Post-Doctoral Researcher, School of Public Health

36 months, Fixed-Term, Whole-time Post

Position Summary

Applications are invited from highly motivated and suitably qualified candidates for a 36-month whole-time Postdoctoral post in the Food Policy Research Team, Centre for Health and Diet Research in the School of Public Health, UCC. The Centre for Health and Diet Research provides a national focal point for public health nutrition research in the Republic of Ireland. The mission of the centre is to develop a sustainable national inter-institutional and interagency consortium, focused on promoting the health and wellbeing of the Irish population by producing and effectively disseminating high-quality evidence to guide practice and policy in the area of public health nutrition. 

The successful candidate will be required to perform, coordinate and support research activities on a European funded project to explore Food systems and policy pathways for equal population nutrition in Europe.  This post offers an exciting opportunity to join the Food Policy Research Team under the supervision of Dr Janas Harrington and to collaborate with colleagues from a number of European countries. Day-to-day activities include but are not limited to:

•          Conducting literature reviews and synthesizing scientific content

•          Coordinating participant recruitment and data collection

•          Performing data analyses, interpreting results and presenting those data

•          Contributing to scientific manuscripts, reports, and presentations

•          Identifying opportunities for knowledge exchange and dissemination to diverse audiences

•          Leading or assisting with the planning and execution of workshops, seminars, meetings, and webinars

•          Helping in the development of funding applications to address emergent research priorities

This study will take a mixed methods approach.  Experience in designing and analysing both qualitative and quantitative research studies is essential. 

Experience engaging in collaborative research with stakeholder groups including consumers, food producers, health professionals and/or policy makers is essential. The appointee will be expected to support research assistants and other junior members of the team. The successful candidate will report directly to and work closely with the Principal Investigator, Dr Janas Harrington. The successful candidate will interact regularly with expert collaborators. Additionally, the researcher will be encouraged to initiate and develop their own projects and will have the opportunity to travel to national scientific conferences to present research results. Applicants should hold a PhD degree in public health nutrition or a related discipline. Experience in food policy research and a knowledge and understanding of the challenges related to food systems would be desirable. The successful candidate will be expected to carry out research using a variety of methods and so should be proficient in collecting and analysing qualitative and/or quantitative data. Experience in mixed methods research would be desirable. Candidates must demonstrate strong organizational, planning, oral and written communication skills, scientific writing, and project management skills. The successful applicant must be a self-starter who is comfortable taking initiative and who can play a major role in completing.

Project Title: Food systems and policy pathways for equal population nutrition in Europe (FOODPATH) 

Post Duration: 36 months

Salary:  €42,781 - €49,177 (PD1) p.a. IUA Salary Scale

For an information package including further details of the post see https://ore.ucc.ie/.  

Informal enquiries can be made in confidence to Dr Janas Harrington  Senior Lecturer, School of Public Health; Email: [email protected]  

Applications must be submitted online via the University College Cork vacancy portal (https://ore.ucc.ie/). Queries relating to the online application process should be referred to [email protected], quoting the job-title and project name.

Candidates should apply, in confidence, before 12 noon (Irish Local Time) on Friday, 15th March 2024.

No late applications will be accepted.

Please note that an appointment to posts advertised will be dependent on University approval, together with the terms of the employment control framework for the higher education sector.

UCC is committed to creating and fully embracing an inclusive environment where diversity is celebrated.  As a University we strive to create a workplace that reflects the diversity of our student population where people from a wide variety of backgrounds learn from one another, share ideas, and work collaboratively. UCC is committed to being an employer that recognises the value of diversity amongst its staff.  We encourage applicants to consult our policies at https://www.ucc.ie/en/edi/policies/ and initiatives at https://www.ucc.ie/en/edi/implementation/ and we welcome applications from everyone, including those who are underrepresented in the protected characteristics set out in our Equal Opportunities & Diversity Policy. 

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE CORK IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES EMPLOYER