Postdoctoral Researcher

Post Date : 05-Jan-2026 Close Date : 20-Jan-2026 Job Title: Postdoctoral Researcher Department: School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences Reporting to: Prof Michelle Flood or nominee Location: RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, St Stephen’s Green Contract/Duration: Specified purpose contract, up to 21 months (with potential extension for up to 3 months subject to funder agreement) Remuneration: IUA Salary Scale Postdoctoral Researcher Scale (PD1) Point 2 (with annual increment) Closing Date: 20th January 2026 Start Date: As soon as possible RCSI is a community of academic, research, clinical and professional staff working collaboratively to lead the world to better health. Here, you will thrive in an innovative and inclusive atmosphere and your personal development and wellbeing will be supported. We invite you to join us to help deliver on our exciting mission “To educate, nurture and discover for the benefit of human health”. 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About Our Research RCSI recognises that excellence in research is critical to the quality of its educational activities, its credibility, and, overall, to its mission to enhance human health. RCSI’s research strategy aims to build upon its strength in translational biomedical and clinical research to deliver transformational, high impact changes in health care. Targeting both Irish national and EU funding, along with increased collaboration with industry, is a major part of the RCSI research strategy. Forging increased collaboration between RCSI PIs and industry is of critical importance to achieving success in this area. RCSI is also committed to provide its researchers with the supports and developmental opportunities to enable them to continuously grow and support their overall career development. Summary of Post The PARTNER Project is a two-year applied interdisciplinary research project funded by the Health Research Board under the Applied Partnership Award scheme, in collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland – PSI the Pharmacy Regulator. The project aims to strengthen how public and patient involvement (PPI) is embedded in healthcare regulation, an area of growing importance internationally but where evidence and practical guidance remain limited. PARTNER focuses on the development of evidence-based, consensus-informed guidance to support meaningful PPI in the regulation of pharmacy and other health professions. While public involvement is increasingly recognised as important for trust, transparency, and legitimacy in regulation, regulators currently lack robust frameworks to guide implementation in practice. This project addresses that gap through applied health services research, partnership working, and strong public and patient involvement throughout. The project will adopt a collaborative approach, bringing together researchers, regulators, healthcare professionals, and public contributors. It will combine a scoping review of international practice, qualitative research with key stakeholders, and a structured consensus (Delphi) process to develop best-practice guidance that is both evidence-based and operationally usable. Public and patient contributors will be actively involved across all stages of the research, including design, analysis, interpretation, and dissemination. The PARTNER Project aims to deliver practical benefits for regulators and the public alike. Outputs will include consensus-validated guidance for embedding PPI in regulatory processes, a co-designed implementation plan for the PSI, and a scalable roadmap that can be adapted by other regulatory bodies nationally and internationally. By strengthening how public perspectives are incorporated into regulation, the project seeks to enhance trust, accountability, and the quality of regulatory decision-making. The Postdoctoral Researcher will play a central role in driving and delivering the research work packages underpinning the project. This role will suit a researcher with strong quantitative, qualitative, and/or applied research skills who is interested in partnership-based research, health services research, and the interface between research, policy, and practice. The successful candidate will work closely with academic partners, charities/advocacy groups, regulatory partners, and public partners, and will be supported to develop publications, policy-relevant outputs, and broader career development in line with their interests. Specifically, the duties of the post are: Day-to-day delivery of the research components of the PARTNER Project, in line with the approved work plan and timelines, and under the guidance of the Principal Investigator. Responsibility for specific research activities, including evidence synthesis, qualitative research, and consensus (Delphi) process. Leadership of the scoping review component of the project, including search development and execution, screening, data extraction, synthesis, and preparation of manuscript for publication. Conduct and analysis of qualitative research with regulatory, professional, and public stakeholders, in accordance with ethical and governance requirements. Development of co-designed roadmap for other regulators. Responsibility for the design, ethics approval, and delivery of the Delphi study. Preparation of academic publications, research reports, and policy-relevant outputs arising from the project. Working collaboratively with public and patient contributors to support meaningful involvement across research activities, including analysis, interpretation, and dissemination. Contributing to project meetings, steering group discussions, and stakeholder engagement activities, as appropriate to the research role. Supporting knowledge exchange and dissemination activities, including presentations at national and international conferences and engagement with relevant professional and policy audiences. Ensuring compliance with funder and institutional requirements relating to ethics, data management, training, and reporting for research activities under their remit. Maintaining accurate records of research activity. Supervising undergraduate students who may join the project from time-to-time. Engaging in professional development activities relevant to the role and career stage. Undertaking other research-related duties as agreed with the Principal Investigator and consistent with the scope of the post. Representing the PARTNER Project team, School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, and University professionally at all times. Knowledge & Experience – ( Essential): A PhD (or near completion) in a relevant discipline such as health services research, pharmacy, public health, social sciences, or a related field. Experience of conducting applied health or social research, including responsibility for data collection and analysis. Experience of qualitative research methods (e.g. interviews, thematic analysis). Ability to contribute to the preparation of research protocols and ethics applications. Experience of working collaboratively as part of a research team. Ability to manage own workload and deliver agreed outputs within defined timelines. Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to contribute to academic and non-academic outputs and the ability to tailor to different audiences. Familiarity with good research practice, research governance, and ethical conduct. Ability to work constructively in an interdisciplinary team. Strong problem-solving skills and ability to adapt to emerging opportunities/needs/challenges arising. Knowledge & Experience – ( Desirable): Experience of evidence synthesis (e.g. scoping or systematic reviews). Experience of consensus or mixed-methods research approaches (e.g. Delphi studies). Experience of working on partnership-based or applied research projects. Experience of public and patient involvement (PPI) in research. Experience of preparing or contributing to peer-reviewed publications. Interest in health policy, regulation, or the organisation of health services. We are all too aware that imposter syndrome and the confidence gap can sometimes stop fantastic candidates putting themselves forward, so please do submit an application — we’d love to hear from you. Application Process Please apply online through the RCSI careers portal on the closing date with your CV and cover letter. Click here to read our Recruitment and Selection Policy for Researcher. Informal Enquiries: Informal enquiries are invited in the first instance through Clarissa Disconzi, Human Resources Department (email: clarissadisconzi@rcsi.ie). All applications for this post must be made through the career's webpage www.rcsi/careers.  Clarissa can arrange for relevant queries on the academic aspects of the role to be addressed by the hiring manager.  Please note we do not accept CVs directly. Click on the link(s) below to view documents Filesize JD_PARTNER_APA_PostDoc_Jan2026_vF.pdf 333.5 Return to Search Apply for Job