Applications are invited for a part-time fixed-term position as Stipendiary Lecturer and Researcher in Biochemistry, tenable for one year from 1 October 2026. Applicants should hold a doctorate or be close to completion. See section 3 below for details of the selection criteria for the post; details of the application procedure are given in section 6.
Magdalen College
Magdalen College was founded in 1458 by William Waynflete, Bishop of Winchester and Lord Chancellor, on the site of the Hospital of St John, just outside Oxford’s East Gate, near the centre of the modern city. Its top priorities are academic excellence and the fostering of a supportive and inclusive community, and it is committed to the tutorial system as a personalised and intellectually challenging method for undergraduate teaching. It also seeks to provide an outstanding environment in which graduate students may flourish. In any one year there are approximately 400 Magdalen undergraduates and 270 graduates. The College prides itself on the welfare provision it offers its students, Magdalen’s staff now including a Dean for Welfare, a College Counsellor, and a College Mentor for Students, among many others with welfare responsibilities. The Governing Body of Magdalen consists of the President and 71 Fellows, including Professorial Fellows, Tutorial Fellows, and Fellows by Examination (Junior Research Fellows). The President of the College is Dinah Rose, KC. Further information is available on the College website at: https://www.magd.ox.ac.uk.
The College has a strong representation in Medical Sciences, including three Tutorial Fellows in Medicine (Prof. Chris Garland, in Vascular Pharmacology, Prof. Stephen Goodwin, in Genetics, and Prof. Teresa Thurston, in Cell and Molecular Biology), one in Biochemistry (currently vacant), and one in Experimental Psychology (Prof. Lucy Bowes). The other Fellows in Medical Sciences at Magdalen are Prof. Richard Cornall (Nuffield Professor of Medicine and Head of the Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine), Prof. Daniel Freeman (Professor of Experimental Psychology), Prof. Adrian Hill (Director of the Jenner Institute and Lakshmi Mittal & Family Professor of Vaccinology), Prof. Xin Lu (Professor of Cancer Biology and Director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Oxford), Prof. Gero Miesenböck (Waynflete Professor of Physiology and Director of the Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour), Dr Lauren Phillips (Fellow by Examination in Medicine and Biomedical Sciences), Prof. Maheshi Ramasamy (Professor of Infection and Vaccinology, and Florey Lecturer in Clinical Medicine), and Prof. Sir Peter Ratcliffe (Nobel Laureate, Distinguished Scholar of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, and Director of Clinical Research at the Francis Crick Institute). The College also has very strong representations of Fellows and Tutors in Mathematical, Physical, and Life Sciences, in Social Sciences, and in Humanities.
Besides the Tutorial Fellowship position in Biochemistry, the subject is also supported by a Stipendiary Lecturership position, held by Dr Dominic Alonzi. The College generally admits between 3 and 5 undergraduates each year to read Biochemistry.
The main duties of the post are as follows:
(i) to engage in independent research at an internationally competitive level in Biochemistry;
(ii) during Full Term (each of Oxford’s three Full Terms of the year is eight weeks long), to provide an average of six weighted hours of tutorial and class teaching per week for undergraduates reading Biochemistry, contributing also to first-year Biomedical Sciences and Pre-Clinical Medicine teaching;
(iii) to participate in the normal administrative duties associated with Biochemistry in the College, including the undergraduate admissions process;
(iv) to share pastoral duties with other teaching staff in College;
(v) to participate in outreach and access initiatives.
For Biochemistry, teaching is expected within the following range (for details, see the course information available at: https://www.bioch.ox.ac.uk/our-courses):
- for the Preliminary Examination (Prelims) in Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, including core topics such as molecular cell biology and biophysical chemistry;
- for the Final Honour School (FHS) in Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, including teaching for Blocks within the papers on Information Transfer, Cellular Chemistry, Molecular Processes in the Cell, and/or The Cell in Time and Space, as well as structural biology teaching as part of the Tool Boxes component of the course.
In addition to giving tutorials and classes, the successful candidate will be required to set and mark, or arrange to have marked, mock examination papers (Collections) at the beginning of each term, except in the term following a University examination; to participate in the annual undergraduate admissions process (which runs from October to December); to share pastoral duties with other teaching staff in College (the College has a substantial team of non-teaching welfare staff to whom specific issues can be referred); and to participate in outreach and access initiatives, with a view to encouraging undergraduate applications from a wide range of educational backgrounds.
The selection criteria for this post are:
i. Education at postgraduate level in Biochemistry or a closely related subject: applicants should hold a doctorate or be close to completion.
ii. Evidence of a high standard of research in Molecular and/or Cellular Biochemistry.
iii. Successful relevant teaching experience at undergraduate level.
iv. Evidence of an ability to provide a high standard of tutorial teaching in the appropriate areas of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, and of an ability to share effectively in the supervision of the undergraduates’ academic studies.
v. Evidence that the candidate would be able to contribute well to the administrative work associated with the subject in the College.
Candidates should address these criteria in their applications, and ask their referees to do so in their references. Candidates should list in their application which options on the undergraduate syllabus they consider themselves qualified to teach.
The Lecturer will be employed from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027, and will receive a salary on the scale £19,712 – £20,257 (= 50% of points 1 to 3 on Grade 7 of the College pay scale plus an Oxford Location Allowance of £1,730 p.a. pro rata).
The Lecturer will have the use of a teaching room in College, will be a member of the Senior Common Room, and will be entitled to 16 meals (lunches or dinners) per Term free of charge and to a small entertainment allowance.
The post carries an entitlement to join, or to remain a member of, the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS).
The College provides for maternity leave on a basis that exceeds the statutory provisions. Employees are eligible for 26 weeks’ maternity leave on full pay, followed by 13 weeks of leave on Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) and 13 weeks of unpaid maternity leave: this is a day one entitlement. Magdalen has a priority claim on a number of places in the University nurseries. Arrangements are available for paternity leave, shared parental leave, and adoption leave.
All reasonable interview expenses will be reimbursed. Following the offer of the position, appointment will be subject to (a) satisfactory completion of a medical questionnaire, and (b) provision of proof of the right to work in the UK.
If the chosen candidate requires any workplace adjustments, this would be brought to the attention of Human Resources through completion of a new starter Occupational Health Services Declaration.
Equal Opportunities
The College is committed to equal opportunity and to fostering an inclusive academic community. We welcome applications from individuals from all backgrounds. Appointment will be made on merit, with the ability to perform the duties of the post as the primary consideration. Further information can be obtained from the College website, at www.magd.ox.ac.uk/equality/.
Applications
To apply for this position, please click the 'Apply Now' button
by the deadline of midnight BST on Thursday 3 September 2026.
As part of the process, candidates will need to upload:
- a detailed letter, which sets out the subjects the candidate could offer to teach for the College and includes the names and addresses of two referees,
- a full curriculum vitae,
- one representative piece of written work (published or unpublished).
Applicants should ask referees to email their references directly to Miss Liz Howdill, Academic Administrator ([email protected]) by the same deadline without further prompting. Candidates who wish to approach a referee or referees only if they are being called for interview or are in receipt of a conditional offer are asked to state that explicitly alongside the details of the relevant referee(s) in their application letter.
It is expected that interviews will be held in person on Friday 11 September 2026.
