Research Assistant / Research Fellow (0.40 FTE)

About us

UCL is one of the world’s leading multi-disciplinary universities. We operate in a global context and are committed to excellence, innovation and the promotion of global understanding in all our activities: research, teaching, learning, enterprise and community engagement. Founded in 1826, UCL was the first university in England to admit students regardless of race, religion or gender. It continues to thrive on the creativity and diversity of its community which today comprises more than 13,000 staff and 18,300 undergraduates and 20,600 postgraduate students from 150 different countries across the globe. UCL is consistently ranked within the world’s top ten universities (QS World University Rankings).

The Department of Political Science at UCL is a leading international centre for political research. It offers a uniquely stimulating environment for the study of all major fields of politics, as well as public management and public policy. Over 150 people make up the Department of Political Science including academic, teaching, and research staff, professional services, and MPhil/PhD students (for an overview of our research, see https://www.ucl.ac.uk/drupal/site_political-science/research). More details about the Department of Political Science and UCL can be found below and at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/political-science/ and https://www.ucl.ac.uk/about/.

The Digital Speech Lab hosts research on the proper governance of the digital public sphere, investigating how to uphold free speech while protecting democratic norms and institutions from threats. Our Digital Civics Initiative trains UCL undergraduates to run sessions with London-area school students, developing the skills of effective citizenship in the digital age.

About the role

The Department of Political Science is seeking to appoint a Research Fellow (or Research Assistant) in Politics, Philosophy, and Digital Civic Education. The post-holder will co-lead our effort to expand the activities of the Digital Speech Lab to engage UCL undergraduates, in two principal ways.

First, the post-holder will supervise a team of undergraduates to deliver “digital citizenship” seminars in London-area secondary schools. The seminars engage students in critical debate on what it means to be good democratic citizens in the digital age, with special attention to the promises and problems of social media and artificial intelligence.

Second, the post-holder will assist in recruiting and assigning undergraduates to serve as research assistants to UCL faculty working on projects connected to the Lab’s themes.

The position is available as soon as possible from September 2026, for 12 months. Candidates who have been awarded a PhD will be appointed at Grade 7 (full-time equivalent salary £45,103 per annum, including London Allowance). Candidates without a PhD will be appointed at Grade 6 (full-time equivalent salary £39,148 per annum, including London Allowance). Salary will be pro rata based on a 0.40 FTE appointment.

This part-time role is ideal for someone who is currently pursuing a postgraduate degree or working flexibly in this field. The role requires flexibility in working hours to accommodate fluctuations in workload across the school year, based on an average of 14 hours per week.

The post-holder will be a full member of the Digital Speech Lab, welcome to all events and meetings.

Customer advert reference: B03-03213

Advert information