Research Assistant - Nasc Research Centre

EuroSoHo; Cork; Hybrid; EUR 36,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

University College Cork invites applications for a 21-month, full-time Research Assistant position on the SPARC DTIF project focused on agentic AI and digital twins for Ultra-Wideband RF sensing. The appointee will work at the UCC campus with a team exploring AI, RF sensing, and localisation technologies.

The candidate should hold a Bachelor degree in Computer Science/Engineering or Electronic Engineering, with experience in open-source software integration, embedded systems, mobile app

Qualifications

• Bachelor degree in Computer Science /Engineering or Electronic Engineering with a strong theoretical and technical track record.
• Experience in open-source software system integration, network and embedded system implementations, mobile app development, AI and data analytics.

Responsibilities

• Develop agentic AI and digital twin concepts for UWB RF sensing, localisation and vital sign recognition.
• Collaborate with industry partners Danalto and Qorvo on project tasks outside UCC.
• Contribute to multidisciplinary research across AI, RF sensing, multimodal data analysis and wireless network design.

Skills

Open-source software

System integration

Embedded systems

Mobile app development

Artificial intelligence

Data analytics

Education

Bachelor degree in Computer Science / Engineering or Electronic Engineering

Job description

Organisation/Company University College Cork Department HR Research Research Field Computer science Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions Other Positions Application Deadline 25 Sep 2026 - 12:00 (Europe/Dublin) Country Ireland Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 39 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

21 Months Fixed Term, Whole-time Post

The researcher will be employed on a technology development project in which UCC collaborates with two companies, Danalto and Qorvo. The UCC part of the project focuses on the development of agentic AI and digital twin concepts for Ultra-Wideband (UWB) RF sensing, localisation, and vital sign recognition. The successful candidate will be working with a team of researchers on a range of topics, including artificial intelligence, RF sensing and communications, multimodal UB RF signal data analysis, and wireless sensing network architecture design and optimisation. It is envisaged that the researcher will be located at University College Cork’s campus.

Candidates should hold at a minimum a Bachelor degree in Computer Science /Engineering or Electronic Engineering with a good track record of theoretical and technical work. They will have some experience in one or more of open-source software system integration, network and embedded system implementations, mobile application development, artificial intelligence and data analytics. Candidates with a background in other areas such as radio localisation and mobile healthcare applications may also be considered. Experience with multidisciplinary teams is an asset.

The position is for up to 21 months, with a proposed starting date of 1st November 2026. The successful candidate will be appointed at a suitable Research Assistant level depending on their experience and qualifications.

The research project is led by Dr Harry Nguyen and Prof Dirk Pesch in UCC and aims at creating an agentic AI based UWB RF sensing system for localisation, fall detection and vital sign monitoring. The recruited researcher is expected to collaborate with the industry members of the project team outside of UCC and take advantage of existing expertise in UCC through collaboration with existing nasc research members.

This position provides an excellent opportunity to join a dynamic and inclusive research team at University College Cork (UCC), working within the large-scale national CONNECT research centre, hosted by UCC’s nasc research centre and under the supervision of high-profile professors and academics in the area of future communication networks and intelligent systems. The Centre comprises approximately 50 people working on networks, security and systems research. CSIT is a large, research-focused school, participating in many major national and international research collaborations, and with extremely strong links to industry partners. The School of Computer Science & Information Technology (CSIT) at UCC is part of four major Irish SFI-funded research centres: CONNECT - Centre for Future Networks & Communications, Insight - Centre for Data Analytics, Lero - Irish Software Research Centre, CONFIRM - Research Centre for Smart Manufacturing, and it is also hosting two large doctoral training centres (CRT ADVANCE and CRT AI).

Please note that Garda vetting and/or an international police clearance check may form part of the selection process.

Project: SPARC DTIF - Agentic AI and Digital Twins for Ultra-Wideband RF Sensing Systems

Informal inquiries can be made in confidenceto Dr. Harry Nguyen ([e-mail] ) or Prof. Dirk Pesch ([e-mail] ), School of Computer Science & IT, University College Cork, Ireland

University College Cork is committed to being a fully inclusive global university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) are core values under our UCC Strategic Plan 2023-2028. UCC holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advancing equality in higher education. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all our employees and the communities they represent.We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from everybody, regardless of age, care-giving status, disability, ethnicity, gender and/or gender identity or expression status, nationality, marital status/civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion/creed, and/or sexual orientation. We are committed to supporting all staff through flexible working schemes, family-friendly policies, training and development, and staff networks. We value the enrichment that comes from a diverse community and seek to promote equality, prevent discrimination and protect the human rights of each individual in line with equality legislation. We encourage applicants to consult our Dignity and Respect Policy andlearn more about our EDI related initiatives

Salary placement on appointment will be in accordance with public sector pay policy.

We encourage you to reach out to us directly should you require assistance or reasonable accommodation during the recruitment process.

Please note interviews will be conducted either online via Microsoft Teams or in person in the first instance. Candidates may also be required to attend interviews in person if an interview takes place online. Candidates will be notified as appropriate

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE CORK IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES EMPLOYER

Please note that an appointment to posts advertised will be dependent on University approval, together with the terms of the employment control framework for the higher education sector.