Research Fellow - Department of Cardiovascular Sciences - 108207 - Grade 7

Position Details

Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, College of Medicine and Health

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

As this vacancy has limited funding the maximum salary that can be offered is Grade 7, salary £36,636.

Grade: 7

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to January 2028

Closing date: 9th November 2026.

This role is also open as an internal secondment opportunity which would need to be agreed by your current line manager.

Background

This position is based within the research group of Professor Melanie Madhani in the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences at the University of Birmingham. The post will focus on identifying and developing novel therapeutic approaches for the treatment of hypertension.

This post would be ideally suited to a recently qualified PhD graduate or postdoctoral researcher with relevant cardiovascular experience and knowledge, including experience working with patient-derived blood and adipose tissue samples. Applicants should have a strong understanding of cardiovascular physiology, together with a broad background in ex vivo vascular functional pharmacology, including experience with vascular reactivity studies and wire myography. Expertise in redox biochemistry and metabolism would be highly desirable, particularly in relation to vascular signalling and cardiovascular disease.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work within a multidisciplinary cardiovascular research environment, applying complementary physiological, biochemical and molecular approaches to investigate novel mechanisms and therapeutic targets in hypertension.

Role Summary

• Work within specified research grants and projects and contribute to writing bids
• Operate within area of specialism
• Analyse and interpret research findings and results
• Contribute to generating funding
• Contribute to licensing or spin out deals with demonstrated commercial success (such as revenues, asset or company sales, IP generated) and/or public understanding of the discipline or similar

Main Duties

The responsibilities may include some but not all of the responsibilities outlined below.

• Develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research, with assistance of a mentor if required
• Contribute to writing bids for research funding
• Analyse and interpret data
• Apply knowledge in a way which develops new intellectual understanding
• Disseminate research findings for publication, research seminars etc
• Supervise students on research related work and provide guidance to MRes/PhD students where appropriate to the discipline
• Contribute to developing new models, techniques and methods
• Undertake management/administration arising from research
• Contribute to Departmental/School research-related activities and research-related administration
• Contribute to enterprise, business development and/or public engagement activities of manifest benefit to the College and the University, often under supervision of a project leader
• Collect research data; this may be through a variety of research methods, such as scientific experimentation, literature reviews, and research interviews
• Present research outputs, including drafting academic publications or parts thereof, for example at seminars and as posters
• Provide guidance, as required, to support staff and any students who may be assisting with the research
• Deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines
• Fosters a fair and equitable workplace for all staff
• Identify and respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant university policies and procedures
• Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity duties document.

Person Specification

• A PhD (or near completion) in Cardiovascular Sciences, cardiovascular physiology, pharmacology, or a related discipline, or equivalent PhD level qualifications.
• First degree in biological or medical science
• High level analytical capability, with the ability to interpret and critically evaluate complex experimental data.
• Ability to communicate complex information clearly
• Fluency in relevant models, techniques or methods and ability to contribute to developing new ones; including handling and processing patient-derived blood and adipose tissue samples for cardiovascular research, ex vivo vascular functional pharmacology, including vascular reactivity studies and wire myography
• Ability to assess resource requirements and use resources effectively
• Understanding of and ability to contribute to broader management/administration processes
• Contribute to the planning and organising of the research programme and/or specific research project
• Co-ordinate own work with others to avoid conflict or duplication of effort
• Knowledge of the protected characteristics and duties under the Equality Act 2010. Including fostering good relations and advancing the universities Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED).
• Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity knowledge, skills and experience document.

Further particulars can be found here

View our staff values and behaviours here

Informal enquiries to Melanie Madhani M.Madhani@bham.ac.uk

Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.