Assistant Professor Research FCS

Our Mission 

Coventry University is a global Education Group that empowers students and communities to transform their lives and society through teaching, learning, research, and enterprise. An ambitious and innovative university, our research is designed to have real-world impact on society and tackle global challenges through our 16 challenge-led, interdisciplinary research centres. 

The Research Centre for Fluid and Complex Systems (FCS) specialises in fundamental and applied fluid mechanics and statistical physics, tackling problems in applied mathematics, theoretical and experimental sciences with applications to natural, industrial but also societal processes.

The Role 

Applications are invited for an Assistant Professor in statistical physics, fluid mechanics or nonequilibrium systems in the Centre for Fluid and Complex Systems, Coventry University. 

As an Assistant Professor you will actively contribute to the centre with 60% of your time being spent on research within the centre’s field and 40% spent on teaching within appropriate subjects. 

The post is expected to align with one of the following research groups:

• The Nonequilibrium in Environment and Engineering Systems (NEES) research group uses a blend of engineering sciences, physics and mathematics to study and model problems involving fluid dynamics and nonequilibrium systems and their applications to environmental and geophysical problems.
• The Statistical Physics research group is interdisciplinary in nature and combines network science, cultural complexity, biophysics, sociophysics, computational physics, scientometrics, stochastic dynamics in nature/laboratory, information theory, and other areas. Classical and quantum statistical physics, focusing on universality in and out-of-equilibrium, also remains at the core of the group’s activities.
• The Fluids research group specialises in turbulence, instabilities, magnetohydrodynamics, transition and control, particulate flows, rotating flows, convection and plasma physics. Besides an internationally recognised expertise in these fundamental fields, the group is renowned for its cutting-edge research based on the application of these fields into industrial fluid mechanics, nuclear fusion, astrophysical fluid dynamics and especially geophysical fluid dynamics and planetary interiors. 

You will be responsible for commissioning and delivering impactful research, while working with the group and the centre at large to grow research activity and develop independent research. 

The centre operates at the core of a large network of international collaborators with the specificity of blending theoretical with in-house experimental approaches. The centre maps to REF Unit of Assessment 10 (mathematics) and 95% of its output was deemed internationally excellent or world-leading during the 2021 REF exercise. The centre’s research is supported by UK and European funding bodies (UKRI, ERC and others), as well as industry. 

The role will allow you to contribute to the research centre’s strategy, producing research with a demonstrable contribution to knowledge, society and the economy, growing the centre’s national and international network of collaborators. You will seek external funding through grants or contracts to support your research, whilst supervising research fellows/assistants, doctoral students, masters’ students, technical and other support staff.   

The School of Computing, Mathematics and Data Science offers undergraduate degrees in mathematics, mathematics and statistics, physics and mathematics, physics, and data science; our postgraduate courses include data science & computational intelligence and data science. You will be able to contribute to teaching modules on these courses at undergraduate and postgraduate level. You will work closely with the course teams to help provide the high-quality learning environment our students expect.  

Our Successful Candidate 

Within the centre, the successful applicant will be expected to lead research within the remit of REF UoA 10 (mathematics), to deliver internationally excellent or world-leading outputs, industrial or societal impact, and to attract sufficient funding to help growth the centre's research portfolio. 

Qualifications Required 

A PhD in either PhD in engineering, physics, mathematics or equivalent. 

The Benefits 

As a staff member of Coventry University, you will have a access to a wide range of industry leading rewards and benefits which includes: 

• Excellent Employers Pension Contribution
• 38 days Annual leave plus Bank Holidays
• New Holiday Purchase Scheme up to 5 additional days
• BUPA Cash Plan
• 50% off Tuition Fee’s for staff dependants
• CU Reward Scheme – Discounts across a range of High Street/ Online Retailers
• New Electric Car Scheme
• Cycle To work scheme

Our Culture 

As a global Education Group, equality, diversity, and inclusion are embedded within the fabric of our organisation and are a key focus of our core values. We harness the power and potential of the diverse cultures, backgrounds, abilities, and experiences of our students, colleagues, and partners to create opportunities for all.

Further information 

For informal enquiries about the position, please contact:

Prof. Alban Potherat aa4111@coventry.ac.uk (Fluids research group).

Prof. Ralph Kenna csx267@coventry.ac.uk or Prof. Eun-Jin Kim ad3116@coventry.ac.uk (Statistical Physics research group).

Dr Ran Holtzman ad2472@coventry.ac.uk (Nonequilibrium in Environment and Engineering Systems research group).

Further information regarding the Research Centre for Fluid and Complex Systems can be found here. 

Click here to view the full job description and person specification.