Postdocs
As a postdoc at the ICR, you’ll be working at the forefront of cancer research, in an environment that’s collaborative, international and inclusive.
We aim to attract the best scientific minds, wherever in the world they come from. With postdocs from all over the UK and the world, you'll be joining a welcoming community that prioritises training the next generation of world-leading researchers. You’ll also benefit from our strong links with our partner hospital, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, as well as our links with companies through industrial partnerships.
Benefits and culture
We offer a competitive salary, rigorous training, many opportunities for professional development, and an open and inclusive working culture. Our PostDoc Association, faculty and learning and development team work closely to support postdocs.
We also offer generous annual leave and family-friendly policies that support parents, including stop the clock, which supports maternity leave during research.
Reimbursing your visa and other costs
Successful applicants will be able to claim the cost of their visa and of the immigration health surcharge (IHS) for themselves and for their dependants once they have joined. This is a taxable benefit. Applicants often find the UK visa application process to be less onerous than for some other countries, such as the United States.
We provide extensive training and development opportunities that will help prepare for your future career inside or outside academia.
Throughout your postdoc fellowship, you’ll be offered training and support to help you to develop your skills in key areas such as high-impact publishing, managing research projects, leadership and career planning.
Getting started
We run training sessions for new postdocs, as well as a postdoc buddy system to help you to settle into your new role. We normally pair you with someone from a different discipline, to broaden your network. We can also try to match you with someone who speaks your native language.
Training and support
As signatories of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, we are committed to providing our postdocs with at least 10 days each year for their personal and career development. We offer a wide range of activities that you can tailor to your career stage, research interests and career ambitions. These include:
- On-the-job training – such as shadowing funding panels, grant writing, peer review, supervising and mentoring others, lab visits, committee membership and project-related placements.
- Informal opportunities – such as building professional networks, engaging with the ICR Postdoc Committee, participating in conference organising committees, mentoring (as mentor or mentee), and 1:1 career support with consultants employed by the ICR.
- Formal training and professional development courses – on topics ranging from supervisor training, writing and publishing, and statistics, to project management and entrepreneurship.
The Pathway to Independence – a competitive programme that we run in collaboration with the Wellcome Sanger Institute and CRUK, is also an option for postdocs who are aiming to become academic team leaders.
We also provide training on science communication and outreach to support your participation in our public engagement programme.
You'll be joining a diverse and talented community of postdocs who come to work here from all over the UK and the world.
We’ve around 150 postdocs working at the ICR from across dozens of countries around the world at any one time. Several groups can help you to settle in, build a social network and get involved with life at the ICR.
PostDoc Association
Our Postdoc Association (PDA) brings together postdocs across the ICR for professional and social events, which include away days and conferences. It provides a community for postdocs to feel connected and supported.
Join our networks
From our LGBT+ Network and our forum on race and ethnicity to sports clubs and seminars, you’ll have the chance to connect with like-minded researchers and build your network.
Our active Postdoc and Alumni LinkedIn group is also a great way to connect with others and get answers to common questions – from what it’s like to rent in London to how to set up a UK bank account.
Former ICR postdocs are also welcome to subscribe to Network, our alumni e-newsletter, so they can continue to feel part of our community even after moving on in their careers.
Employee stories
Vacancies at the ICR
Postdoctoral Training Fellow
Under the leadership of Claudio Alfieri, we are seeking to appoint a Postdoctoral Training Fellow to join the Molecular Mechanisms of Cell Cycle Regulation Group at the Chester Beatty Laboratories, Fulham Road in London. This project aims to investigate the molecular mechanisms of cell cycle regulation by macromolecular complexes involved in cell proliferation decisions, by combining genome engineering, proteomics and in situ structural biology. For general information on Post Doc's at The ICR can be found here. Key Requirements The successful candidate must have a PhD in cellular biochemistry and experience in Cryo-EM and CLEM is desirable. The ICR has a workforce agreement stating that Postdoctoral Training Fellows can only be employed for up to 7 years as PDTF at the ICR, providing total postdoctoral experience (including previous employment at this level elsewhere) does not exceed 7 years Department/Directorate Information: The candidate will work in the Molecular Mechanisms of Cell Cycle Regulation Group within the ICR Division of Structural Biology headed by Prof. Laurence Pearl and Prof. Sebastian Guettler. The division has state-of-the-art facilities for protein expression and biophysics/x-ray crystallography, in particular the Electron Microscopy Facility is equipped with a Glacios 200kV with Falcon 4i detector with Selectris energy filter and the ICR has access to Krios microscopes via eBIC and the LonCEM consortium. We encourage all applicants to access the job pack attached for more detailed information regarding this role. For an informal discussion regarding the role, please contact Claudio Alfieri via Email on [email protected]
Higher Scientific Officer - Drug Discovery Biology, Centre for Protein Degradation
We are seeking to recruit a Higher Scientific Officer within the Induced Proximity Therapeutics (IPT) Team in the ICR Centre for Protein Degradation to support our molecular glue and PROTAC drug discovery projects and expand induced proximity technology. The IPT team focuses on three main areas of research: Cancer target validation Screening, profiling and molecular mechanism of action of molecular glue and PROTAC degraders Novel E3 ligase biology and ligand discovery The successful candidate will work in a multidisciplinary team and play a key role in target validation, developing in vitro and cell-based assays, and pharmacological characterisation of novel molecular glue degraders and PROTACs, but may also contribute to other activities. About you The successful candidate: Will be a strong team player who is technically minded and passionate about science and cancer drug discovery Will hold a first degree, and preferably a PhD, in biological science or biochemistry Will have experience in cancer biology/target validation, genetic manipulation techniques, in vitro and cell-based assay development and pharmacological compound profiling Experience in targeted protein degradation will be a significant advantage. Department/Directorate Information This position will be based in the ICR's Centre for Protein Degradation, a part of the Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery (CCDD) specialising in developing novel drug modalities that re-wire tumour cells' signalling by targeted degradation of key oncogenic drivers. Our experienced biologists work closely with medicinal chemists, biophysicists, computational scientists, oncology specialists and physicians on discovering new medicines - molecular glue degraders and PROTACs - using innovative screening platforms and characterising their mechanisms of action, as well as expanding the repertoire of novel degradable drug targets and E3 ligases (enzymes that mediate protein degradation). Our research provides a nucleus for the academics and pharmaceutical industry to explore therapeutic potential of targeted protein degradation from laboratory hypothesis-testing to early clinical trials, for the benefit of cancer patients. What we offer A dynamic and supportive research environment in one of the successful academic cancer drug discovery centres in the UK Access to state-of-the-art facilities and professional development Collaboration with leading drug discovery and oncology scientist Competitive salary and pension To learn more about this role, please download the attached job pack. For informal inquiries, please contact Dr Agnieszka Konopacka, Group Leader, Induced Proximity Therapeutics, Centre for Protein Degradation via email: [email protected].
Learning and Organisational Development Programme Coordinator
About the Role We are seeking a Learning and Development Programme Coordinator to join our department and contribute to all aspects of the scheduling, delivery and evaluation of the ICR’s training offer for staff and students and supporting the implementation of our new learning management system. The successful candidate will play a key role in liaising with internal and external trainers to coordinate our annual programme of training and events, managing training budgets, producing training reports and evaluations and project managing the move to a new learning management system. Key Responsibilities Project managing the implementation of a new learning management system (LMS) Training programme management and scheduling Liaising with internal and external training providers Evaluating the annual training programme Managing the resource bank of on demand training About You We are looking for a self-motivated individual who is highly organised and can work to tight deadlines. The ideal candidate will have a Degree level qualification in Business, Communication, HR or equivalent experience. Proven experience in managing the delivery of a structured programme of events. Significant experience of implementing LearnUpon or other Learning Management System. Excellent organizational and time-management skills. Good commercial awareness and experience of dealing directly with suppliers. Strong communication and interpersonal abilities. Proficiency in Microsoft Office, Learn Upon/other LMS. What We Offer A supportive and collaborative working environment. Opportunities for professional development and career progression. Competitive salary and pension Department/Directorate Information The Learning and Organisation Team are part of the HR Directorate and provide a wide range of training and career development support for all staff and students covering: research skills, management and leadership development and personal development. We also lead on supporting equality and diversity including external awards such as Athena SWAN and HR Excellence in Research. We encourage all applicants to access the job pack attached for more detailed information regarding this role. For an informal discussion regarding the role, please contact [email protected].
Postdoctoral Training Fellow - Medicinal Chemistry
Under the guidance of Dr Gurdip Bhalay, we are looking for a talented synthetic chemist with an interest in medicinal chemistry to join a project team focussing on the design and application of small molecules in immuno-oncology, which seeks to harness the body’s own immune system to destroy cancer cells. Our aim is to use multi-parameter optimisation in conjunction with structure-based drug design to generate high quality pre-clinical candidate drugs. About you The successful candidate will work as part of a multidisciplinary project team to use in house data and structural information to design new molecules then develop and execute synthetic routes to make these compounds in the lab. The candidate will develop their existing skills in organic chemistry as well as their knowledge and experience of applied medicinal chemistry. Candidates who are nearing completion of their PhD may apply, but confirmation on awarded PhD is required within 6 months of employment. The ICR has a workforce agreement stating that Postdoctoral Training Fellows can only be employed for up to 7 years as PDTF at the ICR, providing total postdoctoral experience (including previous employment at this level elsewhere) does not exceed 7 years. For general information on Postdocs at The ICR, more information can be found here. Department/Directorate Information The Cancer Research UK Cancer Therapeutics Unit, within the Division of Cancer Therapeutics, is a multidisciplinary 'bench to bedside' centre, comprising around 200 staff dedicated to the discovery and development of novel therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. The Cancer Therapeutics Unit’s exciting goal is to discover high quality drug candidates for validated biological targets and to progress these candidates to clinical trial. All the scientific disciplines are in place to make this possible. Our world-class biologists, chemists and drug metabolism specialists work together focusing on new molecular targets emerging from human genome and ground breaking cell biology research. This is an exciting and fast moving area of cancer research, and offers the opportunity to work within a multi-disciplinary environment using state-of-the-art techniques and equipment. Department/Directorate Information: Medicinal Chemistry Team 1 is one of several medicinal chemistry teams based on our Sutton site, in state-of-the-art laboratories, in the Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery. What we offer A dynamic and supportive research environment Access to state-of-the-art facilities and professional development opportunities Collaboration with leading researchers in the field Competitive salary and pension We encourage all applicants to access the job pack attached for more detailed information regarding this role. Due to the high volumes of applications we receive, we reserve the right to close the advert before the published closing date once we have received a sufficient number of applications. Therefore we advise that you to submit your application, as early as possible to avoid disappointment.