Research Fellow

About us

The Department of Speech, Hearing and Phonetic Sciences (www.ucl.ac.uk/pals/research/speech-hearing-and-phonetic-sciences) is held in high regard for its research into the perception and production of speech, hearing for speech, and applied research in speech signal processing. We currently have 10 members of academic staff, and are within the Division of Psychology and Language Sciences (www.ucl.ac.uk/pals) and the Faculty of Brain Sciences.

About the role

The postholder will carry out research for the ESRC research grant "Quantifying Phonetic Input in First- and Second-language Speech Learning" under the direction of Prof. Paul Iverson. This grant is developing a new microphone-array wearable audio recorder to measure acoustic-phonetic input to babies and adults, then linking this input to the development of speech perception as assessed by EEG. The post is primarily focused on the development of the recorder, creating AI techniques to examine input, and open-source dissemination of the code. It will also involve EEG testing and analysis, including infant testing.

The starting salary for this position at Grade 7 is £43,124 per annum ( including London Allowance). Appointment at Grade 7 is dependent upon having been awarded a PhD; if this is not the case, initial appointment will be at Research Assistant Grade 6B salary with payment at Grade 7 being backdated to the date of final submission of the PhD thesis.

The position is available for two years in the first instance. The proposed start date is February 2025.

A DBS clearance is required for this position.

About you

The successful candidate must have a PhD in Speech Science, Phonetics, Linguistics, Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience, Computer Science, or a related field. They should also have experience with advanced programming and scripting; experience with testing human subjects; experience with acoustic analysis of speech or auditory signal processing; conscientious with a good attention to detail. Effective written and verbal communication skills; and experience of working in a research environment are also essential for this role.

What we offer

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits some of which are below:
• 41 Days holiday (27 days annual leave 8 bank holiday and 6 closure days)
• Additional 5 days’ annual leave purchase scheme
• Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)
• Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan
• Immigration loan
• Relocation scheme for certain posts
• On-Site nursery
• On-site gym
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay
• Employee assistance programme: Staff Support Service
• Discounted medical insurance Visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/reward-and-benefits to find out more.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

As London’s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world’s talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in UCL’s workforce. These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women.

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