Research in Academia
Research in Academia
About
Find out about careers in academia including roles available, professional bodies, and careers advice.
Careers advice
The following external websites and downloads provide careers advice about working in the sector:
Careers advice websites
- Prospects: Getting an academic job
- Jobs.ac.uk: Applying for an Academic job
- An Academic Career - from Manchester University
- The Guardian - Applying for a postdoc job?
- Science Careers - Academic Scientist’s Toolkit
The British Council EURAXESS UK has information for UK researchers moving to the EU, and the Times Educational Supplement offers guidance on applying for academic posions in the US.
Vitae is a useful website, and includes information on pursuing an academic career and career management for researchers.
Resources for download
- Jobs.ac.uk - Career development toolkit (PDF: 437 KB)
- Jobs.ac.uk - Career planning for PhDs ebook (PDF: 1.39 MB)
- AGCAS - University Researchers and the Job Market (PDF 498.6 KB)
Sector news
The United Kingdom Research Office contains sector news.
News, funding opportunities and policy information can be found at Research.
Professional bodies
These represent and promote the interests of people working in the sector, providing services such as training and networking opportunities. They often provide careers support for students and graduates and development for people already working in the sector.
Follow professional associations on LinkedIn, or visit their websites for useful sources of news, contacts, work experience and vacancies.
The main professional associations for this sector include:
- Academy of Social Sciences
- Association of Commonwealth Universities - opportunities and information for universities in Commonwealth countries
- British Academy for the Humanities and Social Sciences
- Higher Education Academy
- PraxisAuril - professional association for Knowledge Exchange & Commercialisation practitioners, facilitating interactions between the public sector research base, business and government
- VITAE - for researchers, including doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows, and research staff
- The Royal Society: UK National Academy of Science
Research Councils
Research Councils UK (RCUK) are responsible for investing public money in research to advance knowledge and generate new ideas.
- Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)
- Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)
- Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
- Medical Research Council (MRC)
- Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)
- Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)
Find professional bodies outside of the UK on GoinGlobal by selecting ‘Professional and Personal Networking’ on each of the individual country guides.
Making contacts
Making contacts is essential for success in this sector. Many jobs in this field are gained through networking and speculative applications.
We've compiled a few places you could start:
ResearchGATE
ResearchGATE is professional online network for research.
European University Institute academic careers observatory
European University Institute academic careers observatory provides information on networking and research opportunities.
Alumni
Newcastle alumni on LinkedIn – find out what our graduates did after graduation and how they got there.
Social media
Social media resources, particularly LinkedIn and Twitter, can be useful for making contacts, following employers and finding opportunities. Find out more about how to use social media for your career.
Events
Recruitment fairs, open days, talks and events give insights and opportunities to make contacts. Regular events organised by the Careers Service include Employer & Sector Insights and Recruitment Events.
Regular events for this sector are also listed on the Vitae events page.
For more options, see our other Explore Occupations pages.
Roles & Skills
Opportunities within academic research vary to some extent by discipline and institution.
We've included links to external websites that provide descriptions of typical duties, entry requirements and case studies for the range of careers in this sector:
Academic researcher
Higher education lecturer
Graduate teaching assistant
Research assistant
Research scientist (life sciences)
Research scientist (maths)
Research scientist (medical)
Research scientist
Social researcher
For additional information on academic roles see University of Manchester: Academic jobs and roles.
Skills employers look for
Skills employers look for include:
- research ability and subject knowledge
- leadership and management skills
- networking and collaboration capability
- presentation and communication ability
- resilience, self-motivation and the capacity to work independently
- time management and ability to meet deadlines
Finding Jobs
Competition for positions in this sector is strong. The majority of entry level positions within Higher Education institutions are as Research Assistants or Graduate Teaching Assistants (where you would also need to be studying for a higher level degree).
A few doctoral graduates and research staff go on to have a long term career in academia. However, this is highly variable by country and subject area.
Vacancy sites
North East
There are a number of North East universities that advertise academic research positions:
- Newcastle University
- Durham University
- Northumbria University
- Sunderland University
- Teesside University
UK
- Jobs.ac.uk - includes jobs in academic research
- FindAPostDoc - jobs for new and recently qualified PhDs
- Find a PhD - includes PhDs, research studentships, professional doctorates
- Times Higher Education
- Times Education Supplement
- Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) - three-way partnerships involving a business, a graduate and an academic institution. Graduates work on research projects while gaining industrial experience with an employer. Projects are competitively paid, with funding for personal development, and typically last 1-3 years. View current opportunities.
Europe
- Academic Jobs EU
- EURAXESS - Researchers in Motion programme
- European University Institute - the Max Weber programme has fellowships for junior social science post-docs
Global (including the US)
- Academic 360 - mainly covering the US, Canada, Australia and the UK
- Career.edu
- Chronicle of Higher Education USA
- Nature Jobs – includes science research roles
- ResearchGATEjobs - international job board with research positions
- Research is Cool - research jobs and academic social networking worldwide
- Science Careers
- PostDocJobs
- Computeroxy - academic positions including computer science, engineering, electrical and mathematical sciences
For more vacancy sources, see Graduate Jobs. You can also search for vacancies on MyCareer.
Find jobs and additional vacancy source websites outside the UK on GoinGlobal.
Finding opportunities
Not all jobs are advertised. You could also approach institutions directly or find work through networking and making contacts in the sector.
Find schools or departments that interest you and get in touch, always with a named contact.
Be specific about why you are writing to them and what you’re looking for, showing your enthusiasm for the school or department and highlighting any relevant skills. Don’t be disheartened if you don’t get a reply – follow up with a phone call or email to show that you’re keen.
Read Targetjobs website for information about speculative applications.
Use the following resources to research universities and departments for speculative applications:
- Guardian – list of all UK Universities
- World Higher Education database
- LinkedIn Find Alumni tool – see where Newcastle graduates are working for inspiration