Job Description

Research Assistant

(

Job Number:

25001061

)

Department of Geography
Grade 6: - 30,805 - 36,130 per annum
Fixed Term - Full Time

Contract Duration

24 months

Contracted Hours per Week

35

Working Arrangements

TBC

Closing Date

28-Aug-2025, 5:59:00 PM

Disclosure and Barring Service Requirement

Not Applicable.

The University

At Durham University we are proud of our people. A globally outstanding centre of educational excellence, a collegiate community of extraordinary people, a unique and historic setting - Durham is a university like no other. We believe that inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things professionally and personally.

Across the University we have a huge variety of roles and career opportunities, which together make us a large and successful community, which is a key hub of activity within our region and nationally. We would be thrilled if you would consider joining our thriving University. Further information about the University can be found here.

The Department

The Department of Geography at Durham comprises 65 academic staff (approximately equally divided between Human and Physical geography), a graduate school of around 100 research students, around 40 taught postgraduate students and 850 undergraduates. The Department is well supported with technical staff, including a cartography unit, and administrative staff.


The Department was ranked joint first for research quality among UK geography departments in REF2021. 54% of our outputs were classed as 'world leading' and more than 92% as 'world leading' or internationally excellent'. The most recent QS rankings for Geography placed Durham 16th overall in the world. The department is recurrently ranked in the top handful of programmes in the UK by various league tables; for example, we were ranked 1st in the 2025 Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide, and 4th in the 2025 Complete University Guide.


Our aim is to sustain and support hubs of leadership in geographical scholarship - broadly conceived. We will maintain our reputation for theoretical and conceptual innovation so that we are shaping and leading debates globally.


We will continue to engage concepts and materials from across disciplinary boundaries to renew geographical scholarship and bring geographical perspectives to bear in other domains. We work across every continent and most major oceans and embrace the full diversity of methods and data available to the discipline.


We are further developing our core undergraduate programmes and will be recruiting world leading staff accordingly to ensure these programmes continue to offer the highest quality of education that develop students with skills to advance scholarly and public debates to which geography is central. The quality of our undergraduate students, and the degree programmes which ensue, combine with our large graduate school to provide a teaching experience for staff that is truly excellent.

The Role

A 24-month fixed term full time Research Assistant (RA) position is available in the Department of Geography at Durham University. The successful candidate will join the project 'V2C: Viking To Christian Landscapes Across The Norweigain Sea: Agricultural Trajectories And Resilience Usng SedaDNA and Fecal Lipids'. The project is led at Durham by Dr Helen Mackay and is funded by the Research Council of Norway.


As a RA on this project, the successful applicant will be required to develop reconstructions of human and animal activity from lakes and wetlands close to Viking-Medieval archaeological sites in northern Norway and Scotland using faecal steroid lipid biomarkers. Faecal steroid reconstrutions for the last 1500 years will be compared to other proxies of environmental change (such as sedaDNA, pollen and pXRF) and archaeological evidence developed by collaborators at the The Arctic University of Norway, University of Bergen and Universities of the Highlands and Islands. The wider project will provide a new comprenshive understanding of the balance of cultural and environmental factors in landscape history from the Viking to Christian periods in northern Norway and the Northern Isles, UK. The main responsibilities of the RA will be to develop faecal steroid datasets from lake sediments by processing sediment samples for gas chromatography analysis in a containment level 2 (CL2) laboratory, following established laboratory protocols, assisting with quality control, troubleshooting, and running of GC-FID and GC-MS. A further responsibility will be to prepare data, figures and text for publication and to communicate the interim and final findings of the research at collaborator workshops and other scientific meetings.


This is a great opportunity to work as part of a friendly team on a cutting-edge project. The RA will have access to outstanding resources including laboratory facilities.


The successful candidate will have demonstrated experience in creating geochemical data and in compiling and presenting geochemical data sets. Previous experience of working with sedimentary archives to reconstruct environmental change and/or organic geochemical analysis would be an advantage.


Responsibilities:

To lead the production of faecal steroid biomarker reconstructions from lake sedimentary archives, using organic geochemical and gas chromatography laboratory analyses. To understand and convey information which needs careful explanation to the team or group of people through presentations, discussions and meetings which contribute to the production of research reports and publications. To write up results of research work, present information on research progress and outcomes to bodies supervising research in a clear and accurate manner. To analyse or undertake basic research by deciding how best to apply existing methodology according to overall context and objectives. To deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines by discussing with the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder and offering creative or innovative solutions. To liaise with research colleagues and make internal and external contacts to develop knowledge and understanding to form relationships for future research collaboration. To contribute to the planning of research projects. To assist in contributing to support student projects on the use of research methods and equipment. To contribute to fostering a collegial and respectful working environment which is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect. To engage in wider citizenship to support the department and wider discipline. To engage in continuing professional development by attending relevant training and development courses. Any other reasonable duties

This post is fixed term for 24 months. The funding is available from 01.11.2025 and the project is time-limited and will end on 31.12.2027. Successful applicants will, ideally, be in post by 1st November 2025, but must start no later than 5th January 2026


The post-holder is employed to work on research/a research project which will be led by another colleague. Whilst this means that the post-holder will not be carrying out independent research in his/her own right, the expectation is that they will contribute to the advancement of the project, through the development of their own research ideas/adaptation and development of research protocols.


Successful applicants will, ideally, be in post by 1st November 2025

Working at Durham

A competitive salary is only one part of the many fantastic benefits you will receive if you join the University: you will also receive access to the following fantastic benefits:

30 Days annual leave per year in addition to 8 public holidays and 4 customary days per year - a total of 42 days per year. The University closes between Christmas and New Year We offer a generous pension scheme, As a new member of staff you will be automatically enrolled into the University Superannuation Scheme (USS). No matter how you travel to work, we have you covered. We have parking across campus, a cycle to work scheme which helps you to buy a bike and discount with local bus and train companies. There is a genuine commitment to developing our colleagues professionally and personally. There is a comprehensive range of development courses, apprenticeships and access to qualifications and routes to develop your career in the University. All staff have dedicated annual time to concentrate on their personal development opportunities. Lots of support for health and wellbeing including discounted membership for our state of the art sport and gym facilities and access to a 24-7 Employee Assistance Programme. On site nursery is available plus access to holiday camps for children aged 5-16. Family friendly policies, including maternity and adoption leave, which are among the most generous in the higher education sector (and likely above and beyond many employers). The opportunity to take part in staff volunteering activities to make a difference in the local community Discounts are available via our benefits portal including; money off at supermarkets, high street retailers, IT products such as Apple, the cinema and days out at various attractions. A salary sacrifice scheme is also available to help you take advantage of tax savings on benefits. If you are moving to Durham, you may be eligible for help with removal costs and we have a dedicated team who can help you with the practicalities such as house hunting and schools. If you need a visa, we cover most visa costs and offer an interest free loan scheme to pay for dependant visas.

Discover more about our total rewards and benefits package here.

Durham University is committed to equality diversity, inclusion and values

Our collective aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and we believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work. As a University equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key part of the University's Strategy and a central part of everything we do. We also live by our values and our Staff Code of Conduct. At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. It's important to us that all of our colleagues are aligned to both our values and commitment to EDI.


We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our work force including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. If you have taken time out of your career, and you feel it relevant, let us know about it in your application. If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role.

Contact Information

Department contact for academic-related enquiries

For further information regarding this post, please contact Dr Helen Mackay (helen.mackay@durham.ac.uk)

Contact information for technical difficulties when submitting your application

If you encounter technical difficulties when using the online application form, we prefer you send enquiries by email. Please send your name along with a brief description of the problem you're experiencing to e.recruitment@durham.ac.uk


Alternatively, you may call 0191 334 6801 from the UK, or +44 191 334 6801 from outside the UK. This number operates during the hours of 09.00 and 17.00 Monday to Friday, UK time. We will normally respond within one working day (Monday to Friday, excluding UK public holidays).

University contact for general queries about the recruitment process

How to Apply

To progress to the assessment stage, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification below. It will be at the discretion of the recruiting panel as to whether they will also consider any desirable criteria, but we would urge candidates to provide evidence for all criteria.


While some criteria will be considered at the shortlisting stage, other criteria may be considered later in the assessment process, such as questions at interview.

Submitting your application

We prefer to receive applications online. We will update you about your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to make sure you have not missed any of our updates.

What to Submit

All applicants are asked to submit:

a CV and covering letter which details your experience, skills and achievements in meeting (or the potential to meet) the criteria set out below.

We will notify you on the status of your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to ensure you receive all emails.

Next Steps

Short-listed candidates will be invited to the University, either virtually or in-person and will have the opportunity to meet key members of the Department. The assessment for the post will normally include an interview and a short presentation to the panel on your previous experience. We anticipate that the assessments and interviews will take place in or around week commencing 15th September.


In the event that you are unable to attend in person on the date offered, it may not be possible to offer you an interview on an alternative date.


Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement Job Applicants/Potential Job Applicants - Durham University which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.


When appointing to this role the University must ensure that it meets any applicable immigration requirements, including salary thresholds which are applicable to some visas.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria:

A good first degree in Geography, Earth Sciences, Environmental Science, Chemistry or a related subject.

Experience in conducting basic academic research or providing research assistance, including the use of standard research methods to generate data and present it to others. Demonstrable ability to produce concise and well-written reports for a range of stakeholders. Experience in geochemical sample preparation and analyses. Experience of running sophisticated laboratory instruments such as spectrophotometers, gas chromatographs, mass spectrometers. Ability to solve problems and resolve issues, plan solutions and make pragmatic decisions. Demonstrable ability to work cooperatively as part of a team, including participating in research meetings. Ability to manage time effectively and work to strict deadlines. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills. Ability to liaise with a range of stakeholders.

Desirable Criteria:

A postgraduate degree (or be close to submission) in Geography, Earth Sciences, Environmental Science, Chemistry or a related subject Experience of conducting high quality academic research.

Ability to assist in the provision of support to student projects. Experience in solvent extraction and organic geochemistry clean-up methods. Extensive knowledge and experience of monitoring activities of self and others to ensure health and safety regulations are adhered to. Knowledge and experience of working with sedimentary archives for environment change research. Experience of geochemical data visualisation and statistical analysis * Ability to contribute to the planning and management of independent research.