Postdoctoral Research Fellow

This new, full-time position is available from April 2026 on a fixed-term contract until February 2027.

We welcome applications from candidates interested in working part-time hours or job-sharing arrangements.

The post

The Faculty wishes to recruit a Postdoctoral Research Fellow to participate in the development and refinement of a Web-App describing the demography of owned and unowned cats in the United Kingdom, alongside primary research investigating the population biology of owned and unowned cats. This research, funded by Cats Protection and involving them as full collaborators, is available from 1^st April 2026 to 21^st February 2027, based on the Cornwall Campus of the University of Exeter. The successful applicant will work closely with Exeter and Cats protection researchers and IT support to develop and share a Web-App, developed in the RShiny software environment, describing geographic variation in the demography of owned and unowned cats in the UK.  

The post will include full membership of an established “companion animal” research cluster on the Cornwall Campus of the University of Exeter; involvement in the supervision of postgraduate research students; management of deadlines and research priorities; collaborative writing of review and primary research papers; presentation of findings to funder and conference audiences. 

About you

The successful applicant will be able to develop research objectives, projects and proposals; identify sources of research funding and contribute to the process of securing funds and make presentations at conferences and other events.

Applicants will possess a relevant PhD or equivalent qualification/experience in a related field of study, and will have experience in the coding and development of RShiny apps. The successful applicant will be a nationally recognised authority in web-app development and/or population biology and possess sufficient specialist knowledge in the discipline to develop research programmes and methodologies. The successful applicant will also be able to work collaboratively, supervise the work of others and act as team leader as required. Applicants will be able to work comfortably in the RShiny software environment, and will have strong understanding of population biology and demography.

Please ensure you read the Job Description and Person Specification for full details of this role.

What we can offer you

• Freedom (and the support) to pursue your intellectual interests and to work creatively across disciplines to produce internationally exciting research;
• Support teams that understand the University wide research and teaching goals and partner with our academics accordingly
• An Innovation, Impact and Business directorate that works closely with our academics providing specialist support for external engagement and development
• Our Exeter Academic initiative supporting high performing academics to achieve their potential and develop their career
• A multitude of staff benefits including sector leading benefits around maternity, adoption and shared parental leave (up to 26 weeks full pay), Paternity leave (up to 6 weeks full pay), and a Fertility Treatment Policy
• A beautiful campus set in the heart of stunning Cornwall

The University of Exeter

The University of Exeter is an equal opportunity employer. We are officially recognised as a Disability Confident employer and an Athena Swan accredited institution. Whilst all applicants will be judged on merit alone, we particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented in the workforce. 

Further information

For further information please contact Professor Dave Hodgson, e-mail d.j.hodgson@exeter.ac.uk 

Please apply via the ‘Apply’ button above.

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