Centre Director, MRC UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff

Centre Director, MRC UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff
Chair in Neuroscience, Clinical or Non-Clinical

Cardiff University and the MRC UK Dementia Research Institute (DRI) are seeking to appoint an outstanding established academic to a new Chair in Neuroscience and to leadership of the MRC UK DRI Centre within the School of Medicine at Cardiff. The tenured appointment will be made at the level of Clinical or non-Clinical Professor.

We are looking for an Internationally recognised scientist working in any area relevant to the overarching mission of MRC UK DRI, “To improve understanding of disease mechanisms and identify therapeutic targets for dementia and other forms of neurodegeneration”. This includes the biology of behavioural and psychiatric features of dementia.

The MRC UK DRI is a National MRC Institute led by Professor Siddharthan Chandran that comprises eight Centres in the UK, each led by a Centre Director, across our six host University partners; University College London, University of Cambridge, Cardiff University, University of Edinburgh, Imperial College London and King's College London. The underpinning objective of the UK DRI is to transform through discovery research the outlook for people living with or at risk of dementias and related neurodegenerative disorders. Our principal funder is the MRC. Additional major funding partners include the British Heart Foundation, LifeArc, Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Research UK.

The UK DRI at Cardiff University is based in the university’s flagship Hadyn Ellis Building and comprises eight Group Leaders, two Emerging Leaders and numerous Fellows, Associates and Co-Investigators. Current research includes a broad portfolio spanning large scale genetic studies, state-of-the-art bioinformatics and ‘omics, disease modelling in rodents, flies and iPS brain cells, in-depth analysis of disease mechanism and exploitation of mechanistic findings for development of new approaches to testing and treatment in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.

The UK DRI at Cardiff sits at the core of an exceptional local neuroscience community, including:

• World-leading brain imaging at CUBRIC (https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/cardiff-university-brain-research-imaging-centre) and PETIC (https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/wales-research-diagnostic-pet-imaging-centre);
• Innovation for intracranial cell and drug therapy in the BRAIN Unit (https://brain.wales/);
• Novel approaches to neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disease drug discovery at MDI (https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/medicines-discovery);
• Internationally leading Psychiatric research at CNGG and NMHII (https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/centre-neuropsychiatric-genetics-genomics/research; https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/neuroscience-mental-health/research);
• Outstanding neuroinflammation research at SIURI (https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/systems-immunity)

The Post

The Centre Director will be a member of the MRC UK DRI Senior Leadership Team. They will, with the National Director and Directors of other Centres, set the overall scientific direction and vision for UK DRI in the broad area of “Understanding disease mechanisms and identifying therapeutic targets for dementia and other forms of neurodegeneration” with the overarching objective of driving research excellence and capitalising on the strategic strengths in Cardiff. They will also direct their own internationally competitive research programme in dementia or neurodegeneration and be a scientific leader within the UK DRI community, contributing to the success and growth of the UK DRI as a single National MRC Institute.

As a Cardiff University Professor, The Director will contribute to a thriving community at the very forefront of world-leading research and teaching. Their research programme will contribute to the broader work of the School of Medicine and they will have the opportunity to teach on relevant courses.

In the event that the appointee is a Clinical Academic, we anticipate supporting them to maintain their clinical skills and will work with one of our local NHS partners to facilitate this.

Cardiff University offers many excellent benefits, including 45 days annual leave (incl bank holidays), local pension scheme, a cycle to work scheme and other travel initiatives, annual increments within the pay scale, and more. It is an exciting and vibrant place to work, with many different challenges and is a proud Living Wage supporter.

The post is full time, open-ended and available immediately.

Salary: The successful candidate will be paid at a point to be negotiated on the appropriate Cardiff University Pay Scale based on their qualifications, skills and experience.

Further information about the role can be found at https://www.ukdri.ac.uk/vacancies/centre-director-uk-dri-cardiff

For informal enquiries please contact: Prof Paul Morgan, Interim Director, UK DRI at Cardiff University on MorganBP@cardiff.ac.uk

For applicants applying for the post as Clinical Professor, please note the job description will require approval from the relevant Royal College (dependent upon speciality of successful candidate).

Closing date: Thursday, 20 March 2025

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds. We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age. In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Cardiff University is a signatory to the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), which means that in hiring and promotion decisions we will evaluate applicants on the quality of their research, not publication metrics or the identity of the journal in which the research is published. More information is available at: Responsible research assessment - Research - Cardiff University