Jesus College Oxford invites applications for the Bennett Institute Junior Research Fellowship in Applied Health Data Science, tenable for a fixed term of three years from 1 September 2024 or as soon as possible thereafter.

The Fellowship is intended for outstanding candidates who are early career researchers on an independent career track. The focus of the Fellowship is on work that uses or augments the research and data science tools created by the Bennett Institute, including OpenSAFELY.org, OpenPrescribing.net, TrialsTracker, and the Bennett data science policy team.

The successful candidate will have a good first degree in a relevant subject or an equivalent qualification; normally will be in possession of a doctorate in a related field (awarded since 1 September 2019), or close to completion (submission expected within 3 months of taking up the post); have a coherent proposed research programme for the duration of the Fellowship, of a standard which will contribute to and enhance the national and international profile of the field in the University; have a record of publications and other output demonstrating research expertise in the field, appropriate to the career stage of the applicant; be able to communicate their subject clearly; be able to demonstrate why the Bennett Institute and Jesus College are the best place for carrying out the proposed research.

The duties will be to: build an international research profile by engaging in original and high quality research in the field of applied health data science; manage their own research and administrative activities; disseminate the results of research through publications and participation in conferences; engage in knowledge transfer activities; act as Graduate Advisor to postgraduates; attend and co-organise College research symposia.

The primary responsibility of the candidate will be to develop and deliver a programme of research directly aligned to the work of the Bennett Institute: applicants are strongly encouraged to familiarise themselves with that work when developing their proposal. As examples, their work might include: epidemiology research on a range of clinical or methodological topics using electronic health records datasets accessible through tools produced by the Bennett Institute, such as GP records and other linked datasets; health service monitoring and improvement using NHS datasets accessible through OpenPrescribing or OpenSAFELY; development and promotion of open science methods and tools; evaluating methods and tools to protect patient’s privacy in large disclosive datasets; or research into the public understanding of risks associated with research on large datasets containing sensitive personal data.

Applicants should set out a programme of independent work which they will undertake that is closely aligned to that of the Bennett Institute for Applied Data Science. This is a multidisciplinary group that combines skills, knowledge and best practice across two diverse sectors: academia and software engineering. The Bennett team uses those combined skills to deliver traditional high impact academic papers, but also new tools, methods and services that make data more accessible. Key current projects from the Bennett Institute are outlined in the Further Particulars.

Further information on the Junior Research Fellowship may be obtained from the link below.