Research Assistant/Associate Position at Newcastle University - TORUS Project

Salary:
Research Assistant: £31,396 - £32,982 per annum
Research Associate: £33,966 - £44,263 per annum

Newcastle University offers an exceptional working environment with outstanding benefits. Enjoy a generous holiday package with options to purchase additional time off, robust pension schemes, and numerous health and wellbeing initiatives.

Closing Date: 23 June 2024

The Role

Are you enthusiastic about utilizing your skills to improve lives? We seek a passionate Research Assistant/Associate to engage in applied data science and AI research for the TORUS project.

The TORUS project, a partnership between the universities of Bristol and Newcastle, aims to enhance the lives of individuals with Parkinson's disease. For years, accurately measuring the impact of new drugs has been a challenge in Parkinson's research. TORUS strives to resolve this by developing a pioneering platform of sensing technologies for use in patients' homes, combined with an advanced data fusion and machine learning system. This setup will monitor changes in mobility-related behaviors over time, providing invaluable insights for effective treatments.

Your role will primarily involve utilizing distributed machine learning to develop a secure, privacy-preserving, and resilient integrated TORUS system. You will also support and evaluate pilot trials conducted in patients' homes, and effectively communicate with diverse audiences, including academics, industry leaders, and research subjects at home.

Join us at the Urban Sciences Building (USB) on Newcastle University's campus, a state-of-the-art facility dedicated to research in urban sustainability, energy efficiency, and digital innovation. The USB offers smart infrastructure, advanced laboratories, and integrated sensor networks, fostering a collaborative environment for researchers, students, and industry partners.

This is a full-time, fixed-term position available immediately until 29 February 2028.

To apply, please submit a CV and cover letter detailing how your qualifications meet the job requirements.

For informal enquiries, contact Professor Paul Watson at [email protected].

More information about the School of Computing and our research can be found .

Key Responsibilities

• Contribute to the design, development, and evaluation of the integrated TORUS system.
• Prepare clear, well-written reports and draft scientific papers for high-impact journals and conferences.
• Present research findings at conferences or in reputable publications.
• Design and conduct experiments, evaluating results.
• Perform additional duties as requested by the project lead, commensurate with the grade of the post.

The Ideal Candidate

Knowledge, Skills, and Experience

• Strong programming skills.
• Knowledge and experience in Data Science and/or AI.
• Ability to assimilate and deploy ideas from relevant literature.
• Proficiency in delivering oral presentations to diverse stakeholders.
• High analytical and problem-solving capacity.
• Experience in writing technical papers and progress reports for conferences/journals (Desirable for Research Assistant).
• Ability to engage with the public at home research settings with compassion and professionalism.

Desirable

• Experience in applying Machine Learning.
• Ability to motivate, organize, and lead a research team.

Attributes and Behavior

• Excellent interpersonal skills for building and maintaining trust with stakeholders.
• Competence in communicating research findings effectively to diverse audiences.
• Ability to respect research boundaries and listen to and incorporate subject feedback.
• High professional conduct and ethical standards in research.
• Commitment to embedding values of equality and diversity in all work aspects.
• Commitment to academic excellence, ambition, social responsibility, and accountability.

Qualifications

• PhD in a relevant discipline or substantial equivalent work experience for Research Associate.
• Undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in a relevant discipline or substantial equivalent work experience for Research Assistant.

Desirable