Job Description

Building and Campus: David Goldberg Centre, Denmark Hill Campus & Melbourne House, Strand Campus

Job description

Applications are invited from highly motivated candidates for a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join our ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health (CSMH, ). The Centre brings together a unique mix of disciplines. Its ethos is to ensure that the social context is recognised as central to how we think about, understand, and respond to mental ill-health.

The post will contribute to the successful conduct and completion of the \'Social Change, Transitions and Young Mental Health\' programme (co-led by Prof. Craig Morgan & Prof. Helen Fisher) which focuses on investigating trajectories of mental health during the transition from adolescence to adulthood, with a particular focus on coordinating data collection and analysing data from the existing REACH cohort (Resilience, Ethnicity and AdolesCent mental health; ) which is embedded in the programme.

REACH investigates the developmental origins of mental health among young people from diverse backgrounds. Since its inception in 2015 (originally funded by the European Commission), over 4000 young people from South London secondary schools have taken part, providing detailed information, each year, on their mental health and putative risk and protective factors for mental health problems. Around 800 participants have also provided in-depth information about their mental health and life experiences via face-to-face interviews and tasks. The latest phase of REACH (waves 4-6) investigated the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on young people from disadvantaged and marginalised groups.

About the role:

We are looking for a Research Associate with excellent knowledge of child and adolescent mental health and of social determinants of health to be an integral part of our established interdisciplinary team of researchers both in the CSMH and the wider Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience.

Working closely with Prof. Craig Morgan, you will be responsible for coordinating the next wave of REACH data collection, developing, and implementing strategies to maximise engagement and cohort retention, with a focus on diverse and under-represented groups, contributing to data analysis and the publishing of research findings in peer-reviewed journals, and extending REACH\'s public engagement programme which involves young people and schools in all aspects of the research.

This post provides an excellent opportunity to contribute to high impact quantitative research, and to inform the policy conversations around young people and mental health. We will also support you in developing of your academic career, including through fellowship applications and other applications to external research funders (whether led by you or by others in the team), exploring collaborations with others, and research and wider professional skills development through local Early Career Researcher Networks and the College\'s wider training programme.

About you:

We would like you to demonstrate your experience, particularly in relation to the following criteria:

• Knowledge and experience of cohort studies and quantitative research methods.
• Proven ability to work in an interdisciplinary and diverse team, including with young people, community partners and experts by experience.
• Excellent organisational and project management skills.

Contract type

This post will be offered on an a fixed term contract until 31st December 2024, with a view to extending, funding permitted.

This is a full-time post.

\xc2\xa342,405 to \xc2\xa345,932 per annum, including London Weighting Allowance

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