Research Assistant (Changing the Narratives) in Edinburgh

UE06: £34,610 - £39,906 per annum pro rata

School of Health in Social Science, Counselling, Psychotherapy and Applied Social Sciences

Part-time: 14 hours per week

Fixed term: 11 months; between 4th October 2026 - 31st August 2027

The Opportunity:

Discover new ways to make an impact. Unlocking Edinburgh. Here, you can continue to make a difference in everything around you. Take on new challenges, grow your career, be recognised for your contributions, and benefit from our commitment to your wellbeing. Be part of something bigger — where your work has real impact and your development matters.

An opportunity to join a vibrant team delivering an impact project that is informing suicide prevention and self-harm policy and practice across Scotland, and beyond. Funded by an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Impact Accelerator Award, we are looking for a Research Assistant to play a pivotal role in supporting the translation of critical social science research on suicide, self-harm and gender into action. The project - Gender, Self-Harm, and Suicide: Changing the Narratives - aims to transform how gender is addressed in self-harm and suicide policies and practices.

As Research Assistant on the Changing the Narratives project, you will work closely with a multidisciplinary team of researchers, led by Professor Amy Chandler, along with project collaborators from Public Health Scotland, Penumbra and Samaritans Scotland.

The role centres research impact, and includes helping to communicate social scientific research findings to diverse audiences of policy-makers, practitioners, and people with lived/living experiences of self-harm and suicide. You will help to organise and run public engagement events, write reports, and contribute to the production of accessible outputs, such as research briefings, podcasts, and infographics. You will also support the monitoring and evaluation of the impact of project activities.

Essential skills and experience for this role include:

• A relevant social science degree (e.g. in sociology, anthropology, psychology, social work, social policy or politics)
• A good understanding of qualitative research methods
• Experience of doing public engagement work – particularly if this relates to potentially sensitive topics (such as mental health, suicide or similar)

The post-holder will be appointable on first point of the grade due to budgetary restrictions (£34,610), with automatic increments awarded as outlined in Conditions of Service. This post is part time (14 hours per week). We are open to considering requests for hybrid working (on a non-contractual basis) that combines a mix of remote and regular on-campus working. Regular in-person meetings are required, and there may be some in person events/travel. A small number of additional hours supporting another research project may be available to the successful candidate.

How to apply

Please include the following documents in your application:

• CV
• Cover letter setting out how you meet the person specification, and why you are interested in the role.

As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

• A competitive salary.
• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging and rewarding place to work.
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community.
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, including generous annual leave entitlement, a defined benefits pension scheme, a wide range of staff discounts, family-friendly initiatives, and flexible work options.

Championing equality, diversity, and inclusion

The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter, and we are also a Stonewall Proud Employer, actively promoting LGBTQ+ equality. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates and particularly encourage applications from Black and Minority Ethnic candidates, as we acknowledge these groups are currently under-represented in suicide research, policy and practice. People with direct lived/living experiences of suicide and/or self-harm are also very welcome to apply.

Prior to any employment commencing with the University, you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our right to work webpages.

On this occasion the University will not consider applicants requiring sponsorship for this role. International workers will therefore only be able to take up this role if they can demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.

Key dates to note

The closing date for applications is 28 August 2026. Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm UK time. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browser's local time zone.