About the Role
& Team
This project will be based at the, a world-leading institute with state-of-the-art facilities dedicated to pioneering research in sport, health, and wellbeing. The successful candidate will play a central role in delivering the project, contributing to day-to-day activities such as participant recruitment, data collection, experimental testing, and analysis of cerebrovascular and cognitive outcomes.
The project team is led by Dr. Tiago Peçanha (PI), Senior Lecturer in Cardiovascular Physiology at the Institute of Sport. The team also includes Dr. Greg Wood (Co-I; Reader in Sensorimotor Control) and Dr. Johnny Parr (Co-I; Senior Lecturer in Sport Psychology), both of whom bring extensive expertise in the effects of football heading on brain function. Other team members include Dr. Gabriella Rossetti, who provides expertise in neuroimaging, and Dr. Georgina Stebbings, an experienced sports physiologist with strong links to football. The project will also involve collaboration with external partners from across the UK and internationally, as well as with football organizations and professional athletes.
Key Responsibilities
The successful candidate will lead and contribute to a research project investigating the impact of football heading on cerebrovascular function and cognition, with the aim of understanding mechanisms that may contribute to dementia risk in football players. Responsibilities include designing and conducting experimental protocols to measure brain blood flow and cognitive outcomes, managing participant recruitment and data collection for both acute and long-term studies, analyzing complex physiological and neurocognitive data, and preparing findings for publication in high-impact journals. The role also involves collaborating with multidisciplinary teams, liaising with stakeholders in sport and health sectors, supporting knowledge translation into evidence-based guidelines, and contributing to training and mentoring of students or research assistants involved in the project.
Key Skills & Experiences
The ideal candidate will have a strong background in human physiology, neuroscience, or sport and exercise sciences, with experience in cerebrovascular or cognitive function assessment, experimental design, and data analysis. Proficiency with physiological monitoring technologies, cognitive testing batteries, and statistical software is essential, alongside experience working with human participants in research settings. Strong project management, organizational, and communication skills are required to coordinate multiple studies, engage with participants, and collaborate effectively with research teams and external stakeholders. A commitment to participant safety, and advancing knowledge in brain health and sport science is also essential.
To learn more about role and requirements, please read the Job Description provided below.
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