Qualitative Research Associate

Newcastle University; North East; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 37,000; Full time

Job summary

A reputable institution in the UK seeks a motivated Qualitative Research Associate to lead qualitative data analysis for a project transforming Parkinson's care in Africa. Ideal candidates have a PhD in social sciences, experience in health research, and strong communication skills. This fixed-term position offers a competitive salary and benefits, including a generous holiday package.

Benefits

Generous holiday package

Pension schemes

Health and wellbeing initiatives

Qualifications

• Experience of qualitative research on health and illness.
• Published qualitative research in peer-reviewed journals.
• Ability to communicate complex information clearly.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate qualitative data analysis for a large study.
• Support early career researchers in Africa with analysis.
• Develop and carry out specified research projects.

Skills

Qualitative research

Analytical skills

Communication

Education

PhD in social sciences or related

Honours degree in relevant subject

Job description

Salary: £35,608.00 - £36,636.00 per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 5 October 2025

The Role

We are seeking an enthusiastic and highly motivated qualitative researcher with a background in social science research for a position as a Qualitative Research Associate within the Population Health Sciences Institute. Your role will be to work on the NIHR funded project, Transforming Parkinson\'s Care in Africa (TraPCAf). The role will involve working on the study\'s qualitative work package and community engagement and involvement activities, specifically taking a lead on coordinating the analysis of qualitative data from multiple study sites (up to 600 interviews), drafting outputs for publication and dissemination and supporting early career researchers in Africa through the analysis process. The project you will work on is an NIHR Global Health Research Group, with the aim of transforming Parkinson\'s disease diagnosis, treatment and care across seven African countries.

You will be an experienced qualitative researcher with a PhD in the field of social science and global health research and may have experience of Parkinson\'s disease research and/or chronic disease research in the context of low- and middle-income countries. You will be comfortable working independently and as part of a team, including across disciplines and countries. You will have experience of assuming responsibility for tasks/activities within research projects and be interested in supporting and mentoring junior researchers. You will have successfully published high quality, peer-reviewed publications. You will have excellent communication skills, and experience of using these across the entire research process and with parties and stakeholder groups involved in the study.

This post is fixed term 100% FTE until 31st August 2026

For informal enquiries contact: Dr [e-mail] or Professor [e-mail]

Find out more about the Faculty of Medical Sciences here: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/medical-sciences/

Find out more about our Research Institutes here: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/medical-sciences/research/institutes/

As part of our commitment to career development for research colleagues, the University has developed 3 levels of research role profiles. These profiles set out firstly the generic competences and responsibilities expected of role holders at each level and secondly the general qualifications and experiences needed for entry at a particular level.

Key Accountabilities

• Although working under the general guidance of an academic or Principal Investigator, the postholder will contribute ideas, including enhancements to the technical or methodological aspects of their studies, thus providing substantial \'added value\'
• Develop and carry out the specified project using appropriate techniques and equipment as outlined in the personal requirements
• Determine appropriate methodologies for research, with advice and support where required
• Contribute to grant applications submitted by others and in time develop own research objectives and proposals for funding
• Begin to write, with appropriate support, proposals for individual research funding or, where funders do not permit this, contribute to the writing of collective bids
• Assess research findings for the need/scope for further investigations
• Contribute to the writing up of their research for publication and dissemination, either through seminar and conference presentations or through publications
• Present research findings, either at conferences or through publications in reputable outlets appropriate to the discipline
• May be involved in the supervision, with guidance, of final year undergraduate research projects and in providing support to postgraduate research students or Research Assistants
• Will need to work with the support staff and, on occasions, with undergraduate and postgraduate students, and interact intellectually with other academic members of the Institute.
• May contribute to events celebrating the public engagement of science/social sciences/humanities
• Develop an awareness of University structures, policies and procedures and relevant issues in the higher education, research, social and political environment
• Take a lead role in analysis and writing up of qualitative data for peer reviewed publications, presenting data at group meetings and conferences, and preparing feedback for participants
• Make decisions about the day-to-day running of the work, in discussion with other members of the qualitative research team as required
• Work with the community engagement and involvement lead in activities across sites, which will include working with existing support groups

The Person (Essential)

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

Essential

• Ability to work well as part of a team and rapidly acquire new skills
• Detailed subject knowledge (PI to describe subject knowledge required) in the area of research
• Likelihood of advanced skills directly related to the research projects
• High level of analytical and problem-solving capability
• Ability to communicate complex information with clarity and to encourage the commitment of others
• Experience of research with clear transferable skills and some experience or awareness of the research environment
• Presentations at conferences and/or high-quality publications
• Experience of qualitative research on health and illness
• Experience of publishing qualitative research as first or last author in peer-reviewed journals
• Excellent verbal communication and interpersonal skills

Desirable

• Experience of global health research or research on Parkinson\'s disease within sub-Saharan Africa
• Previous involvement with patients, carers, advocacy groups and patient support groups
• Experience of working with older people (in research, clinical, caring or voluntary capacity

Attributes and Behaviour

Essential

• Good inter-personal skills with an ability to work well within a multidisciplinary team
• Ability to work well with multi-country partners
• Excellent organisational skills
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Ability to travel as required for networking meetings and conferences
• Willingness to work flexibly (e.g., balancing remote and face-to-face working as appropriate and agreed with line manager)

Qualifications

• A PhD in social sciences, psychology, gerontology, international development, global health, or related subject
• Honours degree in relevant subject (desirable)

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality. We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC. We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe.

Requisition ID: 28568

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