Research Assistant (Fixed Term)

Location: University Park

Salary: £31,387 to £34,866 per annum pro-rata depending on skills and experience. Salary progression beyond this scale is subject to performance.

We seek a predoctoral research assistant to join the Humphries’ group at the University of Nottingham on the Innovate UK-funded project “GEMINI: Platform Informatics For Data-driven Neuromodulation”. A crucial unmet need in the management of Parkinson’s disease is how to reliably identify patients that would benefit from deep brain stimulation, the most effective treatment for Parkinson’s. In collaboration with Machine Medicine Technologies and St George’s Hospital, London, we are developing a machine-learning/AI platform that synthesises wide-ranging personal and clinical data to predict the suitability of each Parkinson’s disease patient for deep brain stimulation.

You will co-develop the machine learning pipeline, seeking the best way to predict improvements in the patients’ motor symptoms and quality of life. You will test the pipeline on new clinical data from St George’s.

You will have some experience in machine learning and good programming skills in Matlab and/or Python. You will have an undergraduate degree or MSc in a quantitative discipline. Some knowledge of brain MRI data would be a bonus, but not essential.

The Humphries’ group researches fundamental insights into how the joint activity of neurons encodes actions in the world and is disrupted in movement disorders (https://www.humphries-lab.org). We draw on and develop a wide range of computational approaches to data, including unsupervised machine learning, network theory, and dynamical systems theory. The group is part of a major research centre in computational neuroscience at the University of Nottingham, which includes the teams of Professors Mark van Rossum (Psychology), Stephen Coombes (Mathematical Sciences), and Markus Kaiser (Medicine).

The post is offered on a fixed term contract for 6 months. Hours of work are full-time (36.25 hours per week); however applications are also welcome from candidates wishing to work part-time (minimum 21.75 hours per week). Please specify in your application if you wish to work part time and the number of preferred hours.

Requests for secondment from internal candidates may be considered on the basis that prior agreement has been sought from both your current line manager and the manager of your substantive post, if you are already undertaking a secondment role.

Interview expenses cannot be reimbursed for this position. 

We cannot provide visa sponsorship for this position. 

Informal enquiries may be addressed to Professor Mark Humphries, mark.humphries@nottingham.ac.uk. Please note that applications sent directly to this email address will not be accepted.

Further details:

We are delighted to share that we are the first university to have achieved Athena Swan Gold Award.

We want you to succeed in our recruitment process and have published Candidate Guidance for you to access information and support on application and interview process.

We offer a range of benefits, visit Your Benefits website to learn what we can offer you.

We welcome applications from UK, Europe and from across the globe and we want to make your transition to living in the UK as smooth as possible. Visit the Moving to Nottingham page to find out more.

Your application will be considered on an equal basis, subject to the relevant permission to work in the UK as set out by UK Visas & Immigration.

Closing Date: Wednesday 04 December 2024

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