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Current opportunities to join the Usher Institute.
A summary of current Usher Institute vacancies is provided below. Applications usually close at 5pm on the noted date.
Please note that all Usher Institute vacancies are advertised on the vacancies section of the University of Edinburgh Jobs website, where it is possible to set up personalised email notifications for future vacancies of interest.
Clinical Research Fellow
Closing Date: 18-Jun-2018
This post provides an exciting and challenging opportunity for a clinician to contribute to the development of the Dementias Platform UK (DPUK), a major MRC-funded initiative which aims to accelerate research progress and develop knowledge leading to new drug treatments and other therapies that could prevent or delay the onset and progression of dementias.
Your role will be to develop methods for the identification of neurodegenerative and co-morbid diseases in DPUK cohorts, particularly UK Biobank. UK Biobank is a large prospective cohort study of 500,000 very well characterised UK adults aged 40-69 years at baseline, who were recruited in 2006-2010, and whose health is being followed through linkages to routinely collected health datasets over the next few decades.
The post will be based in the UK Biobank Chief Scientist’s team at the Centre for Medical Informatics in the Usher Institute for Population Health Sciences and Informatics at the University of Edinburgh’s BioQuarter campus.
This post is a rare opportunity to work right in at the heart of two internationally leading research resources and is ideal for a clinician wishing to train in epidemiology and obtain skills in clinical research methods, data science and statistics.
This post is full-time (40 hours per week), to start as soon as possible and available for one year in the first instance. Applications from candidates who wish to work part time or on a sessional basis are also welcomed.
Salary: AMN2 £33,131 to £49,091
Administrative Secretary to the Primary Palliative Care Research Group
Closing Date: 19-June-2018
The Usher Institute seeks to appoint an experienced administrative secretary to the Primary Palliative Care Research Group (PPCRG) to undertake a wide range of administrative and research support duties to ensure the efficient operation of the group.
You should have experience in a research or administrative role preferably within a University environment and have knowledge of university financial accounting procedures. It is essential that you have excellent interpersonal and communication skills and a high level of competence with appropriate IT packages and transcribing. You will also be extremely well organised with the ability to prioritise, identify and achieve deadlines.
The post is fixed term until 31st March 2019 and available from July 2018 (full time – 35 hours per week) with a possible extension subject to funding.
Salary: UE05 £22,214 to £25,728
Research Fellow
Closing Date: 20-Jun-2018
The Usher Institute at The University of Edinburgh is seeking a high calibre, highly motivated candidate to work on two strategic platforms for the Asthma UK Centre for Applied Research: the Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) and UK database of asthma research volunteers (REACH: REgister for Asthma researCH database) platforms. The post holder will facilitate meaningful involvement for people affected by asthma in all the Centre’s research activities and lead on the development and promotion of the REACH database as a mechanism to improve the efficiency of conducting asthma clinical trials. This work will be undertaken in conjunction with collaborators across the UK as part of the Centre.
Applicants should have a PhD (or near completion) in a health or social science discipline and experience of patient and public involvement in research and developing business plans or costing models. Knowledge and use of health data in academic research and the legislation and guidance for this is essential as is excellent communication and organisational skills to work within this multi-disciplinary team across the UK. A strong record of publication in peer-reviewed journals is desirable.
This post is full-time (35 hours per week) until April 2019 and available as soon as possible.
Salary: UE07 £32,548 to £38,833
Research Nurse
Closing Date: 28-Jun-2018
This is an outstanding opportunity to join a dynamic and enthusiastic team of researchers in the Edinburgh Clinical Trials Unit (ECTU) within the Usher Institute at the University of Edinburgh. Based at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh, you will be responsible for recruiting patients into a range of clinical research studies and conducting study visits as the protocols require. The ECTU Research Nurse team conduct studies from primary and secondary care settings in Lothians, Borders and Forth Valley involving both academic and commercial studies.
Applicants should be a first level registered nurse with good, relevant post registration experience and at least 1 year’s research experience preferred at band 6 or equivalent grade level. Applicants must be able to work as part of a multidisciplinary team as well as being capable of working independently.
The post is fixed term for 2 years and available from August 2018 (full time – 35 hours per week).
Salary: UE6N £27,285 to £34,520
Research Fellow
Closing Date: 01-Jul-2018
We wish to appoint an outstanding Research Fellow at the Usher Institute. Reporting to, and working with, Drs Miguel O. Bernabeu (Usher Institute) and James R. Maddison (School of Mathematics) you will conduct research centred around the development of novel numerical data assimilation techniques for the inference of patient-specific boundary conditions in retinal blood flow models. This is an excellent opportunity for a motivated post-doctoral researcher to join, and become a key player in, an international and highly interdisciplinary effort to develop novel approaches to diabetic retinopathy early detection via monitoring of early blood flow changes.
You will produce material for publication and dissemination and engage with national and international project collaborators at Harvard University and the University of Oxford (including travel to meetings) to ensure delivery of a cutting-edge multidisciplinary programme of research.
You will have a PhD (or near completion) in a relevant discipline e.g. Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science or Engineering. You will also have demonstrable experience in the numerical solution of Partial Differential Equations. Competence in object-oriented computer programming in C++, Python, Julia, or a computer programming language with similar capabilities and a demonstrable ability in drafting project reports, papers, and peer-reviewed publications commensurate with an appointment at this level are also crucial to the post.
The post will be available from July 2018 and is fixed term for 1 year, any extension is subject to funding (full time – 35 hours).
Salary: UE07 £32,548 to £38,833
Senior Epidemiologist
Closing Date: 04-Jul-2018
The National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Research & Surveillance Unit (NCJDRSU) within the University of Edinburgh is seeking a highly skilled and motivated epidemiologist to work on the Unit’s national CJD surveillance activities and take over responsibility for the management of specific projects.
Working under the direction of the Senior Epidemiologist, you will help develop Unit strategy for the UK surveillance programme, and play a lead role in the design, management and delivery of enhanced surveillance projects. You will also manage junior staff, provide support for other NCJDRSU research projects, and collaborate with colleagues out with the NCJDRSU with an interest in other neurodegenerative diseases. You will be working at the Unit’s main offices at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh, as well as at the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences and the Usher Institute at Little France.
Successful applicants will hold a PhD with extensive postgraduate experience in epidemiological research and have a track-record of success in relevant research projects. You will need a proven ability to design and/or manage research activities, and you will have expertise in advanced practical methods of health data management, analysis and reporting. You will also have a sound understanding of research governance and relevant legislation.
Salary: UE08 £39,992 to £47,722
Centre Administrator
Closing Date: 05-Jul-2018
The Usher Institute is seeking an experienced, Centre Administrator. This is a key post providing administrative support and ensuring the smooth running of a new cross-College, cross-School Centre for Biomedicine, Self and Society supported by a Wellcome Trust Discretionary Award. The post holder will work closely with the Executive Team to develop the Centre’s activities and management processes and to support all staff and students involved to manage their research projects and knowledge exchange activities. The post holder will be the first point of contact for enquiries and will also oversee the programme of Visiting Fellows. The work demands close attention to detail, the ability to prioritise, identify and achieve deadlines and use good judgement and initiative.
Candidates should be educated to degree level or equivalent with considerable relevant work experience in a busy HE administrative environment. Excellent communication skills and a high level of competence with Microsoft Office, email and diary management are also essential to the role.
A good knowledge of University financial accounting procedures and practices is desirable.
The post is available from August 2018, 17.5 hours per week and is fixed-term until 30th September 2022.
Salary: UE05 £22,214 to £25,728 (pro rata) for 17.5 hours each week
Public Engagement & Knowledge Exchange Co-ordinator
Closing Date: 16-Jul-2018
The Usher Institute is seeking an experienced, Public Engagement & Knowledge Exchange Co-ordinator. This is a key post providing support within a new cross-College, cross-School Centre for Biomedicine, Self and Society supported by a Wellcome Trust Discretionary Award. The post holder will support the development and delivery of the Centre’s communication and engagement strategy working closely with the Executive Team, the Centre administrator and all staff and students.
Candidates should have an understanding of health-related social research, and a degree in social science or humanities with good interpersonal skills and excellent ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of different sectors, groups and individuals, particularly in writing. A demonstrable ability to distil complex information into simpler forms, and to translate academic writing into accessible English is also essential.
The post is available from August 2018, 21 hours per week and is fixed-term until 30th September 2022.
Salary: UE06 £27,285 to £31,604 (pro rata) for 21 hours each week
Research Assistant (Health Economics)
Closing Date: 10-Aug-2018
The Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh invites applications for the post of Research Assistant in Health Economics based in the the growing health economics group within the Edinburgh Clinical Trials Unit at the University of Edinburgh.
Applicants will have an MSc in health economics or similar postgraduate qualification with a strong health economics component. The post holder will support research in the area of patient preferences for breast cancer therapies supervised by Dr Peter Hall and Dr Ewan Gray. This role is funded by a research grant from the Breast Cancer Institute.
The post holder will be responsible for the delivery of a series of questionnaire surveys investigating the preferences of the public, patients and clinicians around information provided in relation to breast cancer treatments. The research method of discrete choice experiments (DCE) will be central to the project. A qualitative component of the project will use in-depth interviews with key stakeholders to aid the design and interpretation of the surveys. Consistent communication and engagement with both staff and patients in NHS Lothian will be key to the success of the designing and fielding the surveys.
This post is for a health economist who wishes to gain career experience and a track record in peer reviewed publications. The candidate must be able to apply core methods of health economics such as relevant microeconomic theory and econometrics/statistics. Effective communication skills are also required especially the ability to communicate well with other researchers, clinicians and patients who have little or no knowledge of health economics. Additional training in specific methods relevant to the project and for more general development as a health economist will be provided both internally and through external short course attendance.
The post is fixed term for 2 years and available from September 2018 (full time – 35 hours per week).
Salary: UE06 £27,285 to £31,604