PDRA in Power Electronic Converters in Power Systems

Job reference: SAE-032048
Salary: UoM Grade 6 £37,694 - £46,049 pro rata depending on relevant experience
Faculty/Organisational Unit: Science and Engineering
Location: Oxford Road
Employment type: Fixed Term
Division/Team: Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Hours Per Week: Full time (1 FTE)
Closing date (DD/MM/YYYY): 10/09/2026
Contract Duration: Fixed term for 24 months
School/Directorate: School of Engineering

We are seeking a motivated and collaborative individual to join our team as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Power Systems and Converter Modelling. This role offers an exciting opportunity to contribute to research supporting Britain’s transition towards a cleaner, more sustainable electric power network. You will be based in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Manchester and work as part of a wider pan-university community with strong industrial involvement.

You will be responsible for:

• Reviewing and assessing emerging inverter-based resource and HVDC technologies, including their costs, benefits, technical capabilities and implications for future power system operation.
• Creating appropriate dynamic models of the power network, IBRs and their control for EMT and other time-stepping simulation systems.
• Investigating and evaluating local, supplementary, and system-level controls for inverter-based resources and HVDC systems for variety of use cases.
• Liaising with project investigators, collaborators, and industrial partners.

We welcome candidates who bring diverse perspectives, experiences, and approaches to their work.

About You

We encourage applications from individuals with a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. You should demonstrate:

Essential Criteria

• Have a relevant PhD (or an equivalent combination of education and industrial experience) in power systems incorporating power electronics.
• Expertise in research focussed on the integration of large-scale power electronic devices (e.g. HVDC) within power systems involving dynamic modelling, stability analysis and simulation.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience with EMT simulation of power systems and power electronic converters using PSCAD/EMTDC.

We value transferable skills and real-world experience as much as formal qualifications.

Our benefits include:

• Generous employer contribution pension
• 29 days annual leave plus bank holidays, along with Christmas closure
• Ride to work and EV car scheme available

For more information, please see University of Manchester Benefits. You can also find information on our Flexible and Hybrid working here.

We are an open place of enquiry and challenge. We embrace and celebrate difference, diversity and debate, and we pride ourselves on being a place of education, learning and community where we are able, within the law, to question and test received wisdom, express new ideas and explore controversial or unpopular topics and opinions. Find out more from our Freedom of Speech Policy.

Enquiries about the role, shortlisting and interviews

Name: Mike Barnes

Email: mike.barnes@manchester.ac.uk

General enquiries and administrative support

recruitmentservices.people@manchester.ac.uk

Technical and job portal support

https://jobseekersupport.jobtrain.co.uk/support/home

Applications close at midnight on the closing date.

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