Research Assistant

University of Glasgow; Glasgow; On-site; GBP 34,000 - 38,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

41 days of leave (full-time)

Flexible working

Health and wellbeing support

Job summary

The University of Glasgow is seeking a Research Assistant for the SCN1A Horizons study. You will conduct neuropsychology visits with participants and caregivers, perform neurodevelopmental assessments, and work under supervision of a Consultant Paediatric Neuropsychologist. Travel across Scotland and North England is required.

You will contribute to data collection, analysis, and dissemination, and support training and mentoring of team members within a multidisciplinary UK-wide study.

Qualifications

• A1/SCQF Level 10 honours degree in a relevant subject or cognate discipline.
• Up-to-date knowledge of child cognitive development.

Responsibilities

• Plan and conduct assigned research according to project strategy.
• Conduct cognitive assessments with children and young people.
• Travel to clinical/research sites across Scotland as required.
• Document research outputs and maintain records/databases.
• Contribute to publications in international journals and research profile.

Skills

Willingness to travel

Research creativity

Communication skills

Interpersonal skills

Workload/budget management

IT & data analysis

Self-motivation

Problem solving

Education

Honours degree (A1/SCQF Level 10)

Knowledge of child cognitive development

PhD in subject (Desirable)

Tools

Research databases

Job description

Job Purpose

You will contribute to the project “SCN1A Horizons: A natural history study of SCN1A-related epilepsy in the United Kingdom” led by Chief Investigator Professor Andreas Brunklaus.

The aim of this natural history study is to gain an in-depth understanding of the impact of Dravet syndrome and other SCN1A-related epilepsies on the patient and family, to help inform future treatment, support and research.

Study participants undergo detailed clinical and neuropsychology assessments. The post-holder will be responsible for carrying out the neuropsychology visits with participants and their caregivers every 6- or 12-months, dependent upon age of participant. The research assistant will be fully trained to carry out a range of neurodevelopmental assessments, under the supervision of a Consultant Paediatric Neuropsychologist.

The successful candidate will carry out hospital, home and school visits within Glasgow and will also travel across the rest of Scotland and North England to complete neuropsychology study visits. The post-holder will benefit from joining an established and experienced UK-wide multi-disciplinary research study team and will be supervised by a Consultant Paediatric Neuropsychologist.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• Plan and conduct assigned research individually or jointly in accordance with theproject deliverables and project/group/School/College research strategy.
• Conduct cognitive assessments with children and young people with rare genetic epilepsies, many of whom will present with significant developmental delay.
• Travel independently to clinical research sites across Scotland, as required.
• Document research output including analysis and interpretation of all data, maintainingrecords and databases, drafting technical/progress reports and papers as appropriate.
• Develop and enhance your research profile and reputation and that of The Universityof Glasgow/School/Research Group, including contributing to publications ofinternational quality in high profile/quality refereed journals, enhancing the researchimpact in terms of economic/societal benefit and gathering indicators of esteem.
• Contribute to the presentation of work at international and national conferences, atinternal and external seminars, colloquia and workshops to develop and enhance ourresearch profile.
• Contribute to the identification of potential funding sources and to assist in thedevelopment of proposals to secure funding from internal and external bodies tosupport future research.
• Collaborate with colleagues and participate in team/ group/ meetings/ seminars/workshops across the research Group/School/College/University and wider community.
• Contribute to the organisation, supervision, mentoring and training of undergraduateand/or postgraduate students and less experienced members of the project team toensure their effective development.
• Perform administrative tasks related to the activities of the research group and School,including Budgets/Expenditure.
• Keep up to date with current knowledge and recent advances in the field/discipline.
• Engage in continuing professional development activities as appropriate.
• Undertake any other reasonable duties as required by the Head of School/Director ofResearch Institute.
• Contribute to the enhancement of the University’s international profile in line with theUniversity’s Strategic Plan, Inspiring People Changing The World.

Knowledge, Qualifications, Skills & Experience

Knowledge/Qualifications

Essential

• A1SCQF Level 10 [Honours degree] in a relevant subject or a cognate discipline, or equivalent
• A2 A comprehensive and up-to-date knowledge of the wider subject area or subject specialism of child cognitive development.

Desirable

• B1 An awarded [or recently submitted or near completion] PhD in subject specialism orequivalent

Skills

Essential

• C1 Willingness to travel to carry out research visits, including hospital, home and school settings.
• C2 Research creativity and cross-discipline collaborative ability as appropriate.
• C3 Excellent communication skills [oral and written], including public presentations andability to communicate complex data/concepts clearly and concisely.
• C4 Excellent interpersonal skills including team working and a collegiate approach.
• C5 Appropriate workload/time/project/budget/people management skills.
• C6 Extensive IT and data analysis/interpretation skills including experience of research databases.
• C7 Self-motivation, initiative and independent thought/working.
• C8 Problem solving skills including a flexible and pragmatic approach.

Experience

Essential

• E1 Demonstratable experience and desire to work with children in a clinical or research capacity.
• E2 Sufficient relevant research experience [or equivalent] appropriate to an early career researcher.
• E3 Experience of scientific writing.
• E4 Proven ability to deliver quality outputs in a timely and efficient manner.
• E5 Evidence of an emerging track record of publications in a relevant field.

Desirable

• F1 Experience of working with children with learning disabilities and/or complex neurodevelopmental needs.
• F2 Experience of carrying out neurodevelopmental assessment of children using validated tools.
• F3 Experience of completing validated questionnaires/interview measures with caregivers.
• F4 Experience of scoring psychological validated assessment tools.

Informal enquiries should be directed to :[e-mail]

Terms and Conditions

Salary will be Grade 6, £33,951 - £37,694 per annum.

This post is full time, and has funding for up to 12 months in the first instance.

The University of Glasgow has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK. If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.

Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG)

The University of Glasgow is committed to safeguarding children and protected adults by ensuring that individuals in regulated roles are appropriately vetted and monitored.

The University of Glasgow’sPVG policyaligns with the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 and reflects the legal requirements effective from 1 April 2025, including the mandatory PVG Scheme membership for regulated roles.

The post for which you are applying is considered to be a regulated role under the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020. Under the Act, individuals working in a regulated role must be a PVG Scheme member before employment. If you are successful in your application, the offer of employment will be conditional subject to a satisfactory PVG Scheme record check. We will be in touch regarding requirements related to this.

Further information is available at :https://www.mygov.scot/pvg-scheme

As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

• 1 A warm welcoming and engaging organisational culture, where your talents are developed and nurtured, and success is celebrated and shared.
• 2 An excellent employment package with generous terms and conditions including 41 days of leave for full time staff, pension - pensions handbook https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/payandpensions/pensions/, benefits and discount packages.
• 3 A flexible approach to working.
• 4 A commitment to support your health and wellbeing, including a free 6-month UofG Sport membership for all new staff joining the University https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/staff/healthwellbeing/.

We believe that we can only reach our full potential through the talents of all. Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of our values. Applications are particularly welcome from across our communities and in particular people from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community, and other protected characteristics who are under-represented within the University. Read more on how the University promotes and embeds all aspects of equality and diversity within our community https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/.

We endorse the principles of Athena Swan https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/athenaswan/ and hold bronze, silver and gold awards across the University.

We are investing in our organisation, and we will invest in you too. Please visit our website https://www.gla.ac.uk/explore/jobs/ for more information.

Closing date : 26 October 2026 @23:45