Research Assistant - Participatory Toolkit

THIS ROLE IS NOT SUITABLE FOR CURRENT STUDENTS; STUDENT APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED DUE TO WORKING HOUR LIMITS.

Main duties and responsibilities

• Assist in the coordination and development of the Student Ambassador Scheme, ensuring efficient management of the booking process, timesheet submission, expense processing, and engagement reporting
• Provide logistical and administrative support to the Student Recruitment and Widening Participation (WP) team, coordinating events and activities, ensuring representation at both regional and national levels.
• Support the delivery of the Enquiry Management and Campus Tours project, including assisting with the onboarding, training, and allocation of tasks for Student Ambassadors
• Occasionally deliver presentations, workshops, and advice sessions to schools and colleges, both regionally and nationally, to raise awareness and support recruitment efforts. This may also include representing the university at National and Postgraduate Fairs.
• Engage with schools and colleges as required by management, delivering pre-prepared content to support outreach and recruitment.
• Support the evaluation and monitoring of the Student Recruitment and WP team by collating and reporting data on key Outreach KPIs.
• Assist in the planning and execution of Queen Mary?s major external events, such as Offer Holder Days and Open Days, which may involve compensated out-of-hours work.
• Act as an advocate for the University?s brand, ensuring its visual and verbal identity are consistently applied across all communications and activities.
• Stay updated on relevant legislation, including GDPR, CMA, and ASA requirements, ensuring all activities align with these regulations.

The above list of responsibilities is not exhaustive and the jobholder may be required to undertake other duties commensurate with the level of the role, as reasonably requested by their line manager.

A level qualifications (or equivalent), or equivalent relevant experience - Essential
Educated to degree level in a relevant field or equivalent experience - Desirable

• Experience of working within the Higher Education sector in a similar role - Desirable
• Experience in the management of student ambassadors or volunteer groups - Desirable
• Experience of communicating with a wide range of audiences - Essential
• Experience of organising small to medium scale events from briefing to delivery - Desirable
• Experience of delivering training or workshops for student groups - Desirable
• Strong technical ability in using CRM systems or other platforms to record customer enquiries and execute marketing campaigns - Desirable
• Excellent editorial (writing, proofing) and numerical skills - Essential
• Excellent IT skills including use of Microsoft packages in using email, spreadsheets, presentation software and word processing - Essential
• Proven analytical and problems solving capacity - Essential
• Able to work effectively independently and as part of a team - Essential
• Able to advise prospective students and their families of possible study options in a knowledgeable and professional manner - Essential   
• The nature of this role will mean the postholder may be required to work evenings and weekends as well as travel on a national basis (for which TOIL will be given), as such a flexible approach to working during unsociable hours is needed - Essential
• This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check - Essential 
• *The ability to meet UK ?right to work? requirements. - Essential
• The ability and willingness to work evenings and weekends as required - Essential
   

About the Role

This post will provide technical support for the Flow Cytometry Service at the Barts Cancer Institute(BCI)/WHRI. 

The post-holder will be responsible for day-to-day operation, maintenance and quality control of cell-sorters/analysers and provide users support at all levels. A collaborative approach is essential to cover duties during colleagues' absences or high-demand periods.

Prior knowledge and hands-on experience with BDFACSAria sorters and analysers, along with a strong understanding of Diva software and multicolour Flow Cytometry principles, are essential. Additional training can be provided if needed.

About You 

You should have a relevant BSc or equivalent, with a strong background in cancer cell biology or immunology, along with the ability to design, conduct, and analyse complex flow cytometry-based cell assays. Knowledge of PBMC preparation, cell, and tissue culture is desirable. The ideal candidate will be detail oriented, motivated to learn, capable of working both independently and as part of a team, with strong organizational skills, effective communication, and a focus on customer service. Prior experience in a flow cytometry core lab is highly desirable.

About the Institute

BCI is a Cancer Research UK Centre of Excellence whose work aims to transform the lives of those with/at risk of cancer through laboratory-based innovative research, in patients and populations. BCI is internationally renowned in many areas of cancer research. It combines ground-breaking basic research with the expertise of clinicians and scientists from the Centre for Experimental Cancer Medicine and the Barts NHS Trust to achieve improvements in cancer patient care. BCI is also a partner in the CRUK City of London Major Centre, which is a Centre of Excellence in Biotherapeutics. It?s one of six institutes within The School of Medicine and Dentistry.

Further information on the responsibilities will be provided upon shortlisting. 

BSc or equivalent in relevant subject

EXPERIENCE

• Experience in the operation of flow cytometers
• Experience in cell sorting 
• Experience in other biochemical techniques 
• Experience with statistical analysis (Desirable)
• Experience of working in a biomedical research laboratory
• Experience with computer software relevant to laboratory research, data presentation and statistical evaluation of results
• Knowledge of the principles of flow cytometry 
• Experience of working in a core service laboratory (Desirable)
• Experience in multiparameter (>10) cell sorting and cytometric analysis, on a variety of cytometers
• Experience with Liquid and Imaging mass cytometry (Desirable)
• Experience with Imaging Flow cytometry (Desirable)
• Experience with Spectral Flow cytometry (Desirable)
• Knowledge of flow cytometry analysis software

SKILLS

• Ability to follow written and oral instructions
• Ability to maintain accurate and up to date records
• Understanding of the research process
• Ability to organise and prioritise own work and organise research within the project timetable 
• Computer literacy
• Evidence of good team-working
• Good communication skills
• Analytical skills 
• Experience with data analysis and presentation 
• Flexible and co-operative 
• Self-motivated and hardworking
• Willingness to work flexibly in order to achieve project demands    
• Willingness to learn new skills     
• *The ability to meet UK ?right to work? requirements. 
  
   

The Queen Mary Academy is seeking 10 interns to take part in our Learner Intern Programme (LIP). This is open to current QMUL students only. 

This is an exciting opportunity to work on student-voice projects that support innovative, evidence-based education practices.

Projects might include topics like:

• AI & employability
• Awarding and attainment gaps
• Learner Engagement Analytics
• Sustainability   

Each intern will work with the Queen Mary Academy and academic partners and be expected to work collaboratively to conduct research. Findings will be shared internally and externally through publication and presentations. Training will be provided in the relevant skills required to complete these projects. There are opportunities within the projects to develop skills in research methods, communication, and project management and delivery.

Each intern position is assigned 80 hours. Successful candidates will be expected to complete these hours (approximately 4 hours per week during term time) between November 2024 and June 2025. This role will be paying 13.99 per hour plus holiday pay to the successful candidates.

Responsibilities:

• Assist in literature reviews to gather relevant information and background for projects.
• Participate in the design and implementation of data collection methods.
• Collaborate with project leads to conduct data analysis
• Contribute to the preparation of research reports, presentations, and other final outputs.
• Attend LIP meetings to actively engage in the exchange of ideas.

Must be currently enrolled as a QMUL student

• Current enrolment as a Queen Mary student
• Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively within a team
• Effective communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Excellent organizational skills
• Comfortable using common software tools, such as Microsoft Office
• Enthusiasm for learning and willingness to take on new challenges
• Have an understanding of research methods

If interested, please ensure your CV is uploaded to your profile (via My Documents), and submit a cover letter addressed to Catherine Hunt in your application.