Job Description

Ref Number
B02-06139
Professional Expertise
Research and Research Support
Department
School of Life & Medical Sciences (B02)
Location
London
Working Pattern
Full time
Salary
See advert text
Contract Type
Fixed-term
Working Type
On site (> 80% of working time)
Available For Secondment
No
Closing Date
09-Jan-2024

About us

This is an exciting opportunity to join a team of researchers led by Dr Anna Sadnicka based at the Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences (DCMN) and Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit (GCNU), University College London. The team will be working on a new project that will be using computer vision and wireless neurophysiology/motion capture to study patients with movement disorders.

The DCMN, Queen Square Institute of Neurology is a world-leading group that brings together expertise across the clinical and basic science spectrum of the physiology and pathology of human movement and movement disorders. The Gatsby Unit is a world-leading centre for research in Theoretical Neuroscience and Machine Learning. Both units provide exemplary environments in which a critical mass of researchers interact closely with each other and with other world-class research groups in related departments at UCL.

About the role

We are looking for a research assistant with strong methods background that can contribute their technical skills to the team.

The overriding goal of this Wellcome Trust funded research project is to create a large open-source library of clinical movement disorders so that the behavioural patterns of movement disorders (phenotype) can be quantified and better understood. We will examine the hyperkinetic movement disorders that include chorea, dystonia, myoclonus, tics and tremor providing an exposure to patients with a wide range of different clinical movement disorders. Working in close collaboration with clinical teams at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN) you will help recruit and consent patients and collect data from research interviews.
Individuals will perform a wide range of tasks and this will be captured using video that allows pose extraction (e.g. DeepLabCut) and wireless neurophysiology (electromyography, EMG) and motion capture (inertial measurement units). After curating the datasets you will help analyse data to identify differences across the major categories of hyperkinetic movement disorders. You will be involved in the writing of research papers and the dissemination of results with funding to attend a training workshop or conference.

You will also work together with a research neuro-physiotherapist getting insight into how neurorehabilitation can be used across movement disorders.

Within the role there will be scope to develop your own related research project. You will also have the opportunity to attend regular clinical academic movement disorders research meetings and sit in movement disorders clinics with consultant neurologists.

Salary will be in the range \xc2\xa337,332 - \xc2\xa338,966. This post is initially funded for 12 months.
Part-time applicants are encouraged as the post can be modified to fit around other commitments.

About you

You should have an MSc degree or equivalent in a relevant subject area such as neuroscience, computer science or data science and programming experience (python and/or matlab). Experience of working with behiavioural data, electrophysiology data and/or post estimation using computer vision is highly desirable.

In addition to a person with the required technical skills we are looking for someone with a strong interest to apply this skillset to real-world problems such as improving clinical care for patients with movement disorders. You should have an excitement for the insights the quantification of movement disorders could reveal.

What we offer

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits including: \xe2\x80\xa2 41 Days holiday (27 days annual leave, 8 bank holidays and 6 closure days) \xe2\x80\xa2 An additional 5 days\xe2\x80\x99 annual leave purchase scheme \xe2\x80\xa2 Generous pension scheme \xe2\x80\xa2 Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan \xe2\x80\xa2 Employee assistance programme \xe2\x80\xa2 Staff Support Service. Please see the link in attached job decription for more information.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

As London\xe2\x80\x99s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world\xe2\x80\x99s 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\xe2\x80\x99s workforce. These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women.