Job Description

Job Category: Academic
:
Grade UE07: 40,497 - 48,149 per annum
CMVM / Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences
Full-time: 35 hours per week
Fixed-term: 2 years in the first instance
We are looking for a postdoctoral Research Fellow to join the Rajani Lab as part of the new national BHF-UK DRI Centre for Vascular Dementia Research.
The Opportunity:
The Rajani Lab investigates the mechanisms of white matter damage in vascular and other dementias. We use a range of innovative methodologies and models to understand oligodendrocyte changes in vascular disease, and the interaction of these with neuronal activity. In this project the Research Fellow will use advanced techniques to investigate and manipulate neuronal activity in rodent models of vascular dementia, with the aim of understanding how this affects white matter.
Your skills and attributes for success:

• A PhD (or close to completion) in neuroscience or other relevant discipline.
• Extensive experience with in vivo two-photon calcium imaging.
• Ability to work independently.
• Proactive and creative independent thinker.
• Ability to problem-solve and troubleshoot technical difficulties.

Informal enquiries regarding the role can be addressed to Dr Rikesh Rajani ( ).
Click to view a copy of the (opens new browser tab).
Application Information
Please ensure you include the following documents in your application:

• CV
• Cover letter

As a valued member of our team you can expect:

• A competitive salary.
• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging and rewarding place to work.
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community.
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, such as a generous holiday entitlement, competitive pension schemes, staff discounts, and family-friendly initiatives. Check out the full list on our

(opens in a new tab) and use our reward calculator to discover the total value of your pay and benefits.
Championing equality, diversity and inclusion
The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter and we are also Stonewall Scotland Diversity Champions, actively promoting LGBT equality.
Prior to any employment commencing with the University you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our (opens new browser tab).
The University is able to sponsor the employment of international workers in this role. If successful, an international applicant requiring sponsorship to work in the UK will need to satisfy the UK Home Office's English Language requirements and apply for and secure a Skilled Worker Visa.
Key dates to note
The closing date for applications is 13th August 2025.
Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm GMT. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browsers local time zone.
Interviews will be held within 4 weeks of the closing date.
About Us: As a world-leading research-intensive University, we are here to address tomorrow's greatest challenges. Between now and 2030 we will do that with a values-led approach to teaching, research and innovation, and through the strength of our relationships, both locally and globally.
About the Team:
The Edinburgh Medical School: Biomedical Sciences, which is headed by Professor Mike Shipston, employs around 390 staff. Biomedical Sciences hosts the Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences (CDBS, Head: Professor David Wyllie) and Infection Medicine (IM, Head: Professor Juergen Haas). These have strong links with Edinburgh Neuroscience (Co-Directors: Professor Cathy Abbott and Professor Malcolm MacLeod) and Edinburgh Infectious Diseases (EID, Co-Directors: Professor David Dockrell and Professor Sarah Reece). Research themes within Biomedical Sciences include: Genes and Development; Synapses Circuits & Behaviour; Injury & Repair; Signalling, homeostasis & Energy Balance; Ageing & Degeneration; Antimicrobial Resistance; Host-pathogen interactions; Global Health and Diagnostics Research. Our excellence in research is underpinned by the hosting within Biomedical Sciences of the UK Dementia Research Initiative (UKDRI) at Edinburgh (Head: Prof Giles Hardingham) and the Simons Initiative for the Developing Brain (Head: Prof Peter Kind).
Also within Biomedical Sciences is the Biomedical Teaching Organisation (BMTO) which plays a vital role in the administration, coordination and implementation of undergraduate and postgraduate teaching. The BMTO is responsible for the BSc Medical Sciences programme and twelve BSc Biomedical Sciences Honours Programmes. Twenty-three Biomedical Sciences courses are delivered to first to third year undergraduates and approximately thirty Honours elective courses along with seven Bachelor of Medical Sciences Honours programmes as part of the Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery (MBChB) degree and five BSc Veterinary Sciences Honours Programmes as part of the Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine & Surgery (BVM&S) degree. In addition, the BMTO has responsibility for a large portfolio of on-campus and online MSc programmes run by Biomedical Sciences. The BMTO student population is approximately 1500 undergraduate students and 550 postgraduate students.
Biomedical Sciences is also home to The Zhejiang University - University of Edinburgh (ZJE) Institute which is the University's flagship overseas institution for education and scientific research. The partnership is responsible for two Dual Award BSc Honours programmes as well as a Dual Award PhD programme and a one-year Masters by Research Programme and 4 Year PhD programme.
Biomedical Sciences is located across a number of sites: the Chancellor's Building and Queen's Medical Research Institute at Little France; the Medical School in Teviot Place; the Hugh Robson Building, George Square and No 1 George Square.
In REF2021, the College submitted to three Units of Assessment (UoAs): UoA1 Clinical Medicine, UoA4, Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience, and UoA6 Agriculture, Veterinary & Food Science. Most of the staff in Biomedical Sciences were returned in UoA4 (Neuroscience); this return was ranked 2nd in the UK for "quality" and 3rd in the UK for "power". Edinburgh's submission is the only one in the UK to have been ranked in the top three for both of these descriptors. Fifty two percent our research papers were awarded the highest score of 4*, defined as world-leading, and a further 38% were rated 3*, defined as internationally excellent. Moreover, 100% of our ten impact case studies were awarded 4*, meaning they are world-leading in reach and significance and 100% of our environment was awarded 4*, meaning the context in which our research takes place is world-leading in vitality and sustainability.
Biomedical Sciences holds a Bronze Athena SWAN award denoting our commitment to the aims of the Charter, showing that we have recognised and responded to challenges and planned activities for the future.