"Research Assistant"

About the role

Full-time one-year Research Assistant to work on the ERC project New Christian Materiality 1450-1750 (Materia), which will start on January 1, 2026. The project is based in the Department of History, King’s College London. The RA will be expected to work closely with the PI, Professor Francisco Bethencourt, and the rest of the project team, composed in the first year by two PDRAs, and one PhD student. The purpose is to build a database with all the bibliographical information on New Christians and material culture that is relevant to the research. Research will be guided by the following question: How did New Christians use material culture to enhance their social status?

There could be a research mission to the archives of Lisbon and Funchal. The researcher must have the capacity to participate actively in teamwork while developing this line of inquiry.

This is a full-time, fixed term post starting from 1st January 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter for 1 year.

About you

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. MA in Early Modern History
2. Reading capacity of Spanish and Portuguese (at least one of these languages)
3. Awareness of early modern Southern Europe and New Christian history
4. Ability to work independently and as part of a team

Desirable criteria

1. Minimum knowledge of database operations
2. Capacity for preparing meetings related to the expertise area

Further information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

It is our aim to develop candidate pools that include applicants from all backgrounds and communities.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.

Grade and Salary: £39,076 - £42,819 per annum, including London Weighting Allowance

Job ID: 125045

Close Date: 05-Oct-2025

Contact Person: Professor Francisco Bethencourt

Contact Details: francisco.bethencourt@kcl.ac.uk