Postdoctoral Researcher: statistical and computational methods with application to common complex diseases and disorders: SMARTbiomed

University of Oxford - Department of Psychiatry / Big Data Institute

Location: Oxford, Hybrid/On-site

Salary: £38,674 to £46,913 per annum : Grade 7

Hours: Full Time

Contract Type: Fixed-Term/Contract

Placed On: 21st August 2025

Closes: 11th September 2025

Job Ref: 181372

The University of Oxford is a stimulating work environment, which enjoys an international reputation as a world-class centre of excellence. Our research plays a key role in tackling many global challenges, from reducing our carbon emissions to developing vaccines during a pandemic.

The Department of Psychiatry is based on the Warneford Hospital site in Oxford – a friendly, welcoming place of work with an international reputation for excellence. The Department has a substantial research programme, with major funding from Medical Research Council (MRC), Wellcome Trust and National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and provides highly rated medical training in psychiatry. The Head of Department is Professor Belinda Lennox.

We seek to appoint a postdoctoral researcher motivated to develop new statistical and computational methods designed to use “big data” and to address questions of direct or indirect relevance to common complex diseases and disorders. The appointee will join the group of Professor Naomi Wray, SMARTbiomed Director.

What We Offer

As an employer, we genuinely care about our employees’ wellbeing and this is reflected in the range of benefits that we offer including:

• An excellent contributory pension scheme
• 38 days annual leave
• A comprehensive range of childcare services
• Family leave schemes
• Cycle loan scheme
• Discounted bus travel and Season Ticket travel loans
• Membership to a variety of social and sports clubs

The post is only available as full-time. However, we can discuss flexible working hours (e.g. starting and finishing earlier in the day) to accommodate your needs. Working remotely is possible for up to 1 day/week.

About the Role

The post is funded for three years and is based in the Department of Psychiatry, Warneford Hospital / Big Data Institute, Old Road Campus.

The Pioneer Centre for SMARTbiomed was established in June 2024 (see https://www.smartbiomed.dk/). This virtual centre has 3 hub sites, Aarhus University (AU), University of Copenhagen (UC) and University of Oxford (UO).

A key output from SMARTbiomed research is software for use by the research community. The appointee will be expected to contribute to the activities of the Pioneer Centre for SMARTbiomed including research supervision of doctoral students, teaching at summer schools etc.

About You

You will have or be close to the completion of a relevant PhD/DPhil in statistical genetics or related field. A proven track record of method development in statistical genetic and the ability to manage your own academic research and associated activities are essential. A medical qualification and experience of analysing big data would be desirable.

Diversity

Committed to equality and valuing diversity. Our active Psychiatry People and Culture teams and initiatives including our values and behaviours framework work to make the Department of Psychiatry as supportive, welcoming and inclusive as possible.

Application Process

You will be required to upload a covering letter/supporting statement, CV and the details of two referees as part of your online application. Please see the University pages on the application process at https://www.jobs.ox.ac.uk/application-process.

The closing date for applications is 12:00 midday on 11 September 2025. Interviews will take place during week commencing 22 September and will be online.