Research Assistant, Cognitive Development Lab

*This posting will be used to hire 1 - 3 positions*

Research Assistants are normally students, in a University of Winnipeg undergraduate program, employed to assist with tasks related to research. Work is performed within defined guidelines and under supervision of a more senior researcher or faculty member.

Position Overview:

The research assistant will provide support and assistance for Professor Brandon Goulding related to his research within the area of developmental psychology for 0-25 hours per week. These hours are flexible and meant to accommodate a current student. The research assistant will be responsible for administrative duties and participant recruitment in UW's Thinking and Reasoning Lab. They will also design studies and collect data. Ideally, the selected candidate is willing to make a long-term commitment to the lab.

Duties:

• Assist in data collection, data entry, analysis, and interpretation. This lab conducts research primarily with young children (aged 3-7). The Research Assistant will find and contact schools and daycares, and will arrange for the lab to go testing at places that have agreed to a visit. They will constantly be maintaining and updating a database of locations. They will be responsible for scheduling lab members for these testing appointments and arranging travel from UW to the school/daycare and back. The Employee will also run human participants (children and adults) through studies that we will design.
• At present, we visit the Manitoba Museum on Sundays. The employee will be expected to regularly attend these visits, though not every week.
• We are also planning to launch online testing, and the new hire(s) will be essential in ensuring enough employees are available for these appointments. This will likely require working on evenings and weekends.
• Perform academic research, standard tests and experiments: the Research Assistant will help design experiments and test human participants.
• Assist with duties related to the production of articles, publications, reports and presentations: the Research Assistant may assist with the preparation of manuscripts that will be submitted for publication.
• Prepare literature reviews: the Research Assistant may be asked to search for relevant papers on Google Scholar.
• Assist in the acquisition of research materials and supplies: the Research Assistant will be responsible for keeping the lab stocked with critical supplies (e.g., paper, stickers, certificates, pens). They will also be responsible for maintaining lab equipment (e.g., charging laptops and tablets).
• Perform data/word processing, routine computations, and record keeping: the Research Assistant will be responsible for maintaining a detailed and well-organized database of schools, daycares, and other community organizations that we might visit. They will also be responsible for managing and organizing all forms (digital or paper) that we send and receive.
• Perform routine clerical and administrative duties to support research activities: the Research Assistant will send emails, make phone calls, and manage supplies.

Qualifications:

• Academic major: Honours Psychology.
• Specific courses completed: 2nd-year developmental psychology mandatory, further coursework in developmental or cognitive psychology preferred.
• Overall GPA: Excellent academic record preferred.
• Software: MS Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint), Qualtrics, and R preferred.
• Experience interacting with the public (e.g., a customer service job) is an asset, since this job will largely involve emails and phone-calls.
• Experience working with the community, and especially with young children or families, is an asset.
• Preference will be given to applicants with experience working in a research lab that studies early childhood cognition, especially if they have worked on projects that align with those done in the Thinking and Reasoning Lab.
• Employees will need to pass a vulnerable sectors check with the Winnipeg Police Service and a Child Abuse Check with the Province of Manitoba.
• Employees may also need to provide proof of vaccinations (COVID-19, MMR, T-DAP, Varicella, TB) or be willing to get these vaccinations. This will depend on the expectations of the daycares and schools we arrange to visit.
• This work also requires travel to places other than UW. For instance, children will be tested at daycares and schools in Winnipeg and surrounding areas. The employee must be willing to travel to these locations.
• Some work described in this posting will be conducted remotely (e.g., online testing), but the employee is mostly expected to work in the lab, on the UWinnipeg campus. Hours logged off-campus may not be approved unless previously agreed upon.

Condition(s) of Employment:

• Must be legally entitled to work in Canada.

The period of work will be from December 5, April 30, 2026 and the estimated total hours of work will be 0-300 hours.

Note: This position is represented by the Public Service Alliance of Canada - Research Capacity Unit.

Note: The work described in this posting will be conducted in-person.

The University of Winnipeg is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and recognizes that a diverse staff and faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research environments, and is essential to academic and institutional excellence. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals and encourage women, racialized persons, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, and 2SLGBTQ+ persons to confidentially self-identify at time of application.

The University of Winnipeg is committed to ensuring employment opportunities are accessible for all applicants. If you require accommodation supports during the recruitment process, please contact

The personal information of applicants is collected under the authority of the University of Winnipeg Act and 36(1)(b) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. All personal information collected via the recruitment process is used to assess the applicant's suitability, eligibility, and qualifications for employment, and to otherwise support recruitment activities. This information will be provided to participating members of the recruitment process. Questions regarding the collection of your personal information may be directed to the Director, HR Services, 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9 or