start date.

2. Strong quantitative and computational skills, with experience in one or more of causal inference, machine learning/foundation models, multimodal learning, longitudinal modeling, optimization, or biomedical data analytics.

3. Demonstrated methodological research ability, scholarly productivity, and strong communication and collaboration skills. Python proficiency and experience with modern machine-learning frameworks are desirable.

Additional Fellowship Opportunity: Strong candidates may also have the opportunity to apply for Purdue’s Lillian Gilbreth Postdoctoral Fellowships, which offer interdisciplinary research training and professional development for academic careers. Fellowship awards are subject to program eligibility and competitive selection.