Job Description

Salary

The starting salary will be from 34,132 on Grade E for the Associate level role and from 42,882 on Grade F for the Fellow level role, depending on qualifications and experience.

Contractual hours

36.5

Package

Generous holiday allowances, flexible working, pension scheme and relocation package (if applicable).

Job category/type

Research

Date posted

16/05/2025

Job reference

Q05296

Faculty of Health and Life Sciences

This new full-time post is immediately available until 30 June 2026 on a fixed term basis.

The post

The Faculty wishes to recruit a Postdoctoral Researcher Associate or Fellow to study the biology of pluripotency in the team of Prof Austin Smith. These European Research Council funded posts are available from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026 in the first instance. Based in the interdisciplinary Living Systems Institute, the successful applicants will join a world-leading programme of investigations into the plasticity of pluripotent stem cells and their underlying gene regulatory network. Applicants should be motivated by fundamental scientific curiosity with a particular interest in stem cells and cell fate decisions.



Stem cells matching the emergent state of naive pluripotency in the early embryo have so far been established only from rodents and primates. Our goal is to capture naive pluripotent stem cells from a broad range mammals and to uncover the core gene regulatory network.

In this project signalling environments designed from recent insights will be applied to maintain naive stem cells generated by network resetting, somatic cell reprogramming, and/or direct derivation from livestock embryos. Multimodal profiling, in vitro differentiation and in vivo chimaera formation will be employed to evaluate and validate naive pluripotency. Transcriptomics and network inference will be supported by computational/bioinformatics members of the team. Chimaera studies will be in partnership with our collaborator Ramiro Alberio at the University of Nottingham.

The Living Systems Institute

The Living Systems Institute (LSI) is a cross-Faculty research Institute that combines theory and technology from mathematical and physical sciences with experimental analysis in biology and biomedicine (Living Systems Institute | University of Exeter). Fusing different disciplines empowers discovery across scales; from atoms to organisms, from microbes to humans. LSI's mission is to decode the complex machinery of living systems and harness this understanding to benefit human health and wellbeing.

About you

Postdoctoral Research Associate:

The successful applicant will be able to present information on research progress and outcomes, communicate complex information, orally, in writing and electronically and prepare proposals and applications to external bodies.



Applicants will possess a relevant PhD (or nearing completion) or possess an equivalent qualification/experience in a related field of study and be able to demonstrate sufficient knowledge in developmental and stem cell biology and of research methods and techniques to work within established research programmes. Applicants will be able to design and undertake stem cell culture experiments including molecular and chemical reprogramming, genetic perturbation, signalling pathway manipulation, and gene expression analyses.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow:

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. The successful applicant will be a nationally recognised authority in developmental and stem cell 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 undertake stem cell culture experimentation including molecular and chemical reprogramming, genetic perturbation, signalling pathway manipulation, and gene expression analysis.

Please ensure you read the and Person Specification for full details of this role by clicking on the attachment.

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 Devon.

The University of Exeter

We are a member of the prestigious Russell Group of research-intensive universities and in the top 200 universities in the world (Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024 and QS World University Ranking 2024). We combine world-class teaching with world-class research, achieving a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework Award 2023, underpinned by Gold ratings for Student Experience and Student Outcomes.



Our world-leading research impact has grown more than any other Russell Group university in recent years, and we are home to some of the world's most influential researchers, seeking to answer some of the most fundamental issues facing humankind today. More than 99 percent of our research is of international quality and 47 percent is world-leading (2021 Research Excellence Framework).



We encourage proactive engagement with industry, business and community partners to enhance the impact of research and education and improve the employability of our students. Read about our world leading research - Green Futures and how we are transforming education for a changing world. We are located in a beautiful part of the country and Exeter (a fast growing tech hub) is one of only a few UK cities to have been designated as a UNESCO Creative City

Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Commitment

We are committed to ensuring reasonable adjustments are available for interviews and workplaces.



Whilst all applicants will be judged on merit alone, we particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented within our working community.



With over 30,000 students and 7,000 staff from 150 different countries we offer a diverse and engaging environment where our diversity is celebrated and valued as a major strength. We are committed to creating an inclusive culture where all members of our community are supported to thrive; where diverse voices are heard through our engagement with evidence-based charter frameworks for gender (Athena SWAN and Project Juno for Physics), race equality (Race Equality Charter Mark), LGBTQ+ inclusion (Stonewall Diversity Champion) and as a Disability Confident employer.



We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and welcome applications from service people.

Further information

Before submitting an application you may wish to discuss the post further by contacting Professor Austin Smith, email austin.smith@exeter.ac.uk.