February 2016 NUI Galway Announces Innovative New Programme to Recruit Research Stars

NUI Galway announces the international recruitment of 15 of the most promising early-career researchers to support its ambitious research strategy

NUI Galway has begun an international recruitment campaign to recruit 15 of the brightest emerging research stars to support the delivery of an ambitious strategy to become a top-200 research-led university by 2020.

In partnership with Galway University Foundation, NUI Galway is launching ‘The Foundation Research Leadership Programme’, a new three-year programme to attract the highest calibre of early-career researchers to Galway.

Almost €7.5 million will be allocated for the recruitment of the 15 Foundation Research Lectureships, aligned with the University’s strategy to develop internationally-recognised research excellence in a range of priority areas. The Foundation Research Leadership Programme will support the development of early-career academics and future research leaders.

Recruitment to the Foundation Lectureships will pay particular focus to the research output and potential of applicants, with candidates being required to have internationally recognised, measurable research output and impact in their careers to date, and to demonstrate convincingly their future research plans and strategy.

Crucial to the support of NUI Galway’s Research and Innovation strategy is the attraction and retention of emerging research leaders across the University’s key research themes, building on significant international successes to date. The priority research areas include: Biomedical Science and Engineering; Marine, Energy and Environmental Science; Data Analytics and Informatics; Physical and Computational Sciences; Applied Public Policy and Social Sciences, Digital Humanities and Drama and Theatre Studies.

NUI Galway has significantly grown its research activity and output over the last ten years. The identification of priority research areas and subsequent investments in these areas have enabled the University to develop a critical mass of expertise which has led to significant success in securing competitive research grants, nationally and internationally. Currently home to two national SFI Research Centres, in Medical Device Technologies and Data Analytics, NUI Galway is also in the top two best performing Irish universities in the European Horizon 2020 research funding programme.

Dr Jim Browne, President of NUI Galway, said: “At NUI Galway, our ambition is to produce research that is globally recognised as excellent, transformative, and relevant to societal and economic needs. The challenge now is to attract and retain the highest-calibre of emerging researchers in the University’s priority research areas.

“Nationally-funded schemes, such as Science Foundation Ireland’s Principal Investigator and Professorship Schemes support the University’s efforts to attract the best senior researchers from a global field. However, we recognise that a gap exists at early-stage career levels.

“The Foundation Research Leadership Programme is an exciting new initiative by Galway University Foundation, which will enable NUI Galway to support the most talented emerging researchers from across the globe, with the objective of ensuring our University’s future research success.”

Tom Joyce, CEO of Galway University Foundation added: “Galway University Foundation is delighted to support the development of the next generation of research stars at NUI Galway. It is vital that we invest in the best people to carry out transformative research that helps to improve lives and societies, and tackles big global challenges. Inspirational researchers push forward the boundaries of knowledge, leading to life-changing discoveries and policies that shape the future both nationally and internationally.”

The first of the Foundation Research Lectureships will be a Senior Lecturer in Medical Electronics, supported by Techrete, a large Irish Engineering company serving the construction market. The successful candidate will work at the interface between Medicine and Engineering, developing innovative engineering-based solutions for today’s medical challenges.

Advertising will begin in January 2016 and positions will be appointed in stages throughout 2016, 2017 and 2018. Creating opportunities for female academic research leaders is a key priority and applications from female candidates will be strongly encouraged.

For further information about the Foundation Research Lectureships and to make an online application for the research posts visit: www.nuigalway.ie/about-us/jobs

To view NUI Galway’s Vision 2020 Strategic Plan visit: http://www.nuigalway.ie/vision2020/

ENDS