Research Assistant

Research Assistant: (Company Name - Subscribers only)

Research Assistant in Rheumatoid Arthritis

COLLEGE OF MEDICAL VETERINARY & LIFE SCIENCES

SCHOOL OF INFECTION & IMMUNITY

Research and Teaching

GRADE 6

Job Purpose

We are seeking to appoint an experienced Research Assistant to work within the research area of rheumatoid arthritis at the School of Infection and Immunity, (Company Name - Subscribers only), under the supervision of Principle Investigator (PI) Dr Carmen Huesa.

The post will focus on investigating inhibition of stablished pathways in inflammatory arthritis and requires extensive knowledge and practical experience with in vivo models of inflammatory arthritis, immunology, cell culture and analysis of immune responses at both the cellular and molecular levels.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Perform the following activities in conjunction with and under the guidance of the Principal/Co Investigator:

1. Plan and conduct of assigned research individually or jointly in accordance with the project deliverables and the group research strategy.

2. Document research output including analysis and interpretation of all data, maintaining records and databases, drafting progress reports and papers as appropriate.

3. Develop and enhance your research profile and reputation and that of The (Company Name - Subscribers only), including contributing to publications of international quality in high profile/quality refereed publications, enhancing the research impact in terms of economic/societal benefit, and gathering indicators of esteem.

4. Contribute to the presentation of work at international and national conferences, at internal and external seminars, colloquia and workshops to develop and enhance our research profile.

5. Contribute to the identification of potential funding sources and to assist in the development of proposals to secure funding from internal and external bodies to support future research.

6. Collaborate with colleagues and participate in team/ group/ meetings/ seminars/ workshops across the research Group/School/College/University and wider community.

7. Contribute to the organisation, supervision, mentoring and training of undergraduate and/or postgraduate students and less experienced members of the project team to ensure their effective development.

8. Perform administrative tasks related to the activities of the research group and School, including Budgets/Expenditure.

9. Carry out modest Teaching activities (e.g. demonstrating etc) and associated admin as assigned by the Head of School and in consultation with Principal Investigator.

10. Keep up to date with current knowledge and recent advances in the field/discipline.

11. Engage in continuing professional development activities as appropriate.

12. Undertake any other reasonable duties as required by the Head of School.

13. Contribute to the enhancement of the University’s international profile in line with the University’s Strategic Plan – World Changers Together

Please note that as part of your application you must address and demonstrate how you meet EACH of the essential / desirable criteria. If you do not address each criterion in the format explained above, you will not be shortlisted for interview.

Knowledge / Qualifications

Essential:

A1. Scottish Credit and Qualification level 10 (Honours degree or equivalent) in Immunology, Microbiology, Parasitology or Virology. May be working towards a post-graduate qualification such as a Masters (Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 11) or PhD (Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 12).

A2. Practical knowledge of models of immunity, including techniques for experimental intervention and evaluation of in vivo responses.

Skills

Essential:

C1. A comprehensive and up-to-date knowledge in vivo models of inflammatory arthritis.

C2. Research creativity and cross-discipline collaborative ability as appropriate

C3. Excellent communication skills [oral and written], including public presentations and ability to communicate complex data/concepts clearly and concisely

C4. Excellent interpersonal skills including team working and a collegiate approach

C5. Appropriate workload/time/project/budget/people management skills

C6. Extensive IT and data analysis/interpretation skills as appropriate

C7. Self-motivation, initiative and independent thought/working

C8. Problem solving skills including a flexible and pragmatic approach

Desirable:

D1. Excellent skills in in vivo models of inflammatory arthritis, including in vivo imaging. This also requires experience in colony management, an in-depth knowledge of relevant legislation and home office reporting

D2. Skills in handling RNA, RT-PCR amplification, and analysis

D3. Skills in isolation and culture of primary cells

D4. Skills in protein modification and purification techniques

D5. Experience of antibody engineering design and testing

Experience

Essential:

E1. Sufficient depth of relevant research experience in a related field, demonstrated through relevant work experience

E2. Experience with models of immunity and/or inflammation

E3. Experience in in vivo technique development and training

E4. Experience with immunological techniques such as cell isolation, flow cytometry, antibody staining and tissue culture of cells.

E5. Proven ability to deliver quality outputs in a timely and efficient manner

E6. A track record of presentation and publication of research results in quality journals/conferences

E8. Ability to demonstrate a degree of independence as illustrated by identification of project objectives from assessment of the literature, design and analysis of experiments and drafting of papers

Desirable:

F1. Experience with tissue/cell storage and database management

F2. Experience of making a leading contribution in academic activities such as supervision of undergraduate and postgraduate students.

F3. Experience in undertaking independent research.

Informal enquiries should be directed to Dr Carmen Huesa via email carmen.huesa@glasgow.ac.uk

Terms and Conditions

Salary will be Grade 6, £33,232 – £36,924 per annum pro rata.

This post is part time (17.5 hours per week) and fixed term for up to 9 months.

The (Company Name - Subscribers only) has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK. If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.