Clinical Research Fellow in the Department of Psychological Medicine

About us

The School of Academic Psychiatry brings together five leading clinical departments Addictions, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Science, Psychological Medicine, and Psychosis Studies. Our community includes more than 100 Principal Investigators and a vibrant research portfolio supported by £30-40 million in active grants. Across the School, our work spans the full breadth of psychiatry-from public policy to molecular genetics, from perinatal mental health to old age, and from psychological therapies to advanced brain imaging.

This role will be based in the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHBA), Department of Psychological Medicine. The Centre aims to advance the development of biomarkers for neurocognitive disorders and to create innovative approaches for the early diagnosis of cognitive decline, Alzheimer's disease, and ageing-related psychiatric conditions. As a centre of excellence for clinical trials, we support the development of novel therapeutic strategies and technologies while improving patient access to both established and emerging treatments.

About the role

The Clinical Research Fellow will play a key role in the delivery of high-quality clinical research within the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing. Working as an integral member of a multidisciplinary team, the postholder will support the planning, implementation, and evaluation of clinical studies while ensuring strict adherence to trial protocols, ethical standards, and regulatory requirements.

A core component of the role will be to work with retrospective data from participants living with dementia and prospectively collected data from ongoing participants for research and analysis purposes, with research supported by the Michael J. Fox Foundation. The successful candidate will also be contributing weekly to the Brain Health Clinic at SLaM under the supervision of Prof Dag Aarsland, providing compassionate and clinically sound support to participants, many of whom have memory difficulties or dementia. The Fellow will conduct cognitive and study-specific assessments, maintain accurate participant records, and ensure timely collection and processing of biological samples in line with SOPs and GCP.

The role requires excellent communication skills, with responsibility for maintaining effective relationships with participants, families, clinicians, researchers, and external partners. The Clinical Research Fellow will contribute to data entry, cleaning, analysis, and the preparation of reports and research outputs, as well as participating in clinical and research supervision.

This position offers opportunities for professional development, active engagement in service improvement, and involvement in the dissemination of research through presentations, publications, and collaboration across academic and NHS teams.

This is a full-time post (40 hours per week). The post will be offered on a fixed term contract until 31st January 2027.

About you

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

Essential criteria

• MBChB/ MBBS or equivalent
• Full GMC registration with valid license to practice
• Clinical Experience and experience of working with people with dementia, and sensitive to the needs of people with dementia and their carers
• Strong interpersonal, oral and written communication skills with the ability to convey goals of research to lay people
• Able to communicate complex information in clear and easily understandable way to a lay audience, including those with cognitive impairment
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a multidisciplinary team, with strong problem-solving skills and ability to take initiative
• Strong organisational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritise tasks and excellent attention to detail and accuracy, with strong administrative and record-keeping skills

Desirable criteria

• Ability to collect and process biological samples
• Knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methods
• Experience of preparing academic papers for publication and ability to conduct and present scientific research in the form of posters and oral presentations
• Prior involvement in multi-institutional or international research collaborations
• Experience running a Clinical Trial of an Investigative Medicinal Product (CTIMP) or acceptability studies of novel interventions

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.

This post is subject to Disclosure and Barring Service and Occupational Health clearances.