King's College London

THIS VACANCY IS OPEN TO INTERNAL APPLICANTS ONLY

About us

About the SGDP Centre

The Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry (SGDP) Department’s focus is on common psychiatric disorders that emerge in childhood such as mood disorders (anxiety and depression), ‘externalising’ disorders (disruptive behaviour including hyperactivity and addictions), and cognitive disorders (learning disabilities and the autistic spectrum). Scientists at the SGDP lead some of the UK’s foremost longitudinal cohort and twin studies including TEDS, eRISK, Dunedin, IMAGEN and GLAD. Collaborative interdisciplinary research and training are the hallmarks of the SGDP, with research encompassing behavioural genetics, molecular genetics, experimental psychology and psychiatry, and neuroimaging.

Link to the SGDP Centre webpage https://www.kcl.ac.uk/sgdp

About the Faculty

The IoPPN is a Faculty of King's College London and the largest academic community in Europe devoted to the study and prevention of mental illness and brain disease.

The complementary roles of the IoPPN are: (i) to pioneer research into new and improved ways of understanding and treating mental illness and brain disease; (ii) to offer advanced research training for psychiatrists, psychologists, neurologists and other scientific and paramedical workers.  The IoPPN's greatest strength is the interdisciplinary nature of both its research strategy and educational activities, providing unique opportunities for students and staff.

Link to IoPPN webpage: http://www.kcl.ac.uk/ioppn/index.aspx

About the role

We are looking for an enthusiastic postgraduate with a PhD in psychology or behavioural genetics, and particular interest in anxiety and/or depression.

The sucessful applicant will work as a Postdoctoral Research Associate with Prof Thalia Eley in the Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry (SGDP) Centre. They will be a member of her Emotional Development, Intervention and Treatment (EDIT) Lab, which strives to be a diverse research environment that is open, welcoming and supportive to all.

If successful, you will work with data from the Twins Early Development Study (TEDS). The TEDS team have followed thousands of twin pairs since birth, tracking their emotional, cognitive and behavioural development. We have recently completed a  major mental health assessment  as the twins reach their late twenties. We are also engaged in a challenging new effort linking the twins’ medical records to the information we already hold on them. You will lead analyses of the data resulting from these activities.

The role involves actively developing hypotheses, conducting genetic and prediction analyses and writing up findings for publication. You will have the opportunty to attend relevant international meetings such as the Behavior Genetics Association and World Congress in Psychiatric Genetics. You will report to Prof Eley, but will also work with other team members including the database manager, research assistants, PhD students, postdocs and other investigators.

You will have the opportunity to get involved in other projects beside TEDS and participate in faculty-wide initiatives such as our annual Research Festival and Postdoc Network. The EDIT Lab members believe in Open and Reproducible Science. All papers are pre-registered on the Open Science Framework.

The post holder will be based at the SGDP Centre, IoPPN Denmark Hill campus in London but there will be the option of working from home 1-2 days per week.

This is a full time post (35 Hours per week), and you will be offered fixed term contract until 31/12/2025

About you

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

Essential criteria

1.      PhD qualified in relevant subject area (e.g. psychology), with a focus on mental health, especially depression and anxiety

2.      Experience analysing twin data and running prediction models.

3.      Experience writing and publishing papers reporting genetic analyses of mental health or other complex traits

Desirable criteria

1. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the next page after you click “Apply Now”. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6.

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.

Further information

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.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘ How we Recruit’ pages.

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