Research Fellow (111762-0626)

Location: University of Warwick Campus, Coventry

Duration: Fixed term contract for 30 months

About the Role 

Informal Queries

• For informal queries, please contact Dr Mark Greenhalgh (Associate Professor) at mark.greenhalgh@warwick.ac.uk

Flexible Working

• We will consider applications for employment on a part-time or other flexible working basis (e.g. job share), despite the position being advertised as full-time.

Applications are invited for a post-doctoral research associate to work as part of a team under the supervision of Mark Greenhalgh in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Warwick on enantioselective chalcogen bonding catalysis. This post is currently advertised for 30 months but there is a possibility that this may be extended for an additional 6 months.

Chalcogen bonding is an unconventional non-covalent interaction that arises between Lewis acidic chalcogen-containing molecules (S, Se, Te) and Lewis bases. Chalcogen bonding provides similar binding energies to hydrogen bonding; however, it is proposed that chalcogen bonding differs in its fundamental origin, potentially providing advantages in substrate selectivity when harnessed for applications in molecular recognition and catalysis. There has been significant recent interest in applying chalcogen bonding in catalysis, however the development of enantioselective variants is currently underexplored.

The project will build upon promising preliminary results to design and apply chiral chalcogen bond donors as enantioselective catalysts. A range of enantioselective transformations will be explored, including conjugate additions, cycloadditions and anion binding catalysis. The scope and limitations of the methods will be explored, with a particular focus on comparing our work to established methods to demonstrate examples where chalcogen bonding catalysis may provide a genuine advantage.

In this role, you will help lead the research group and work with them to generate new research ideas. You will have the opportunity to develop your written communication skills through the preparation of results for publication and your oral skills through dissemination of your work at internal and external seminars/conferences. You will also have the opportunity to supervise project students, be involved in departmental teaching activities, and engage in continuous professional development

About You  

We are seeking a motivated and talented applicant with experience in synthetic organic chemistry. The successful candidate will need to be able to work well both individually and collaboratively as part of a team Experience of working on (enantioselective) catalytic methodologies is desirable.

For details on the experience and skills required, please refer to the job description as a PDF below. 

JD Research Fellow (111762).pdf – 111KB

PhD Status

If you are near submission of your PhD, or have not yet had it conferred, any offers of employment will be made at Research Assistant level, at the highest spinal point of pay grade 5 (£34,610 per annum).

Upon receipt of evidence confirming the successful award of your PhD, you will be promoted to Research Fellow, at the lowest spinal point of grade 6 (£35,608 per annum).

Closing Deadline: Wednesday 15th July 2026 at 11:55 pm (UK Time) 

Full details of the duties and selection criteria for this role can be found in the vacancy advert on the University of Warwick's jobs pages. You will be routed to this when you click on the 'Apply' button.

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