Research Assistant/Associate in Sociology: Data Collection and Analysis (Part Time, Fixed Term)

University of Cambridge - Department of Sociology

Location:	Cambridge
Salary:	£33,002 to £46,049 per annum
Hours:	Full Time
Contract Type:	Fixed-Term/Contract

Placed On: 9th April 2026
Closes: 29th April 2026
Job Ref: JM49332

We are looking to recruit a part-time, 20 hours a week, Research Assistant/Associate in Sociology as soon as possible for a fixed term for 9 months.

You will be providing research support for a new project run by Professor Manali Desai researching the political economy of gendered violence in North India. You will have a strong interest in gendered inequalities, population, and computational social science research. You will have experience of handling complex survey data at scale.

The role holder will support this research using publicly available government and other data (which include NFHS, DHS, NCRB, SC/ST Atrocities Act, Socio-Economic Survey SECC, IHDS, National Election Dataset NES, Census, Periodic Labour Force PLFS, Socioeconomic High-resolution Rural-Urban Geographic Platform for India (SHRUG), and others) to map multidimensional violence and multidimensional poverty and gender.

The role involves managing, harmonizing, and analysing complex survey datasets, and generating statistical and spatial insights to inform research on gendered violence.

The Department of Sociology is part of a joint undergraduate degree programme in Human, Social and Political Sciences (HSPS) and also has a vibrant MPhil and PhD programme. There are currently about 80 students working on PhDs on a diverse range of topics in sociology.

Further information about research interests and recent publications of staff and postdocs can be found on the Departments website: http://www.sociology.cam.ac.uk

The role is available as a Research Assistant or Research Associate. Appointment at Research Associate level is dependent upon having a PhD. Those who have submitted but not yet received their PhD will initially be appointed as a Research Assistant (Grade 5) moving to Research Associate (Grade 7) upon confirmation of your PhD award.

The post is fixed term for 9 months (please note that the funding for this role has an end date of 9 months after the start date and the contract must finish by that date).

Interviews are expected to take place 29 May 2026.

To apply online for this vacancy and to view further information about the role, please click the 'Apply' button above.

Please include a cover letter, CV and a writing sample of no more than journal article length that includes statistical analysis, as part of your application.

Informal enquiries about the role are welcomed and should be directed to Professor Manali Desai: md644@cam.ac.uk

For any queries regarding the application process, please contact the HSPS HR team. Email: hr@hsps.cam.ac.uk

Please quote reference JM49332 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.