Job Description

UE07: £41,064 - £48,822 per annum

CMVM / Institute for Neuroscience and Cardiovascular Research

Full-time: 35 hours per week

Fixed term: 22 months

The Opportunity:

Help us redefine what’s possible. Be part of something bigger.

This opportunity is for a postdoctoral research associate in metabolic psychiatry. The postholder will work on the MRC Hub for Metabolic Psychiatry, led by Professor Daniel Smith. They will be the main researcher for Workstream Three of the Hub ('Metabolic Biomarkers of Mental Illness'), conducting a detailed prospective study of patients with mental illness to assess how changes in metabolic tests and changes in sleep relate to clinical outcomes. They will assist in the recruitment and assessment of patient volunteers with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and depression, as well as healthy controls. This will include the collection of data on mental health symptoms, sleep data and metabolic tests. They will also be involved in the analysis of data, drafting publications and taking part in knowledge exchange and dissemination activities.

A career with us has a range of other benefits: 

• Professional development and subject matter expertise
• Opportunities to develop new skills and broaden your experience
• Leading-edge research
• Working within one of the world’s leading universities

This post is full-time and based in Edinburgh (35 hours per week).

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How to apply:

Please include the following documents in your application:

- CV (max four pages)

- Cover letter (one page)

As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

• A competitive salary.
• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging and rewarding place to work.
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community.
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, including generous annual leave entitlement, a defined benefits pension scheme, a wide range of staff discounts, family-friendly initiatives, and flexible work options. Check out the full list on our staff benefits page(opens in a new tab) and use our reward calculator to discover the value of your pay and benefits.

Championing equality, diversity, and inclusion

The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter, and we are also a Stonewall Proud Employer, actively promoting LGBTQ+ equality. We encourage applications from all candidates, particularly disabled people and people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, as we acknowledge they are currently underrepresented in our area.

Prior to any employment commencing with the University, you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our right to work webpages(opens new browser tab)

The University may be able to sponsor the employment of international workers in this role.  This will depend on a number of factors specific to the successful applicant. 

Key dates to note

The closing date for applications is 31 August 2026.

Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm UK time. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browsers local time zone. 

As a world-leading research-intensive University, we are here to address tomorrow’s greatest challenges. Between now and 2030 we will do that with a values-led approach to teaching, research and innovation, and through the strength of our relationships, both locally and globally.