Research Fellow in Outbreak Response

University of Oxford; Oxford; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Oxford, within the Nuffield Department of Medicine, seeks a Research Fellow in Outbreak Response to develop real-time spatial models of disease transmission and support outbreak response efforts. The role focuses on integrating diverse data streams and producing actionable forecasts for public health decision-makers.

The appointment is full-time on a fixed-term 12-month contract, funded by CEPI, with potential for secondment.

Qualifications

• PhD/DPhil with post-qualification research experience in epidemiology, statistics, mathematics or related quantitative field.
• Experience developing spatial/metapopulation models and uncertainty quantification; strong Python and/or R programming skills.
• Excellent communication, organisational and project management skills; strong publication record; grant-writing ability; experience collaborating internationally.

Responsibilities

• Develop and run real-time spatial and metapopulation models of disease transmission.
• Integrate epidemiological, mobility, genomic and geospatial data to forecast outbreak risks.
• Produce forecasts and surveillance assessments; communicate findings to policymakers.
• Lead research activities; contribute to publications; manage resources; support capacity building and technology transfer with national public health teams in the DRC.

Skills

Communication skills

Project management

Grant writing

Publication record

Education

PhD/DPhil

Tools

Python

R

Job description

We are seeking to appoint a Research Fellow in Outbreak Response to join the Data Analytics and Epidemiology group at the Pandemic Sciences Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine. Working with Professor Moritz Kraemer, you will contribute to B-REACT, a project funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), supporting the response to the Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The research will focus on developing real-time spatial models of infectious disease transmission to inform outbreak response, surveillance, vaccine research and clinical trial preparedness.

You will be responsible for developing and running real time spatial and metapopulation models of disease transmission, integrating epidemiological, mobility, genomic and geospatial data to forecast outbreak risks and support public health decision-making. The role includes developing reproducible analytical pipelines, producing forecasts and surveillance assessments, communicating findings to policymakers and collaborating with international research partners. You will also lead research activities, contribute to publications, manage resources and support capacity building and technology transfer with national public health teams in the DRC.

This position is offered full time on a fixed term contract for 12 months and is funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).

Only applications received before 12 midday on 6 November 2026 will be considered.

The post may also be offered as a secondment opportunity

It is essential that you hold a relevant PhD/DPhil with post-qualification research experience in epidemiology, statistics, mathematics, computational biology or a related quantitative discipline. You should have experience developing spatial or metapopulation models of infectious disease transmission, model evaluation and uncertainty quantification, alongside strong Python and/or R programming skills and experience analysing large-scale, real-world datasets. Excellent communication, organisational and project management skills, a strong publication record, grant-writing ability and experience working collaboratively across international research teams are required. Experience in phylogenetic or phylodynamic methods, outbreak response in low- and middle-income countries, developing dashboards or visualisations, vaccine trial analytics, or a working knowledge of French would be advantageous.

University of Oxford, Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences