King's College London

About Us

Applications are invited for a post-doctoral researcher to work in the laboratory of Professor Peter Zammit based in the Randall Centre for Cell & Molecular Biophysics which is part of the School of Basic & Biomedical Sciences. We are part of the Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine, which has a broad spectrum of research interests spanning fundamental biology, disease, and physiology. We are based at the Guy’s Campus of King’s College London situated in the heart of London. King’s is a founding member of the prestigious Russell Group of world-class, research-intensive universities.

About the role

We are recruiting a Postdoctoral Research Associate to investigate development of gene therapies and genome editing strategies for muscular dystrophies: a group of disorders characterised by progressive skeletal and cardiac muscle weakness and wasting. The successful applicant will become part of the EU Horizon-funded ‘MAGIC’ project creating advanced humanised muscle models and innovative gene therapy approaches, ultimately improving the lives of individuals affected by these debilitating diseases (https://magic-horizon.eu). Performance of the work will mainly require experience/skills in cell and molecular biology, but some bioinformatics skills would be an advantage. The role will involve experimentation and so will be lab-based. The post-doctoral researcher will be based in the Zammit group and be responsible to Professor Zammit. 

This is a full-time role (35 hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract for two years starting no sooner than 17th March 2025.

This is a laboratory based role and as such it needs to be performed on site for 90% of the time.

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 such as in Cell Biology, Biomedical science or a related field *
2. Experience of working in a research lab environment (can include PhD project)
3. Proven experience and competence in a wide range of cell and molecular biology techniques and protein analysis, including cell culture
4. An author on at least one publication in an international, peer-reviewed journal
5. Evidence of ability to communicate findings both verbally and in presentations to other scientists, the funders and the public

* 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.

Desirable criteria

1. At least one first author publication in an international, peer-reviewed journal
2. Direct experience of research into skeletal muscle/muscular dystrophy
3. Active Home Office license
4. Working knowledge of bioinformatics

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.

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.

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

Interviews are due to be held in January 2025 (maybe subject to change).

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

This post is subject to Occupational Health clearances.