Job Purpose

To make a contribution/leading contribution to a project on ontologies for federated digital twins working with Dr Paul Harvey and Prof David Flynn. The successful candidate will also be expected to contribute to the formulation and submission of research publications and research proposals as well as help manage and direct this complex and challenging project as opportunities allow.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Perform the following activities in conjunction with and under the guidance of the Principal/Co Investigator:

1. Plan and conduct assigned research individually or jointly in accordance with the project deliverables and project/group/School/College research strategy.

2. Document research output including analysis and interpretation of all data, maintaining records and databases, drafting technical/progress reports and papers as appropriate.

3. Develop and enhance your research profile and reputation and that of The University of Glasgow/School/Research Group, including contributing to publications of international quality in high profile/quality refereed journals, enhancing the research impact in terms of economic/societal benefit, and gathering indicators of esteem.

4. Contribute to the presentation of work at international and national conferences, at internal and external seminars, colloquia and workshops to develop and enhance our research profile.

5. Contribute to the identification of potential funding sources and to assist in the development of proposals to secure funding from internal and external bodies to support future research.

6. Collaborate with colleagues and participate in team/group meetings/seminars/workshops across the research Group/School/College/University and wider community.

7. Contribute to the organisation, supervision, mentoring and training of undergraduate and/or postgraduate students and less experienced members of the project team to ensure their effective development.

8. Perform administrative tasks related to the activities of the research group and School, including Budgets/Expenditure.

9. Carry out modest Teaching activities (e.g demonstrating etc) and associated admin as assigned by the Head of School and in consultation with Principal Investigator.

10. Keep up to date with current knowledge and recent advances in the field/discipline.

11. Engage in continuing professional development activities as appropriate.

12. Undertake any other duties of equivalent standing as assigned by the Head of School/Director of Research Institute.

13. Contribute to the enhancement of the University’s international profile in line with the University’s Strategic Plan, World Changers Together.

For appointment at grade 7:

14. Perform the above duties with a higher degree of independence, leadership and responsibility, particularly in relation to planning, funding, collaborating and publishing research, and mentoring colleagues.

15 Establish and sustain a track record of independent and joint published research to establish and maintain your expert reputation in the subject area.

16. Survey the research literature and environment, understand the research challenges associated with the project & subject area, & develop/implement a suitable research strategy.

Knowledge, Qualifications, Skills and Experience

Knowledge &Qualifications

Essential:

A1 SCQF Level 10 (Honours degree) in a relevant subject or a cognate discipline, or equivalent.

For appointment at Grade 7:

A2 Normally Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 12 (PhD) with at least 2 years’ post-doctoral experience in a similar or related role(s), or alternatively possess the equivalent in professional qualifications and experience.

Desirable:

B1 An awarded (or recently submitted or near completion) PhD in subject specialism or equivalent.

Skills

Essential:

C1 Research creativity and cross-discipline collaborative ability as appropriate.

C2 Excellent communication skills (oral and written), including public presentations and ability to communicate complex data/concepts clearly and concisely.

C3 Excellent interpersonal skills including team working and a collegiate approach.

C4 Appropriate workload/time/project/budget/people management skills

C5 Extensive IT and data analysis/interpretation skills as appropriate.

C6 Self-motivation, initiative and independent thought/working.

C7 Problem solving skills including a flexible and pragmatic approach.

For appointment at Grade 7:

C8 A comprehensive and up-to-date knowledge of current issues and future directions within the wider subject area or subject specialism.

C9 Knowledge of project specific technical models, equipment or techniques.

C10 Sufficient depth of relevant research experience, normally including sufficient postdoctoral experience in a related field, appropriate to an early career researcher.

Experience

Essential:

E1 Sufficient relevant research experience (or equivalent) appropriate to an early career researcher.

E2 Demonstrated ability and experience in working with ontological tools and formats (e.g. OWL, RDF, Turtle, protégé, neo4j, SPARQL)

E3 Demonstrated ability and experience in working with ontological development methodologies

E4 Demonstrated ability and experience in analysis of complex scenarios, use cases, or technologies to generate requirements

E5 Examples of developed and available ontologies

E6 Experience of conducting systematic reviews in relevant area.

E7 Experience of scientific writing.

E8 Proven ability to deliver quality outputs in a timely and efficient manner.

E9 Evidence of an emerging track record of publications in a relevant field.

For appointment at Grade 7:

E10 A track record of presentation and publication of research results in quality journals/conferences.

E11 Experience of making a leading contribution in academic activities.

E12 Ability to demonstrate a degree of independence as illustrated by identification of project objectives from assessment of the literature, design & analysis of experiments & drafting of papers.

E13 Experience in undertaking independent research.

Desirable:

F1 Experience of conducting meta-analyses.

F2 An emerging national or international reputation.

F3 Portfolio of open-source project work and ontologies

F4 Published research in the area of digital twins, co-simulation, or inter-operability

F5 Published ontologies in the area of digital twins, co-simulation, inter-operability, transport, or other areas related to topics relevant to the position.

F6 Examples of engagement with stakeholders in the development of taxonomies and ontologies

F7 Public engagement based on your research

F8 Demonstrated ability and experience with rule-based systems to enable ontological reasoning.

F9 Demonstrated ability and experience in the design and implementation of ontology-based knowledge graphs

F10 Demonstrated ability and experience in working with at least one mid-level ontology (e.g. SUMO, IES4)

F11 Experience of working in multi-disciplinary projects

F12 Experience of working in transport related projects

F13 Experience of working with standards bodies or organisations

F14 Experience of stakeholder requirements gathering or similar activities

Closing date:  17 April 2025

Terms and Conditions

Salary will be Grade 6/7, £33,482 - £37,174 / £40,497 - £45,413 per annum.

This post is full time and has funding for up to 2.5 years in the 1st instance.

The University of Glasgow has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.  If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.