Graduate Research Assistant

Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy 

This new full-time post is available immediately on a fixed term basis until 30th August 2024.

The post  

We are seeking to appoint an enthusiastic Graduate Research Assistant to participate in the project “Clinical and Economic Optimisation Platform for Type 1 Diabetes Screening” which is funded by the JDRF, a global organisation funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research. It is a collaborative project led by the University of Colorado, and which includes a team at the University of Exeter.  

The project’s overall aim is to develop a comprehensive, user-friendly, and publicly available clinical and economic T1D screening platform to inform global public health adoption and therapeutic investment decisions. Identifying people at risk of developing type 1 diabetes can help avoid life-threatening complications. Without early identification the consequences are severe, including considerable cost and health consequences for patients and families.  

The project brings together a group of global experts to combine multiple sources of evidence in one user-friendly web-based platform that identifies the most cost-effective screening strategies. In order to deliver on the transformative objectives of this project, this research post at Exeter will focus on building and adapting prediction models for genetic risk scores, along with their model calibration via multi-objective optimisation and software tool integration. 

This post is available immediately to 30th August 2024, subject to the annual funding reactivation applied to awards funded by the JDRF.  

The successful applicant will work closely with Professors Jonathan Fieldsend (Professor of Computational Intelligence and Turing Fellow) and Richard Oram (Associate Professor and Diabetes UK Harry Keen Fellow) and their groups. The role will include work on model development and calibration, along with developing the optimisation framework, and collaboration with team members in the United States. A good knowledge of R and the Shiny package, and the ability to write and develop scripts as well as modify and implement open source or published code is essential. 

About you 

Applicants will possess at least a BSc (preferably an MSc) or equivalent qualification/experience in a related field of study (e.g. Bioinformatics, Computer Science, Mathematics or Statistics). Applicants will be able to develop and calibrate/optimise prediction models, engineer software tools and collaborate effectively with an interdisciplinary and international team of researchers. 

Please ensure you read the Job Description and Person Specification for full details of this role by clicking on the attachment. 

What we can offer you 

• Freedom (and the support) to pursue your intellectual interests and to work creatively across disciplines to produce internationally exciting research; 

• Support teams that understand the University wide research and teaching goals and partner with our academics accordingly  
• An Innovation, Impact and Business directorate that works closely with our academics providing specialist support for external engagement and development 
• Our Exeter Academic initiative supporting high performing academics to achieve their potential and develop their career 
• A multitude of staff benefits including sector leading benefits around maternity, adoption and shared parental leave (up to 26 weeks full pay), Paternity leave (up to 6 weeks full pay), and a new Fertility Treatment Policy 
• A beautiful campus set in the heart of stunning Devon 

The University of Exeter  

We are a member of the prestigious Russell Group of research-intensive universities and in the top 150 universities in the world (Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2022 and QS World University Ranking 2022). We combine world-class teaching with world-class research, achieving a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework Award 2017. 

Our research income in recent years means we’re the fastest growing UK Research University with some of the world’s most influential scientists, and we seek to answer some of the most fundamental issues facing humankind today through this. 98% of our research is of international quality (2014 Research Excellence Framework). We encourage proactive engagement with industry, business and community partners to enhance the impact of research and education and improve the employability of our students. Read about our world leading research – Green Futures and how we are transforming education for a changing world. We are located in a beautiful part of the country and Exeter (a fast growing tech hub) is one of only a few UK cities to have been designated as a UNESCO Creative City   

Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Commitment 

With over 27,000 students and 6,400 staff from 180 different countries we offer a diverse and engaging environment where our diversity is celebrated and valued as a major strength. We are committed to creating an inclusive culture where all members of our community are supported to thrive; where diverse voices are heard through our engagement with evidence-based charter frameworks for gender (Athena SWAN), race equality (Race Equality Charter Mark), LGBTQ+ inclusion (Stonewall Diversity Champion) and as a Disability Confident employer. Whilst all applicants will be judged on merit alone, we particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented within our working community. Reasonable adjustments are available for interviews and workplaces. 

For further information please contact Prof. Jonathan Fieldsend and Prof. Richard Oram, e-mail [email protected] and [email protected] or telephone (01392) 722090 or (01392) 406819.  

The closing date for completed applications is 5th December 2022.  Interviews are expected to take place a week or so after this closing date.