Research Assistant (Data) - Eating Disorders Clinical Research Network

About Us

We are seeking a highly motivated Research Assistant to join the Eating Disorders Clinical Research Network (EDCRN), a groundbreaking initiative led by King's College London and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. You will be based in the KCL Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, within the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN).

These centres offer a diverse research environment that is open, welcoming and supportive to all. The faculty-wide initiatives are supported by an active Diversity & Inclusion Team. To help us achieve our goals, we particularly welcome applications from people from backgrounds who are currently under-represented in UK Higher Education (e.g., Black, Asian, Latinx, and other white ethnic minorities).

About The Role

We welcome applications for a Research Assistant (Data) to join the Eating Disorders Clinical Research Network. Together with clinicians, researchers, and people with lived experience, the EDCRN has agreed on a core dataset to record eating disorder symptoms, treatment, outcomes, demographics, risk factors, and physical health markers. Data will be collected from patients, caregivers, and clinicians in participating child and adult eating disorder services across the UK. Data will be stored in a secure data environment, fully compliant with NHS security standards. The project is co-led by Professor Gerome Breen (King's) and Dr. Karina Allen (South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust).

The successful candidate will work with the EDCRN Study Coordinator, Principal Investigators, and the wider EDCRN and Bioresource teams to clean and analyze the data collected through the Network. The post-holder will also work closely with the rest of the EDCRN team and PI Breen's wider research group to facilitate linkage and analyses of external data sources, e.g., data from participants consented into the Eating Disorders Genetics Initiative (EDGI UK). The post-holder will support the dissemination of findings connected to the project.

This is a full-time post available from 1st April 2025, and you will be offered a fixed-term contract until 29th October 2026.

About You

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. Postgraduate degree in a relevant subject (e.g., genetics, data science, psychology). Undergraduate degrees will also be considered if accompanied by relevant experience.
2. Some experience of R or similar programming languages.
3. Knowledge of data management and governance considerations when working with clinical data.
4. Experience of preparing research outputs or other relevant communication materials.
5. Ability to identify and resolve problems which may impact on agreed objectives.
6. Ability to be proactive in organizing own work within the framework of the agreed research programme.
7. Good time management and attention to detail.
8. Ability to communicate complex ideas to a range of audiences.

Desirable criteria

1. Experience or interest in eating disorders or general mental health.
2. Experience of working within Trusted Research Environments to analyze data.
3. Experience of working on research in NHS or other clinical settings.

Further Information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's. We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

We are able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK.