Research Assistant/Associate in Galaxy Formation, Dynamics and Evolution

Fixed-term: The funds for this post is available to 30th September 2025 in the first instance.

A postdoctoral position is available at the Institute of Astronomy, funded by a Leverhulme Grant to Professors Vasily Belokurov and Wyn Evans to study "The Faint Universe made visible with Machine Learning".

Candidates should hold a PhD (or be near to completion) in astronomy, physics, maths or a related field and have research expertise in one or more of the following fields: galactic astronomy and dynamics, numerical simulations of galaxy formation, machine learning and computational statistics, astronomical spectroscopy, wide-field surveys, or any allied areas of theoretical/observational astrophysics. Expertise with handling large datasets is a distinct advantage. Prior experience with photometric, astrometric and spectroscopic surveys such as Gaia, SDSS, DES and APOGEE is also helpful.

Appointment at Research Associate level (grade 7) requires proof of PhD award and the salary range is from £34,308 to £42,155. For those who have submitted but not yet received their PhD, the appointment will initially be made as Research Assistant (grade 5) with a salary range of £27,929 to £32,348 but later amended to Research Associate on proof of award.

Informal inquires may be directed to Professor Vasily Belokurov (vasily(at)ast.cam.ac.uk) or Professor Wyn Evans (nwe(at)ast.cam.ac.uk) in the first instance.

The positions are available from 1st January 2023, with deferred start dates up to October 2023 possible for suitable candidates.

The University of Cambridge thrives on the diversity of its staff and students. Applications from underrepresented groups are particularly welcome. The University has several family-friendly policies and initiatives, including a returning-carer scheme, childcare costs support, University workplace nurseries, University holiday play-schemes, and a shared parental-leave policy. As part of its commitment to providing a family-friendly environment for researchers, the Institute ensures that should parental leave be needed during the course of employment, there is provision for extension to contract to compensate for the parental leave taken.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

Applications will be reviewed after the closing date an short-listed candidates will be interviewed as soon as possible thereafter.

Please submit your application by 23:59 (GMT) of the closing date of Thursday, 1st December 2022. If you have any queries about your application please contact the Senior HR -Co-ordinator by email (hr(at)ast.cam.ac.uk).

Please quote reference LG33561 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.