Research Fellow in Experimental Biology and Biotechnology

Fixed Term Contract until 13 February 2029

Full time starting salary is normally in the range of £37,337 to £39,316 per annum

Location: Cranfield, Bedfordshire

This position is part of the recently funded UKRI funded Engineering Biology Programme Grant “EBIC: Environmental Biotechnology and Innovation Centre”, a collaboration between 10 universities including Cranfield, Bangor, Brunel, East Anglia, Edinburgh, Essex, Glasgow, Heriot-Watt, Newcastle, and Southampton, as well as more than two dozen industry and academic partners.

About the Role

We are looking for a passionate and skilled environmental scientist with a specialisation in microbial biotechnology, engineering biology, synthetic biology, molecular biology, metabolic engineering, (or equivalent).

As a part of EBIC, this role will provide research and technical support in general molecular biology and biochemistry activities with a focus on establishing an experimental and analytical pipeline aimed at accelerating synthetic biology, microbial chassis, and engineering biology applications for environmental biotechnologies across the water and waste sectors. Your responsibilities will include actively contributing to the development and scaling up of effective solutions through advancements in biological detection and reporting, engineering enzymes for targeted degradation, and enhancing bioengineered biofilms resilience and efficiency using advanced genetic tools.

As a Research Fellow, you will also contribute to a wide range of activities which result in the scale-up, technical transfer, validation of bioengineering technologies.

About You

You should preferably possess a PhD (or be close to completion) in biotechnology or a related scientific discipline, although candidates with a master's or bachelor's degree in biotechnology or a related field, coupled with significant additional experience, will also be considered.

Demonstrable expertise in biotechnology or a related field is essential, along with theoretical and practical knowledge in various (bio)analytical methods. Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills are required, as well as proficiency in experimental design, execution, and data analysis.

About Us

As a specialist postgraduate university, Cranfield’s world-class expertise, large-scale facilities and unrivalled industry partnerships are creating leaders in technology and management globally. Learn more about Cranfield and our unique impact here.

You will be associated with the Water theme, home to the Water-Environment-Health-Nexus group and the Environmental Biotechnology Innovation Centre led by Prof Frederic Coulon. This centre is committed to tackling the escalating challenges of environmental stewardship and sustainability within the interconnected realms of water, soil, and waste. Considering the global trends such as rapid urbanisation and climate change, sustainable resource management confronts unprecedented risks. The nexus approach recognizes the intricate links between water, soil, and waste, underlining the necessity for coordinated management to navigate sustainable development amidst these complexities.

Our Values and Commitments

Our shared, stated values help to define who we are and underpin everything we do: Ambition; Impact; Respect; and Community. Find out more here.

Working Arrangements

Collaborating and connecting are integral to so much of what we do. Our Working Arrangements Framework provides many staff with the opportunity to flexibly combine on-site and remote working, where job roles allow, balancing the needs of our community of staff, students, clients and partners.

How to apply                                     

For an informal discussion about this opportunity, please contact, Professor Frederic Coulon on (T) 01234 754 981: or (E): f.coulon@cranfield.ac.uk

Closing date for receipt of applications: 14 April 2024

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