KINGS COLLEGE LONDON: Postdoctoral Research Associate in Cancer Cell Biology

About Us

King’s College London is an internationally renowned university delivering exceptional education and world-leading research. The university is dedicated to driving positive and sustainable change in society and realising our vision of making the world a better place.  Through its commitment to exceptional education, impactful research and genuine service to society, King’s College London is creating positive change in its communities, both in London and on the world stage. The Strategic Vision 2029 looks forward to King’s College London’s 200th anniversary in 2029 and sets out ambitious plans in five key areas:

• Educating the next generation of change-makers
• Challenging ideas and driving change through research
• Giving back to society through meaningful service
• Working with our local communities in London
• Fostering global citizens with an international perspective

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity for a postdoctoral research associate to join our dynamic, interdisciplinary team to study novel mechano-sensing mechanisms that promote tumorigenesis. The programme aims to dissect how biomechanical changes to the tumour microenvironment influence spatial changes to key pathways regulating cancer cell survival and invasion. The postholder will use a range of state-of-the-art microscopy techniques, molecular biology, and biochemical approaches in advanced 3D culture systems to understand these mechanisms and identify potential therapeutic targets for treatment of cancer. The research will be primarily undertaken at King’s College London within the Randall Centre, a world-renowned hub for biophysics excellence, with additional opportunities to work closely with KCL team members in the Comprehensive Cancer Centre and Biomedical Engineering, as well as with clinical colleagues at UCL. World-class facilities and training are provided, within a dynamic, vibrant and inclusive research environment, with opportunities to engage with industry collaborators to drive translation of findings to a clinical setting.

This is a full time post (35 Hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract from 1st December 2024 to 30th November 2027.

About You

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. BSc and PhD in relevant subject area*
2. Background in cancer cell biology, biomechanics, and/or receptor signalling
3. Prior experience in human cell culture, biochemistry, molecular biology and 3D cell culture
4. Prior experience in advanced fluorescence microscopy and bioimage analysis
5. Experience working in multidisciplinary, collaborative team environments
6. Strong communication skills
7. Ability to write scientific documents and papers
8. Strong presentation skills

Desirable criteria

1. Prior experience working with patient-derived organoids
2. Prior experience working with human tissues
3. Expertise in cytoskeletal signalling pathways

* Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6.

Further Information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King’s.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.

Interviews are provisionally due to be held on 27th or 28th August 2024.

We are able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK.

This post is subject to Occupational Health clearance.