The University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) appreciates your interest in employment at our growing institution. We want your application process to go smoothly and quickly. Final applications must be submitted prior to the close of the recruitment.

If you need assistance or have questions regarding the application process, please contact our recruitment helpline at (775) 784-1495 or [email protected].

Job Description

The Orvis School of Nursing at the Carnegie R1-designated University of Nevada, Reno seeks an inaugural embedded Nurse Scientist within its academic-practice partnership with Renown Health. The Nurse Scientist will work alongside clinical nurses, nursing leaders, and interprofessional teams to generate new knowledge, investigate the impact of nursing care, and advance nursing science. This is a role for a builder. The successful candidate will develop the relationships, infrastructure, and culture that make nursing inquiry integral to clinical practice and organizational decision-making, while advancing an independent program of scholarship.

We welcome candidates across career stages who demonstrate a clear scholarly focus, strong methodological preparation, and the capacity to develop a funded program of research. The successful candidate will bring the vision and collaborative approach needed to build a new program, whether developing an emerging research portfolio or bringing an established body of scholarship to this opportunity.

Key Responsibilities

Build the nursing research enterprise

Develop and implement a strategic agenda for nursing research across the partnership.
Build sustainable infrastructure for nurse-initiated research, including consultation, project development, data access, and grant support.
Contribute leadership to nursing research councils, committees, and strategic initiatives.

Advance nursing science and outcomes research

Develop and sustain a focused program of research aligned with your outcomes-focused area of expertise.
Translate findings into clinical protocols, care models, policies, and delivery improvements.

Partner with nurses and clinical leaders

Collaborate with frontline nurses, advanced practice registered nurses, educators, nursing leaders, and quality teams to develop clinically relevant research questions.
Serve as a trusted methodological partner, designing rigorous evaluations of nursing interventions, workforce programs, and quality initiatives.

Develop capacity and external funding

Mentor nurses, students, faculty, clinicians, and emerging investigators, and build collaborative research teams across clinical, academic, and community settings.
Pursue extramural funding from federal, foundation, industry, and other sources appropriate to your career stage.

Appointment and Support

This is an open-rank faculty position with two pathways. Rank, pathway, and workload are determined by the candidate's qualifications, experience, scholarly trajectory, and career goals.

Tenure-track. Develop or maintain an active program of research and scholarship while contributing to the teaching, mentoring, and service missions of the school. Expectations align with rank and career stage.
Research-focused non-tenure-track. Contribute primarily through research, scholarship, capacity building, and service to the partnership. Teaching responsibilities, if any, are determined by mutual agreement and organizational need.
Consideration for an endowed professorship may be available for an appropriately qualified candidate.

The Nurse Scientist works in close partnership with the Chief Nurse Executive and nursing leaders across Renown Health, serves as a leader within the school's Center for Nursing Outcomes Research and Office of Research and Scholarly Impact, and has direct access to clinical leaders, frontline nurses, quality and safety teams, and research opportunities across diverse healthcare settings.

Required Qualifications

Candidates must meet all of the following:

Earned research doctorate (PhD, DNSc, ScD or equivalent) in nursing or a related discipline
Baccalaureate or master’s degree in nursing
Eligibility for Registered Nurse licensure in Nevada.
Evidence of an established and focused area of scholarly inquiry focusing on nursing outcomes, or a clearly articulated emerging program of research focusing on nursing outcomes.
Strong preparation in quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, implementation science, outcomes research, or related methodologies.
Evidence of scholarly potential or productivity appropriate to career stage, such as peer-reviewed publications, presentations, research participation, pilot funding, or funded projects.
Ability to collaborate effectively across academic and clinical environments.
Strong analytical, project management, and communication skills.
Demonstrated interest in building nursing research programs, partnerships, or capacity.

Preferred Qualifications

Postdoctoral fellowship or comparable advanced research experience.
Clinically-focused graduate degree in nursing (MSN or DNP)
Five or more years of clinical nursing practice as a licensed registered nurse or advanced practice registered nurse.
Experience conducting research within an academic health system, integrated health system, academic-practice partnership, or large healthcare organization.
Experience partnering with clinical nurses and nursing leaders on research, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, or program evaluation.
Experience evaluating nursing-sensitive, patient, workforce, quality, safety, or organizational outcomes.
Evidence of success or potential to compete for federal, foundation, industry, or other extramural funding.
Leadership experience in nursing research, clinical scholarship, or program development.
Faculty experience within a research-intensive university.

Compensation Grade

Assistant / Associate Professor

To view the salary schedule for this position, please visit: Salary Schedules and select Academic Faculty. Salary is competitive and commensurate with related education and experience.

Total Compensation

The total compensation package includes a competitive salary, moving allowance (if applicable), a rich retirement plan, sick leave, health insurance options that include dental and vision, life insurance, long term disability along with many other benefits. Additionally, there is a grant-in-aid educational benefit for faculty and dependents. For more information, please visit: UNR Benefits

Faculty Dual Career Assistance Program

The University of Nevada, Reno recognizes the importance of addressing dual-career couples’ professional needs. We offer a dual career assistance program to newly hired faculty spouses/partners that provides resources and assists them to identify career opportunities in Northern Nevada. Dual Career Program

Faculty Appointment

This position is open rank and may be appointed on either a tenure-track (TT) or non-tenure-track (NTT) pathway, commensurate with the candidate's qualifications, experience, and career goals. Faculty appointed on the tenure-track pathway will maintain an active program of research and scholarship while contributing to the teaching, mentoring, and service missions of the Orvis School of Nursing. Faculty appointed on a research-focused non-tenure-track pathway will primarily contribute through research, scholarship, research capacity building, and service to the academic practice partnership. Teaching responsibilities, if any, will be determined through mutual agreement and organizational need.

About the Opportunity
This position is a cornerstone of the Orvis School of Nursing's commitment to advancing nursing science, improving patient outcomes, and demonstrating the measurable impact of nursing care. As a leader within the Center for Nursing Outcomes Research and the Office of Research and Scholarly Impact, the Nurse Scientist will develop a nationally recognized program of scholarship while building the capacity of nurses across the health system to engage in research, evaluate outcomes, and contribute to the generation of new nursing knowledge.

The successful candidate will be both a productive nurse scientist and a catalyst for nursing inquiry across the healthcare system, supporting the generation of new knowledge within their own area of expertise while helping nurses and nurse leaders evaluate the effectiveness and impact of nursing care across diverse clinical settings.

Faculty rank and appointment structure will be determined based on qualifications and experience, including consideration for an endowed professorship where appropriate.

Exempt

Yes

Full-Time Equivalent

100.0%

Required Attachment(s)

Please note, once you submit your application the only attachment/s viewable to you will be the attachment/s to the resume/CV section of the application. Any additional required attachment/s to the cover letter, references, additional documents sections of the application, will not be viewable to you after you submit your application. All uploaded attachment/s will be on the application for the committee to review. To request updates to attachments, prior to the committee review of applications, please contact the candidate helpdesk at [email protected].

Please attach the following documents to your application

1) Resume/CV

2) Cover Letter addressing qualifications and interest in the position

3) Contact Information for three professional references

4) Statement of research interests and trajectory

This posting is open until filled

Qualified individuals are encouraged to apply immediately. This search will close without notice when a sufficient number of applications are received or a hiring decision has been made.

Posting Close Date

Note to Applicant

A background check will be conducted on the candidate(s) selected for hire.

HR will attempt to verify academic credentials upon receipt of hiring documents. If the academic credentials cannot be verified, HR will notify the faculty member that an official transcript of their highest degree must be submitted within thirty days of the faculty member’s first day of employment.

References will be contacted at the appropriate phase of the recruitment process.

Applicants hired on a federal contract may be subject to E-Verify.

As part of the hiring process, applicants for positions in the Nevada System of Higher Education may be required to demonstrate the ability to perform job-related tasks.

For positions that require driving, evidence of a valid driver's license will be required at the time of employment and as a condition of continued employment.

Schedules are subject to change based on organizational needs.

The University of Nevada, Reno is committed to providing a place of work and learning free of discrimination on the basis of a person’s age (40 or older), disability, whether actual or perceived by others (including service-connected disabilities), gender (including pregnancy related conditions), military status or military obligations, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, national origin, race (including hair texture and protected hairstyles such as natural hairstyles, afros, bantu knots, curls, braids, locks and twists), color, or religion (protected classes).

About Us

The University of Nevada, Reno is a leading public research university committed to the promise of a future powered by knowledge. Founded in 1874 as Nevada’s original land-grant university, the University serves more than 23,000 undergraduate and graduate students from all 50 states and 63 countries.

Classified by the Carnegie® Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as an R1 (“Very High Research”) university, it is also recognized in the Carnegie® Community Engagement classification. The University is also ranked by U.S. News & World Report among the “Best National Universities” and “Best National Public Universities.” It also ranks in the top tier of the WSJ/Times Higher Education World University Rankings and the New York Times’ “Top Colleges for Economic Diversity.”

Since 2009, nearly $1 billion has been has invested in advanced labs, facilities, and residence halls on the main campus. The University is home to Nevada’s first medical school – the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine and the Wayne L. Prim Campus at Lake Tahoe, where education, research, and creative work thrive in a stunning mountain setting. The University delivers on its original land-grant mission with outreach across the state through the University of Nevada, Reno Extension, Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station, Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, Nevada Small Business Development Center, the Nevada Seismological Laboratory, and Wolf Pack Athletics.

The main campus is in Reno, Nevada, a burgeoning global technology hub with a vibrant midtown and downtown. Found where the high desert of the Great Basin meets the High Sierra and Lake Tahoe, the beautiful, 290-acre main campus is also a Nevada State Arboretum. The University’s physical infrastructure is expanding with ongoing construction of the newly named John Tullock Business Building, set to open in fall 2025. Groundbreaking is also planned for a new State Public Health Laboratory Building on campus, alongside the recent acquisition of 16 parcels near campus, known as “University Village,” to provide affordable housing for graduate students and early career faculty.

Collaborating with world-renowned organizations, the University fosters innovation through initiatives such as the Digital Wolf Pack partnership with Apple, which ensures equitable access to technology for students, providing new incoming freshman or transfer students with an iPad Air and accessories. Google’s TechWise initiate is an 18-month program that fully supports undergraduate students in becoming entry-level software engineers by graduation.

In 2023, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced that Nevada – led by the University of Nevada, Reno – was named one of the inaugural 31 Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (TechHubs). Nevada was selected from a competitive pool of 489 applicants from across the United States and its territories. Nevada’s Tech Hub will strengthen America’s lithium batteries, critical elements and other electric vehicle materials industry sectors within the state.

Through its commitment to high-impact education, world-improving research and creative activity, and outreach that’s transforming Nevada’s communities and businesses, the University continues its 150-year tradition of benefitting our state, nation and world.

The University recognizes that diversity promotes excellence in education and research. The inclusive and engaged community on campus recognizes the added value that students, faculty, and staff from different backgrounds bring to the educational experience.

Today, the University delivers on its original land-grant mission of access to education and knowledge by investing in the academics, facilities, support, engagement and vibrant campus life that promote our diverse students’ cognitive growth and academic achievement – all while remaining one of the best values in American higher education.

For more information, please visit the University’s website.

University of Nevada, Reno

Nurse Scientist - Assistant / Associate Professor

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University of Nevada, Reno

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