Research Fellow

Dementia is the greatest health challenge of our century.

To date there is no way to prevent it or even slow its progression, and there is an urgent need to fill the knowledge gap in our basic understanding of these diseases.

The UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI) is the biggest UK initiative supporting research to fill this gap.

Research in the Hall Lab, based in the UK DRI at UCL and the BHF-UK DRI Centre for Vascular Dementia Research, aims to untangle if and how the balance between the brain’s energy supply and demand shapes its activity, and especially how changes in this balance promote the emergence of vascular and Alzheimer’s dementia.

We are now recruiting a postdoctoral researcher to join the Hall Lab at UCL and work on an exciting projects defining how brain function is affected by a dysfunctional vasculature, and how blood vessels become damaged during dementia. You will interrogate the mechanisms underlying changes in neurovascular function change in the brain during dementia risk, early dementia, and during mild disruptions to the brain’s energy supply. Projects will use physiological, molecular and biochemical approaches to dissect mechanisms producing neurovascular changes observed in models of Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia.

The role is available from 01 February 2026 and funded by the British Heart Foundation/UK DRI for two years in the first instance.

If you need reasonable adjustments or a more accessible format to apply for this job online, or have any queries regarding the application process, please contact the Institute of Neurology HR Team (ion.hradmin at ucl.ac.uk).

Informal enquiries regarding the role can be addressed to Professor Catherine Hall (catherine.hall at ucl.ac.uk).

Application deadline: 23:59, Sunday, 04 January 2026.

For a full job description please visit UCL’s online recruitment portal (https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/search-ucl-jobs) and search using vacancy reference B02-09729. To apply, please upload a current CV, complete the online application form, and use the supporting statement section or upload a cover letter to outline how you meet the essential and desirable criteria for the role. Please do not upload any additional attachments as these will not be considered by the selection panel.

You’ll have a PhD in neuroscience, life sciences, or a related field, and the ability to develop new ideas and methods, generate research hypotheses, and design experiments to test these. A strong background in statistical analysis and specialist technical expertise in one or more of the experimental methods relevant for the project is essential, as is an understanding of and interest in the research work of the UK DRI, and excellent organisational, interpersonal, and communication skills.

Starting salary offered at £45,103 - £48,679 per annum, inclusive of London Allowance.

Appointment as Research Fellow is dependent upon having been awarded a PhD; if this is not the case, initial appointment will be as Research Assistant (salary £39,148 - £41,833 per annum) with appointment as Research Fellow being backdated to the date of final submission of the PhD thesis.

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits; visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/reward-and-benefits to find out more.

Customer advert reference: B02-09729

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