Job Description

Salary:

Research Assistant: £33,951 to £35,608 per annum (pro rata)

Research Associate: £36,636 per annum (pro rata)

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 23 August 2026

The Role

We are excited to launch a new opportunity for a Research Assistant/Associate to join us at the Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University. You will become part of a vibrant multidisciplinary academic community, working alongside researchers from a diverse range of disciplines and specialisms across public health, social care and health services research.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a multidisciplinary research team working on the NIHR funded RESPOND study: ‘ Developing reproductive health support to prevent early and unplanned pregnancy among care experienced young people’ The study aims to improve the reproductive health outcomes of care experienced young people. (CEYP) by co-developing an evidence-based intervention that prevents early and unplanned pregnancy within this population.

The RESPOND study consists of three interconnected work packages:

1. A systematic review to synthesise the body of evidence on effective interventions for preventing early and unplanned pregnancy among vulnerable young people.

2. A qualitative study to explore the experiences and perspectives of both delivering and receiving reproductive health support for care experienced young people.

3. Participatory co-production workshops involving care experienced young people and key stakeholders to develop a reproductive health intervention for CEYP that is feasible to implement within Children’s Social Care and relevant and responsive to the needs and experiences of CEYP.

This post offers an excellent opportunity for candidates to develop skills and experience across a range of research methods, including evidence synthesis, qualitative research and participatory approaches. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to innovative, policy-relevant and evidence-based research aimed at reducing health inequalities and improving outcomes for care experienced young people.

We are particularly keen to hear from candidates who have experience in applied health and social care research, including undertaking complex qualitative work and engaging with participants in sensitive contexts. The successful candidate will be able to manage research activities both independently and collaboratively, organise competing priorities, deliver high-quality outputs within deadlines, and work effectively across diverse academic and practice environments. Strong communication, relationship-building, academic writing, publication, and dissemination skills are essential to this role, including the ability to share research findings through peer-reviewed outlets.

As part of our commitment to career development for research colleagues, the University has developed 3 levels of Research Innovation Role Profiles.pdf These profiles set out firstly the generic competencies and responsibilities expected of role holders at each level and, secondly, the general qualifications and experiences needed for entry at a particular level.

Find out more about the Faculty of Medical Sciences here

Find out more about our Research Institutes here

At Newcastle University, we follow the Researcher Development Concordat: Researcher Development | Our Research | Newcastle University. We enable all colleagues to fulfil their research potential regardless of career stage. This commitment secures our thriving research culture and vibrant research environment. Our offer to each individual and their researcher development includes mentoring, annual research planning discussions, pooled research funding to support career development and research activities, peer review support for the development of research and innovation funding applications’.

We are committed to making the process accessible to everyone and can provide additional support to adjustments to meet your needs’

We want you to feel confident when applying for a position with Newcastle University. If you’d like an informal discussion to clarify any points, please contact abisola.balogun@newcastle.ac.uk

We are committed to making the process accessible to everyone and can provide additional support to adjustments to meet your needs.

This post is part time at 0.50 FTE, fixed term for a period for 19 months until 31.03.2028.

To apply for this role, we require a cover letter and CV. In the cover letter, you should outline how you meet the essential criteria listed in the job description.

Interviews will be arranged with advanced notice.

Key Accountabilities

Research Assistant

• Collect, analyse and interpret research data and draw conclusions on the outcomes
• Co-ordinate own work with that of others, use problem solving to affect the achievement of research objectives and contribute to the planning of the project(s)
• Present information on research progress and outcomes to a Principal Investigator or groups overseeing the research project
• Write up results from own research activity and provide input into the research project’s dissemination, in whatever form (report, papers, chapters, books)
• Use research resources (including, where required, laboratories, workshops and specialist equipment) as appropriate

Research Associate

• Contribute ideas, including enhancements to the technical or methodological aspects of the project
• Determine appropriate methodologies for research
• Assess research findings for the need/scope for further investigations
• Contribute to the writing up of the research and its dissemination, either through seminar and conference presentations or through publications
• Present research findings, either at conferences or through publications in reputable outlets appropriate to the discipline
• Contribute to grant applications submitted by others and develop own research objectives and proposals for funding

The Person

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

Research Assistant

• Demonstrable ability to or experience of conducting high quality research in applied health and/or social care
• Demonstrable ability to or experience conducting sensitive interviews
• Demonstrable ability to work in a range of health and social care settings and situations
• Ability to carry out research project work within agreed timelines, meeting project milestones and producing research to an appropriate standard
• Attention to detail and ability to work at high levels of accuracy
• Ability to present complex information effectively to a range of audiences
• Proven ability to analyse data and write-up results
• Experience of working collaboratively with colleagues
• Excellent IT skills in all major office applications
• The ability to use personal initiative and creativity to solve research problems

In addition for Research Associate

• Awareness of the research environment
• High level of analytical and problem-solving capacity
• Ability to communicate complex information with clarity
• Experience of presentations at conferences and/or in high quality publications

Attributes and Behaviour

• Commitment to working positively as a member of a multi-skilled research team
• Ability to negotiate and prioritise multiple, competing responsibilities and to work to deadlines
• Commitment to continued professional development
• Understanding of good practice in equality, inclusion and diversity

Qualifications

Research Assistant

• Honours degree in (a relevant discipline or relevant professional qualification (e.g., social work, public health, psychology, nursing, midwifery)

In addition for Research Associate

• PhD in a relevant subject (e.g., social work, public health, psychology, nursing, midwifery)

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a Gold Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality. We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC. We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe.

Requisition ID: 29642

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