Research Fellow (Maternity Cover)

Overview

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine seeks a Research Fellow to join the Department of Infection Biology as maternity cover for the Gates-funded Field Evaluation of P. vivax Serological Test and Treat project. This full-time position is fixed term until 31 May 2027, is available starting 01 December 2026, and is based in London with regular international travel requiring approximately fifty percent of the time to be spent at collaborating laboratories.

The role involves targeted sequencing of malaria parasite infections and bioinformatics analysis within a clinical trial framework, conducted in collaboration with the Armauer Hansen Research Institute in Ethiopia, Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, and Institut Pasteur de Paris. Responsibilities include conducting laboratory activities such as sample selection, DNA extraction, and multiplexed amplicon sequencing at partner institutions, leading bioinformatics analysis, interpreting results, contributing to scientific publications, presenting findings, and supporting training and capacity strengthening for local team members. Additional duties involve supporting project coordination, procurement, logistics, and the shipment of laboratory supplies.

Requirements

Candidates must hold a postgraduate degree, ideally a doctoral degree, in a relevant topic, along with relevant experience in malaria genomics and clinical trials. Applicants are required to have demonstrated experience in multiplexed amplicon sequencing assay design, implementation, and analysis, as well as demonstrated experience in the bioinformatics analysis of genomic sequencing data generated from multiple platforms including Illumina and Oxford Nanopore technologies.

What you get

The position offers a salary on the LSHTM scale, Grade 6, in the range of £46,643 to £52,909 per annum pro rata, inclusive of London Weighting. The annual leave entitlement is 30 working days per year, pro rata, in addition to discretionary wellbeing days, and membership in the pension scheme is available.

How to apply

Applications must be submitted online via the designated jobs website by 10pm on the closing date of 2026-11-11, referencing ITD-DIB-2026-18. Applicants must include a supporting statement that sets out how their qualifications, experience, and training meet each of the selection criteria by providing one or more paragraphs addressing each criterion, as failure to do so will result in the application not being considered.