Job Description

Ref Number

B09-01288

Professional Expertise

Legal, Governance and Secretariat

Department

Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation and Global Engagement) (B09)

Location

London

Working Pattern

Full time

Salary

54,931-64,644

Contract Type

Permanent

Working Type

Hybrid

Available for Secondment

No

Closing Date

04-Jan-2026

About us

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UCL is a radically different university. Founded in 1826 in the heart of London, we were the first university in England to welcome students of any religion and the first to welcome women to university education. Today UCL has over 50,000 students and 18,000 staff, is one of the world's top 10 universities and is recognised as one of the most successful research institutions in the world, consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2010-2024) and is 2nd in the UK for research power and 1st in London (REF 2021).



UCL is a world-leading research-intensive university with an annual turnover of around 1.8bn. Our research and innovation continue to grow in scale and complexity, with record levels of research income and impact achieved last year.



Playing a key role in supporting the UCL research portfolio of 6,000 active research awards and contracts with an annual research income of 500M, Research and Innovation Services (RIS) supports and advances UCL's position as a world beating research led University. RIS provides high quality research and innovation support that adds value to the academic mission, improves compliance with terms and conditions, policies and regulation, and showcases the expertise of having a centre of excellence of dedicated research and innovation support professionals.



The Contract Services team provide a 'single front door' for all research and innovation-driven contracts on behalf of UCL; the team are responsible for ensuring all contractual terms are in accordance with UCL policy, external regulations, funder and/or partner terms and conditions.

About the role

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We are looking for a Contracts Manager to join UCL's Contract Services team within Research and Innovation Services. This is an important role supporting the University's research activity, helping ensure that our collaborations with funders, universities, industry partners and charities are underpinned by clear, robust and workable agreements.



You will be responsible for reviewing, drafting and negotiating a wide range of research and innovation contracts. This includes advising academic colleagues on contractual issues, ensuring agreements reflect UCL's policies and legal obligations, and working with specialist teams to protect intellectual property and manage risk. The work is varied, often requiring a balanced and pragmatic approach to resolving issues and reaching agreement with external partners.



In addition to managing your own portfolio, you will contribute to improving our processes, sharing good practice and supporting effective ways of working across the team. The role is well suited to someone who enjoys problem-solving, communicating clearly, and helping colleagues move their projects forward with confidence.



Hybrid working is available, with the role based at UCL's Bloomsbury campus.

About you

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You will have a solid grounding in contract law, typically gained through a law degree or equivalent, and experience reviewing and negotiating research or commercial agreements. You will understand key contractual areas such as intellectual property, confidentiality, publication, data protection, liability and indemnity, and feel comfortable applying these in practice.



You will be customer-orientated in your approach, focused on understanding the needs of academic and professional colleagues and providing clear, practical advice that helps them move their work forward. In your contract work, you will take a solutions-focused approach to negotiation, balancing risk and compliance with the need to enable research, and delivering a consistently high standard of customer care.



You will be able to explain complex points clearly, build constructive relationships, and work effectively with colleagues across the University. The role requires good judgement, a pragmatic mindset and the ability to manage a varied workload.



You will also value a professional, collaborative team environment and be keen to contribute to ongoing improvements in how we deliver our service. Experience within the higher education or research sector is helpful but not essential.

What we offer

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What We Offer

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer great benefits some of which are listed below:


41 Days holiday (27 days annual leave 8 bank holiday and 6 closure days) Additional 5 days' annual leave purchase scheme Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE) Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan Immigration loan Relocation scheme for certain posts On-Site nursery On-site gym Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay Employee assistance programme: Staff Support Service Discounted medical insurance

Visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/reward-and-benefits to find out more.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

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Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

As London's Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world's talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong.



We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in UCL's workforce.



These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women.



You can read more about our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/equality-diversity-inclusion.