UE07: £41,064.00 - £48,822.00 Per Annum.
College of Science & Engineering / School of Engineering / Institute for Digital Communications (IDCOM)
Full time - 35 hours per week.
Fixed Term Contract: to April 2028.
The Opportunity:
Where curiosity becomes impact
With roles from hospitality to research, there’s a career for everyone at the University of Edinburgh. We can offer opportunities for you to develop in your career and make a real difference in the communities around us while contributing to the world at large.
We offer careers and roles in just about every area you can think of. Whether you are looking for entry-level, mid-career or roles at the top of your chosen specialism, we can offer you a career where you can flourish and make a real difference in the communities around us while contributing to the world at large. Our people come from a wide range of backgrounds, each bringing their abilities and experiences to our organisation.
The University isn’t just any employer. We are part of a local community and a contributor to global thinking, progress and research. In Edinburgh, you are in one of the world’s most attractive cities with active arts and social sectors, while working in a University that has made significant contributions to society, medicine, physics and teaching for over four centuries. Our people have helped create the modern world and are working on more ground-breaking technologies and practices. Join the University of Edinburgh and you’ll be making a difference to everything around you.
The University of Edinburgh is a world-class organisation. We look for the best in the field across all disciplines and provide a working environment where academics can develop their careers and passion for their chosen subject area. We offer the full range of academic roles and have a genuine focus on our students performance and wellbeing.
The University of Edinburgh is seeking a Grade 7 Research Associate (Academic) to contribute to an international programme developing and evaluating virtual physics laboratories to widen access to high-quality practical STEM learning in Northern Ghana. The role will work within a multidisciplinary team and with project partners in Ghana and internationally, addressing constraints such as limited laboratory infrastructure, intermittent internet connectivity, and device/power limitations.
You will take a defined lead role in the design, implementation, validation, and deployment of interactive, browser-based virtual laboratory experiences and associated learning activities. Core technologies are expected to include JavaScript/TypeScript, Vue.js, Three.js, WebGL, WebAssembly, and physics engines such as Rapier. You will contribute to robust software development practices (version control, testing, release management, and documentation), ensuring that simulations are scientifically rigorous, transparent about limitations, and usable on low-cost devices.
A key aspect of the post is supporting offline/low-connectivity delivery, for example packaging and deploying resources to standalone local hosting platforms, and adapting learning analytics or formative feedback approaches to work reliably in constrained environments. You will also contribute to participatory co-design with teachers and universities in Ghana, and to capacity building through training materials, templates, and practical documentation to support partner sustainability.
The post-holder will contribute to educational evaluation and evidence generation using methods already, or to be, developed in our wider remote laboratories research group. These include surveys and and the analysis of click data (e.g. using Python) and producing outputs suitable for reports, stakeholders, and academic dissemination (papers, conference presentations, workshops, and open resources as appropriate).
We are looking for a candidate with a PhD completed or near completion (or equivalent experience) in a relevant area, strong technical problem-solving ability, and demonstrated experience building interactive web-based applications or in developing science/engineering simulations. Excellent communication skills and the ability to work effectively across cultures and disciplines are essential.
Informal enquiries: Prof Timothy Drysdale (School of Engineering), timothy.drysdale@ed.ac.uk
People have always been at the heart of our work. As part of the University, you are a part of our community. We are looking for people with drive, determination, and a passion for what they do. We are a place where everyone is welcome and offer a range of policies and benefits designed to support you in building the right meaningful/personalised flexibility for you.
A career with us has a range of other benefits that can be tailored to your lifestyle:
Professional development and subject matter expertise
Leading-edge research
Excellent benefits and support
Contributing to the work and purpose of the University.
This post is full-time (35 hours per week); however, we are open to considering part-time or flexible working patterns. We are also open to considering requests for hybrid working (on a non-contractual basis) that combines a mix of remote and regular on-campus working.
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How to apply
Please include the following documents in your application:
- CV
- Cover letter
As a valued member of our team, you can expect:
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 Stonewall Scotland Diversity Champions, actively promoting LGBT equality.
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 16 June 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.
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