"Research Associate in Engineering Extracellular Vesicles for Oral mRNA Delivery"

About The Role

The post-holder is expected to carry out pioneering laboratory work in engineering extracellular vesicles (EVs) to create novel delivery systems for oral delivery of mRNA. Experience in isolation and characterisation of EVs, together with intestinal epithelial cell culture is mandatory for the role. Furthermore, the candidate is expected to have strong skills and experience in nanomaterial characterisation and biological assays such as cytotoxicity testing and measurement of cell uptake of materials.

The post holder is expected to participate in regular individual and group research meetings to communicate their research and receive feedback, in addition to attending external scientific meetings/conferences. Additionally, the post holder will be expected to engage in disseminating their research via publications and as such, they are expected to prepare manuscripts for publication. Finally, the post holder may be required to supervise undergraduate project students and will be expected to participate in regular lab management activities.

This is a full-time role and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 31/12/2026.

Research staff at King’s are entitled to at least 10 days per year (pro-rata) for professional development. This entitlement, from the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, applies to Postdocs, Research Assistants, Research and Teaching Technicians, Teaching Fellows and AEP equivalent up to and including grade 7. Visit the Centre for Research Staff Development for more information.

About You

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

Essential criteria

1. Degree in Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Science, Biological Science, Chemical/Materials Science or similar
2. Research experience in Extracellular Vesicles
3. Research experience in nanomaterial characterisation
4. Research experience in intestinal epithelial cell culture
5. Excellent communication skills

Desirable criteria

1. Research experience in nucleic acid delivery
2. Research experience in milk-derived EVs
3. Supervision of undergraduate students in research projects

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

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.

As part of this commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and through this appointment process, 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 person specification section of the job description. 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.

Interviews are due to be held in January/February 2026.

Grade and Salary: £43,909 per annum inclusive of London Weighting Allowance
Job ID: 134265
Close Date: 04-Jan-2026
Contact Person: Driton Vllasaliu
Contact Details: Driton.vllasaliu@kcl.ac.uk