Research Fellow (x3 posts)

About us

The Department of Anthropology at UCL is a research-led department with an international reputation, offering innovative teaching programmes at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels in both Bloomsbury and at UCL East.

The department is one of only a few broad-based anthropology departments in the UK comprising five sub-sections: Evolutionary and Environmental Anthropology, Social Anthropology, Material Culture, Medical Anthropology, and Public Anthropology.

UCL Anthropology is committed to prioritising issues of equality and social inclusion across all its activities.

About the role

We have an exciting opportunity for three Research Fellows to work on a research project that can make a significant impact. This project employs a mixed-methods program of community-based participatory research to illuminate the racialised public health burden of incarceration on families and communities in Latin America.

Whilst the fellowships are based in London, you will be expected to spend significant periods (approx. 9 months) of ethnographic fieldwork in one of the study sites, Colombia, Mexico, or Puerto Rico, under the mentorship of the Principal Investigator.

For informal enquiries, please contact Dr Caroline Parker.

If you need reasonable adjustments or a more accessible format to apply for this job online or have any queries regarding the application process, please contact the HR Department.

The roles will be available starting September 2025 and funded by the Wellcome Trust for four years.

About you

You will hold a PhD in anthropology, medical anthropology, medical sociology, or a related field combined with fluent or bilingual Spanish. You must also have proven experience in conducting extended ethnographic research on topics related to incarceration, racism, and health inequality in Latin America. Additionally, expertise in at least one of the following areas is necessary: Latin American prisons, the health and social effects of incarceration, coloniality, race formation, racism in Latin America, and racial health disparities. We also require evidence of a developing record of high-quality academic publications and a proven ability to meet writing deadlines for collaborative publications.

Please ensure that you submit a supporting statement as part of your application in addition to a CV and that you address each of the essential criteria in your application. When we shortlist, applications are scored according to how they meet each of the essential criteria.

These roles meet the eligibility requirements for a skilled worker certificate of sponsorship or a global talent visa under UK Visas and Immigration legislation. Therefore, UCL welcomes applications from international applicants who require a visa.

What we offer

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits; visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/reward-and-benefits to find out more.

This appointment is subject to UCL Terms and Conditions of Service for Research and Professional Services Staff. Please visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/human-resources/conditions-service-research-teaching-and-professional-services-staff for more information.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

As London’s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. 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 currently underrepresented in UCL’s workforce. These include: people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds, disabled people, LGBTQ+ people, and women (for our grade 9 and 10 roles).

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