Assistant Editor (PhD holder) - Materials Science/Engineering

MDPI UK; Manchester; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading academic publishing company in Manchester seeks an Assistant Editor to support the editorial process for academic journals. Candidates should possess a PhD in a materials science related field and have excellent English and MS Office skills. This full-time position offers training and opportunities for career development in a dynamic environment.

Benefits

Competitive salary and quarterly bonus scheme

10% pay rise after probation for PhD holders

Flexible working hours

Special paid days off

Friendly working environment with office snacks and events

Health cash plan with Bupa

Cyclescheme for bike savings

Techscheme for tech equipment savings

Qualifications

• Must have a PhD degree in a relevant field.
• Excellent English skills required.
• Advanced MS Office skills are essential.

Responsibilities

• Support the editorial process for academic journals.
• Organise peer-review process for manuscripts.
• Collaborate with the editorial and production teams.

Skills

Excellent written and spoken English skills

Advanced knowledge of MS Office applications

Strong organisational and time-management skills

Team player with capability to work in a dynamic environment

Detail oriented with capacity to see the big picture

Very good communication and coordination skills

Education

PhD degree in a field related to materials science

Job description

Assistant Editor (Full‑time, Manchester)

To strengthen our Editorial team, we are looking for recent PhD graduates who are eager to stay connected to scientific research by helping researchers worldwide publish their latest results.

This full‑time in‑office role is based in our city centre office next to Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester.

As Assistant Editor you will

• Support the editorial process for academic research journals in your domain of expertise
• Organise peer‑review process for submitted manuscripts and coordinate editorial decisions
• Handle email communication between the parties involved in the publication process
• Collaborate with other members of the editorial team and production team
• Ensure that scholarly articles are accurately edited and published according to tight deadlines with a high degree of consistency

Requirements

• A PhD degree in a field related to materials science (e.g., Materials Science and Engineering, Materials physics, Materials chemistry, Material forming and control engineering, Metallurgical engineering, Inorganic non‑metallic materials engineering, Polymer materials, Gemstone and material technology, Nanomaterials and technology, Composite Materials and Engineering, Chemistry, Applied chemistry, Mechanical Engineering, Mechanical design, manufacturing and automation, Mechanical and electronic Engineering, Process equipment and control engineering, Measurement and control technology and instruments).
• Excellent written and spoken English skills.
• Advanced knowledge of MS Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Team player with the capability to work in a dynamic, international environment.
• Detail oriented with the capacity to see the big picture.
• Strong organisational and time‑management skills.
• Very good communication and coordination skills.

The career trajectory of this role includes work at conferences, visiting scholars, and marketing events. Applicants should be interested in working face‑to‑face with the scholarly community and be passionate about promoting open access.

As a successful candidate, you will receive full training in editorial work, working closely with Managing Editors and learning how to process research articles from submission to publication. Training supervised by an assigned tutor will take place on the job during the first six months. Depending on your background, you will be assigned to work on journals related to your field of study or research. No previous editorial experience is required; however, a familiarity with the academic editorial process is an advantage. This is a great opportunity to start a first job in a dynamic multinational company which offers a range of career‑development options to talented, enthusiastic, and hard‑working people.

If you are interested in this position, we look forward to receiving your application. We look forward to welcoming you to our Manchester office.

What We Offer

• A competitive salary, including our quarterly bonus scheme, which rewards high‑performing editors.
• 10% pay rise after passing the six‑month probation period (for PhD holders, 5% for Master’s holders).
• Focused support from your group leader, who is your first point of contact for any issues.
  • Flexible working times – You are able to start work anytime between 7–9 am and finish between 3–6 pm.
  • Special days off – Getting married or moving house? No need to use up your holidays; MDPI offers paid time off for such occasions.
  • Our culture – A friendly working environment with monthly lunch parties, office snacks and seasonal events.
  • Bonus incentives – Depending on your role, you may be eligible for one of our bonus schemes which rewards high‑performing employees.
  • Perkbox – You will have access to our benefit platform called Perkbox, which provides a range of discounts and benefits across various retailers.
  • Health cash plan – After passing probation, employees are enrolled into our private health membership with Bupa. You can claim money back on dental, doctors, and prescriptions among many other health services.
  • Modern city‑centre office – Located next to Piccadilly Gardens, our office is a 10‑minute walk from both Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Oxford Road train stations, with tram stops outside the building.
  • Cyclescheme – Save between 25–39% on a bike and accessories.
  • Techscheme – Save up to 10% on tax when purchasing tech equipment from places such as Ikea and Currys.

About MDPI

A pioneer in scholarly open‑access publishing, MDPI has supported academic communities since 1996. Our mission is to foster open scientific exchange in all forms, across all disciplines. We operate more than 400 diverse, peer‑reviewed, open access journals supported by over 6600 academic editors. We serve scholars from around the world to ensure the latest research is openly and broadly available.

MDPI is headquartered in Switzerland with additional offices in Europe, Asia and North America. We are committed to ensuring that high‑quality research is made available as quickly as possible. We also support sustainability projects, with sustainability as a key theme in many journals and through the MDPI Sustainability Foundation.

Initiatives

• https://www.mdpi.com/
• https://sciprofiles.com/
• https://sciforum.net/
• https://www.scilit.net/
• https://www.preprints.org/
• https://encyclopedia.pub/