Research Assistant in GeoAI, Infectious Diseases, and Health Equity

About us

King's College London invites applications for a Research Assistant (RA) in GeoAI, Infectious Diseases, and Health Equity to join the GeoAI for Health Equity Lab (GAHEL, pronounced "gail") led by Dr. Sabrina Li. The RA will contribute to Dr. Li's UKRI-funded Future Leaders Fellowship project which focusses on integrating equity considerations into infectious disease mapping and surveillance, starting with the UK. The RA will be based in the Department of Geography, but will have access to training and support from King's Health Partners Digital Health Hub, King's Institute for Artificial Intelligence, and the Digital Futures Institute. The RA will also have access to research and career development from King's Centre for Research Staff Development. The postholder will work closely with Dr. Li and in collaboration with national and international interdisciplinary partners based at the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, and John Hopkins University (USA).

About the role

The RA will contribute to the theoretical and methodological developments of scalable GeoAI systems that improve understanding of infectious disease risks across populations and space, particularly for vulnerable and disadvantaged populations. The RA will lead literature review searches to identify the historical, structural, and contextual drivers of disease risk and inequity, and map pathways and interactions among determinants to inform disease mapping and modelling.

The RA will lead the development of a database of high-resolution equity indicators for disease surveillance, and will contribute to the development of novel approaches for managing confidential spatial health data, including differential privacy and other secure geospatial data protocols. This research will advance our understanding of how major infectious diseases of concern in the UK emerge, spread, and unequally affect different individuals and population groups.

Outcomes of this research will help advance the development of more equitable, spatial data-driven approaches to public health surveillance and pandemic preparedness, with direct links to public health policy. The findings will inform the development of a real-time spatial AI system to improve early detection and risk prediction, to protect vulnerable populations in the UK and in the future globally.

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered a 2-year fixed-term contract. The post is offered on a hybrid working basis, typically involving three days per week on campus and two days remote.

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

• PhD in spatial epidemiology, quantitative geography/remote sensing, ecology, statistics, engineering, data science, quantitative social sciences, or a related discipline.
• Experience in developing models and mapping with real world data, with strong programming proficiency in R or Python and version control systems like Git. Familiarity with spatial and statistical libraries (e.g. INLA, PyMC, scikit-learn, GeoPandas).
• Proven ability to work independently.
• Track record in publishing peer-reviewed papers.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively within teams, with a strong commitment to fostering a fair and inclusive work environment.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including to diverse audiences.

Desirable criteria

• Experience managing stakeholder relationships and working in a practitioner/policy context.
• Experience working on interdisciplinary 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.

Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6.

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 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.

Interviews are due to be held between Monday 19th - Friday 23rd January 2026.