The School of Biological Sciences and Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University Belfast is currently seeking to appoint an exceptional candidate to the post of Post-doctoral Research Fellow. The appointee will join the Huws group, focused on sustainable livestock production using the disciplines of Microbiology, Animal Science, and Bioinformatics. The successful candidate will primarily work within a multidisciplinary team undertaking research focused on sustainable ruminant production, with an emphasis on methane mitigation.
The successful candidate will work within the new £6M PeacePlus project (Acronym: CliBeef) focused on reducing methane emissions from grazing suckler beef systems (https://www.seupb.eu/latest/news/eu65m-peaceplus-funding-awarded-collaborative-innovation-projects-boost-productivity). The project presents a unique opportunity to rapidly develop innovative and transformative solutions for grazing systems, which largely dominate in UK and European agricultural systems, to transition the agri-food system to climate-neutrality by 2050. The successful candidate will be expected to develop innovative solutions for the introduction of dietary interventions to reduce methane emissions in grazing situation, through to understanding the effects of stacking different dietary interventions on animal phenotype and methane emissions, whilst understanding the mechanism of action with respect to the rumen microbiome. A PhD student has also been recruited to aid delivery on the project and there will be an expectancy that the candidate works closely with them as a named supervisor, as well as being a core team member within the group.
The candidate will be expected to lead the research and deliver reports/publications thereafter in a timely and professional manner.
About The Person
The successful candidate must have, and your application should clearly demonstrate that you meet the following essential criteria:
To be successful at shortlisting stage, please ensure you clearly evidence in your application how you meet the essential and, where applicable, desirable criteria listed in the Candidate Information.
This post is available until 30 April 2029. Fixed term contract posts are available for the stated period in the first instance but in particular circumstances may be renewed or made permanent subject to availability of funding.
What we offer:
Beyond a competitive salary, the University offers an attractive benefits package including a holiday entitlement of up to 8.4 weeks a year, pension schemes and development opportunities. We support staff wellbeing with work-life balance initiatives and support for physical and mental health. You can find more detail on all of this and more at https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/HumanResources/pay-reward-andbenefits
Queen's University is committed to promoting equality of opportunity to all. We subscribe to Equality Charter Marks such as the Diversity Charter Mark NI and Athena Swan and have established staff networks such as iRise (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic and International Staff Network) and PRISM (LGBTQ+) which help us progress equality. For further information on our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, please visit www.qub.ac.uk/diversity.
If you are an international applicant and don't already hold a visa that permits you to take up the role you are applying for, please use the information provided on our website to self-assess whether the University is likely to be able to support a visa application - http://go.qub.ac.uk/internationalstaffsupport
Candidate Information