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salary
Research assistant: £33,002 to £34,610 per year.
Research associate: £35,608 to £41,064 per year.

The role
This is an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic and highly skilled researcher/research assistant in statistics to join the EPSRC-funded PINCODE project: Pooling inference and pooling exact distributions: a Bayesian approach.

The project aims to address challenges in clustering inference, through the development and implementation of exact or asymptotic Monte Carlo algorithms in collaboration with the Department of Statistics at the University of Warwick, the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Durham University, and the School of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics at the University of Newcastle.

You will contribute to the development of:

• An R package for path space rejection sampling for diffusion operations.
• An R package for Bayesian Fusion clustering inference, such as Bayesian Fusion privacy and Bayesian Fusion constraint.

The position is available from 01 March 2026, and is full-time (37 hours per week) on a fixed-term basis until the project end date of 30 June 2028.

For informal inquiries about this vacancy, please contact Dr Murray Pollock (murray.pollock@ncl.ac.uk).

For more details about the Faculty of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics, please click here.

Full information can be found about the University of Newcastle here.

We are committed to building and maintaining a fair and inclusive work environment.

To apply, please complete the online application and upload your CV and cover letter. Your cover letter is a supporting statement, and you should explain how you meet the essential criteria for the role and prove this with examples.

Key responsibilities

• Contribution to the research program in the field of Bayesian computational statistics as part of the EPSRC-funded “PINCODE” project (EP/X028712/1), under the clear direction of Professor Murray Pollock and Professor Hongsheng Dai.
• Working closely with other members of PINCODE, including Professor L Aslett (Durham) and Professor Joe Roberts (Warwick).
• Participation within the Newcastle statistical community, including active participation in seminars and research groups.
• Publish research results in leading journals.
• Disseminate results widely, including at appropriate national/international conferences, and by making results and software available to applied practitioners.

Knowledge, skills and experience

• Evidence of independent, high-quality research.
• High problem solving and analysis skills.
• Strong programming skills (R or C).

desirable

• Experience using HPC clusters.
• Experience with modern computational statistical methodologies, such as Markov chain Monte Carlo, rejection sampling, and sequential Monte Carlo, would be highly desirable.

Traits and behavior

• Ability to work collaboratively with a multidisciplinary team.
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal.

Qualifications

• The PhD degree has been awarded (for a research associate position) in mathematics, statistics or computer science
• Or nearly complete, after submitting the thesis upon starting the position (research assistant)