Research Associate

Job Description

Job Title: Research Associate (Plant Physiology)

Posting Start Date: 15/12/2025

Job Id: 1985

School/Department: Biosciences

Work Arrangement: Full Time (On site)

Contract Type: Fixed-term

Salary per annum (£): £38,784 - £41,064

Closing Date: 15/01/2026

The University of Sheffield is a remarkable place to work. Our people are at the heart of everything we do. Their diverse backgrounds, abilities and beliefs make Sheffield a world-class university.

We offer a fantastic range of benefits including a highly competitive annual leave entitlement (with the ability to purchase more), a generous pensions scheme, flexible working opportunities, a commitment to your development and wellbeing, a wide range of retail discounts, and much more.

Overview

Evapotranspiration (ET) represents a key flux in urban heat & water budgets, cooling cities and mitigating the risk of flooding. Better understanding the role of ET in the 'urban metabolism' is a key component in our efforts to deliver climate change resilient cities. This post will be part of an EPSRC-funded project focusing on the development of new measurement techniques aimed at the quantification of ET from urban Green Infrastructure (vegetation), including Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS).

The postholder will be responsible for contributing to the development and testing of thermal remote sensing approaches for dynamically modelling ET in a range of vegetated SuDS designs, from small-scale test beds to in situ SUDS infrastructure embedded within the city landscape. The post will be supervised by Dr. Holly Croft (School of Biosciences) and Prof. Virginia Stovin (School of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Civil Engineering) and will be in collaboration with another postdoctoral researcher in the School of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Civil Engineering. As an integral part of the team, you will be encouraged and supported to develop your own research profile, contribute to the supervision of post graduate students, attend national and international conferences, and publish research findings in peer-reviewed journals.

This is an exciting opportunity to undertake high-quality, international research on a novel, multi-disciplinary project that integrates cutting edge remote sensing techniques, plant physiology and micrometeorology experiments within an engineering green infrastructure framework.

Main duties and responsibilities

• Make an active contribution to the establishment of novel instrumented external test beds, and in developing suitable tools for the data analysis activities planned in the project.
• Lead experimental campaigns in the collection of remote sensing and plant physiology data from vegetation in test-beds and in situ urban green infrastructure using thermal sensors and gas exchange systems.
• Develop and test modelling approaches for estimating evapotranspiration from vegetation in in test-beds and in situ urban green infrastructure.
• Plan your own research schedule and workload within the project schedule to ensure that the overall project milestones and objectives are met.
• Identify and develop opportunities to collaborate with Project Partners.
• Disseminate research findings & results through contribution to the production of papers for high quality journals and presentations at national/international conferences or seminars.
• Actively contribute to project meetings and research advisory group meetings.
• Assist with the co-supervision of undergraduate/postgraduate project students and/or PhD students.
• Carry out other duties, commensurate with the grade and remit of the post

Person Specification

Our diverse community of staff and students recognises the unique abilities, backgrounds, and beliefs of all. We foster a culture where everyone feels they belong and is respected. Even if your past experience doesn't match perfectly with this role's criteria, your contribution is valuable, and we encourage you to apply. Please ensure that you reference the application criteria in the application statement when you apply.

Criteria

Essential or desirable

Stage(s) assessed at

Have a PhD (or equivalent postdoctoral level work experience) in remote sensing or a related field

Essential

Application

Have experience or knowledge in plant science or micrometeorology

Essential

Application & interview

Experience in collecting, processing and analysing remote sensing data

Essential

Application & interview

Experience with one or more programming languages (e.g., Python, R, Matlab, Fortran)

Essential

Application & interview

Previous experience running successful field experiments and data collection

Essential

Application & interview

Have sufficient depth of specialist knowledge in the discipline to deliver world class research

Essential

Application & interview

Preparedness to travel nationally and internationally for research collaborations and scientific conferences.

Essential

Application & interview

Excellent interpersonal skills, oral and written communication skills in English

Essential

Application & interview

Ability work independently to develop skills needed to address the project tasks in a timely manner.

Essential

Application & interview

Ability to work effectively as a team member in a multidisciplinary team that includes graduate students, post-graduate researchers, academics and professionals.

Essential

Application & interview

Experience in measuring leaf gas-exchange and plant traits desirable

Desirable

Application & interview

A familiarity with sensor instrumentation

Desirable

Application & interview

Further Information

Grade

7

Salary

£38,784 - £41,064 per annum

Work arrangement

Full-time (100% FTE)

Duration

Fixed term from 1 February 2026 (or as soon as possible thereafter) for a period of 37 months

Line manager

Senior Research Fellow (PI)

Direct reports

None

Our website

School of Biosciences

For informal enquiries about this job contact Dr Holly Croft (PI) at

Next steps in the recruitment process

It is anticipated that the selection process will take place in the weeks following the closing date. This will consist of an interview and a presentation. A tour of the experimental facility can be provided on request. We plan to let candidates know if they have progressed to the selection stage within two weeks of the advertised closing date. If you need any support, equipment or adjustments to enable you to participate in any element of the recruitment process please contact

Our vision and strategic plan

We are the University of Sheffield. This is our vision: ().

What we offer

• A minimum of 41days annual leave including bank holiday and closure days (pro rata) with the ability to purchase more.
• Flexible working opportunities, including hybrid working for some roles.
• Generous pension scheme.
• A wide range of discounts and rewards on shopping, eating out and travel.
• A variety of staff networks, providing opportunities for social interaction, peer support and personal development (for example, Race Equality, LGBT+, Women's and Parent's networks).
• Recognition Awards to reward staff who go above and beyond in their role.
• A commitment to your development access to learning and mentoring schemes; Technical Career Route.

• A range of generous family-friendly policies

• paid time off for parenting and caring emergencies

• support for those going through the menopause
• paid time off and support for fertility treatment
• and more

We are a Disability Confident Employer. If you have a disability and meet the essential criteria for this job you will be invited to take part in the next stage of the selection process.

Closing Date : 15/01/2026

We are a research university with a global reputation for excellence. Our ideas and expertise change the world for the better, making a real difference to society. We know that when people come together with different views, approaches and insights it can lead to richer, more creative and innovative teaching and research and the highest levels of student experience. Our University Vision ) outlines our commitment to building a diverse community of staff and students that recognises and values the abilities, backgrounds, beliefs and ways of living for everyone.