This position is part of the FORESIGHTERS Doctoral Training Programme (Future ORiEnted Skills, Innovation for Governance for Health, Technology, Energy, Cities and Creativity) which will provide world-class advanced research training, with an innovative emphasis on skills such as futures literacy, foresight, systems thinking, citizen engagement, and other transferable capabilities. Each Early-Stage Researcher (ESR) will play an active role within a collaborative inter-disciplinary cohort of researchers to undertake a high impact doctoral research project addressing a significant social, environmental, cultural, or economic issue. ESRs will be awarded a 42-month contract, funded through the prestigious Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions (MSCA) COFUND programme, with match funding provided by a Northern Ireland Department for the Economy studentship.
You will work primarily under the theme of Health, undertaking a dedicated research project. Successful appointees will demonstrate and develop skills for working in inter-disciplinary environments and engage with research undertaken across all the thematic areas in FORESIGHTERS.
The Health Theme will explore how futures-thinking can be embedded in interdisciplinary approaches to anticipating and managing health challenges including ageing populations, persistent inequities, mounting pressure on services. Projects under this theme will aim to anticipate and design resilient structures and practices that prepare health systems and communities for a healthier future. Projects will advance futures thinking through interdisciplinary methods such as enhanced data modelling, forecasting and scenarios, and development and evaluation of technological and social innovations, with the goal of generating actionable insights for a healthier future.
Major duties include (full list available in Job Specification):
* Conduct research underpinned by inter-disciplinarity within the Health theme and as appropriate across multiple project themes, in an organised and timely manner.
* Carry out the research and training activities specified by a Personal Career Development Plan (PCDP).
* Actively participate in skills development and undertake mandatory training programmes as required by Supervisors, Theme Leaders, and Project Coordinator. Submit training reports in fulfilment of the project requirements.
* Undertake secondment and placements with non-academic partners, as appropriate to the research project. Submit secondment reports in fulfilment of the project requirements.
* Study and engage with contemporary research literature in appropriate disciplines including academic journals and papers, books, textbooks, and other relevant sources to ensure doctoral research projects bring new thinking and state-of-the-art approaches to the research field.
* Record, analyse and write up results of research work and contribute to the production of outputs, in a variety of formats, as appropriate.
* Document, prepare, analyse and complete a final thesis in formats appropriate to the field.
Interviews are scheduled to take place on Monday 5 October 2026.
More information (including advice about the application and assessment and decision making processes) can be found on https://www.qub.ac.uk/sites/foresighters/.
About the person:
ESRs will be highly motivated, and expected to deliver high‑quality, high-impact, cutting-edge research, within the field of Futures research. ESRs pro-actively engage with their inter-disciplinary supervisory team, undertake advanced training and collaborate with intersectoral, non-academic partners to help shape the direction of their research.
Essential criteria include (full list available in Job Specification):
* Hold (or be about to be awarded) a degree equivalent to a 1st class or 2.1 Honours degree from a UK Higher Education Provider, or an equivalent qualification from outside the UK that is acceptable to the University.
* Meet MSCA career stage requirement and not yet have been awarded a doctorate level qualification.
* Meet MSCA mobility requirements (i.e. must not have resided or carried out main education and/or employment activity in the UK for more than 12 months in the 3 years prior to appointment).
* Demonstrate competence in written and spoken English in accordance with the University's English Language Requirements.
* Be eligible and qualified for enrolment in the PhD programme at QUB.
* Sufficient breadth or depth of specialist knowledge in available techniques for investigation of proposed research topic within a Futures framework and in an inter-disciplinary context.
* Possess relevant experience with research methods and techniques appropriate to the proposed project.
* Demonstrable evidence of analytical and problem‑solving abilities relevant to research.
* Able to communicate complex information clearly.
To be successful at shortlisting stage, please ensure you clearly evidence in your application how you meet the essential and, where applicable, desirable criteria listed in the Candidate Information on our website.
This post is available for 42 months. Fixed term contract posts are available for the stated period in the first instance but in particular circumstances may be renewed or made permanent subject to availability of funding.
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