Research Associate / Fellow
Job details
Posted 20 February 2026 Salary Grade7/8: £41,064 - £46,049 / £50,253 - £58,225 per annum End date 22 March 2026 LocationGlasgow Job Type Research and Teaching Reference193813 Expiry 22 March 2026 at 23:45
Job Description
Job Purpose
Applications are invited for a position to join the Digital Chemistry and Chemputation team lead by Professor Lee Cronin ) in the area of software and database development for chemputation working in a multidisciplinary team. You will have skills / and / or interested in some of the following: artificial intelligence, organic chemistry, robotics, total synthesis of natural products, enantioselective synthesis, biomimetic synthesis of natural products, glycochemistry, chemical automation, programming, Python programming language, and algorithm development.
You will have extensive experience of / PhD in Computing or in Chemistry with a strong background or experience of digitised automated organic synthesis from industry.
For appointment at grade 8 some post doctorial experience in multiple areas as listed above, or at the interdisciplinary interface and / or some expertise in research coordination and running a team would be required.
Main Duties And Responsibilities:
Perform the following activities in conjunction with the Principal/Co Investigator:
Take a role leading the digital chemistry synthesis team in accordance with the project deliverables and project/group/School/College research strategy.
Take a role in the development of organic synthetic chemistry for chemputation and database development.
Document research output including analysis and interpretation of all data, maintaining records and databases, drafting technical/progress reports and papers as appropriate.
Survey the literature and environment, understand the research challenges associated with the project & subject area, & develop/implement a suitable strategy.
Take a role in the identification of potential funding sources and to assist in the development of proposals to secure funding from internal and external bodies to support future research.
Take a role in developing and maintaining collaborations with colleagues across the research group/School/College/University and wider community (eg. Academic and Industrial Partners).
Take a role in team/group meetings/seminars/workshops and School research group activities to enhance the wider knowledge, outputs and culture of the School/College.
Help in the organisation, supervision, mentoring and training of undergraduate and/or postgraduate students and less experienced members of the project team to ensure their effective development.
Perform administrative tasks related to the activities of the research group and School, including Budgets/Expenditure.
Undertake any other duties of equivalent standing as assigned by the PI.
For Appointment At Grade 8:
Take the lead in identifying and attracting new sources of independent and external research funding and researchers into this research area as opportunities permit to support future research.
To present research findings at high profile national and international conferences, seminars and meetings to raise the profile of the research group in order to enhance the research strength of the School.
To take a primary role in working with current Cronin-group industrial collaborators, centres, and potential industrial end users as well as identifying and establishing new collaborative agreements to support the research of the group and School.
To make a leading contribution to the management of the team/project and sustain an enhanced level of academic outputs and profile.
These key tasks are not intended to be exhaustive but simply highlight a number of major tasks which the staff member may be reasonably expected to perform.
Knowledge/Qualifications
Knowledge, Qualifications, Skills and Experience
Essential:
A1 PhD in Chemistry / Computing Science with strong natural product synthesis background or equivalent experience acquired in organic synthesis.
A2 In depth Knowledge of automated and digital approaches to the description and execution of chemical processes.
A3 A comprehensive and up-to-date knowledge of current issues and future directions within the wider subject area or subject specialism.
A4 Knowledge of project-specific technical models, equipment or techniques, e.g. Opentrons.
A5 Proficient with Windows and Unix-based operating systems.
A6 Proficiency in Configuration file formats YAML/TOML.
A7 Working knowledge of Git including Gitlab and its CI/CD structure.
For Appointment At Grade 8:
A8 Some reputation in, and insight into, natural product synthetic strategies and enantioselective synthesis (e.g. enantioconvergent methods in organic synthesis).
A9 Knowledge of current issues and future directions within the wider subject area.
A10 Proven skills in management of teams of researchers and delivery of research output (meetings / publications / reports).
Skills
Essential:
C1 Design of synthetic strategies for the automation of natural product syntheses.
C2 Research creativity and strong cross-discipline collaborative ability as appropriate.
C3 Excellent communication skills (oral and written), including public presentations and ability to communicate complex data/concepts clearly and concisely.
C4 Excellent interpersonal skills including team working and a collegiate approach.
C5 Appropriate workload/time/project/budget/people management skills.
C6 Extensive IT and data analysis/interpretation skills as appropriate.
C7 Self motivation, initiative and independent thought/working.
C8 Problem solving skills including a flexible and pragmatic approach.
C9 Good Team Leadership skills including demonstrable supervisory skills.
C10 MATLAB or other programming languages (as noted above).
For Appointment At Grade 8:
C11 Able to work both individually as well as part of a team and manage staff members as appropriate to disseminate findings to colleagues.
C12 Strong cross-discipline collaborative ability, including evidence of working across industry and academia.
C13 Able to work in both industrial and academic environments with a good understanding of key legislative and policy frameworks.
Desirable:
D1 Exploring chemistry using computer-based approaches.
D2 Comfortable developing expertise in multiple fields.
D3 Experience using Amazon Web Services (AWS) products.
Experience
Essential:
E1 Sufficient relevant research experience normally including postgraduate experience or equivalent.
E2 Experience of scientific writing.
E3 Proven ability to deliver quality outputs in a timely and efficient manner.
E4 A track record of presentation and publication of research results in quality journals/conferences.
E5 Experience of making a leading contribution in academic activities.
E6 Ability to demonstrate a degree of independence as illustrated by identification of project objectives from assessment of the literature, design & analysis of experiments & drafting of papers.
E7 Experience in undertaking independent research.
E8 Experience of computer programming / modelling.
For Appointment At Grade 8:
E9 Experience of leading and contributing to applications for research grants.
Desirable:
F1 An emerging national or international reputation.
F2 Experience of robotic platforms, feedback control systems and databases.
F3 Teaching experience in organic chemistry or related areas.
F4 Patent applications or intellectual property development.
Terms and Conditions
Salary will be Grade 7/8, £41,064 - £46,049 / £50,253 - £58,225 per annum.
This post is full time (35 hours per week), and has funding available for up to 1 year in the first instance.
Please Note: If you are a current employee of the University of Glasgow, please be advised that the University would consider an internal secondment opportunity for this post. University of Glasgow applicants should seek clearance for release for internal secondment from their line manager before making a formal application.
The University of Glasgow has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK. If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.
Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit:
As a valued member of our team, you can expect:
1 A warm welcoming and engaging organisational culture, where your talents are developed and nurtured, and success is celebrated and shared.
2 An excellent employment package with generous terms and conditions including 41 days of leave for full time staff, pension - pensions handbook, benefits and discount packages.
3 A flexible approach to working.
4 A commitment to support your health and wellbeing, including a free 6-month UofG Sport membership for all new staff joining the University
We believe that we can only reach our full potential through the talents of all. Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of our values. Applications are particularly welcome from across our communities and in particular people from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community, and other protected characteristics who are under-represented within the University. Read more on how the University promotes and embeds all aspects of equality and diversity within our community
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Closing Date: 22 March 2026