King's College London

About Us

The School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences is an interdisciplinary School dedicated to the development, clinical translation and clinical application of medical imaging technologies and devices. Staff and students comprise physicists, chemists, biologists, engineers, mathematicians and clinicians working together in a highly cross-disciplinary way.

The Department of Imaging Chemistry & Biology is one of eight within the School and its remit is to develop contrast agents and radiopharmaceuticals for both imaging and therapy and take them through the translational process from initial synthesis and characterisation, radiochemical synthesis, in vitro biology and preclinical in vivo biology and imaging, to the point of readiness for clinical evaluation. 

About The Role

The department is looking to recruit a Preclinical Technical Officer in the field of small animal imaging, working mainly in the fields of nanoSPECT/CT and nanoPET/CT with opportunities to also work with PET/MR, MRI, optical imaging and focussed external beam irradiation therapy. The purpose of this role is to support, train and advise multidisciplinary scientists and students using and developing novel medical imaging methodology. 

The incumbent will be expected to support the Pre-clinical Imaging Operations Manager to manage and maintain the preclinical imaging facilities (e.g. calibration, quality control, testing imaging scanners; trouble-shooting); ensure compliance of facilities and users with the relevant regulations and government bodies, with control over stocks, equipment and supplies.  

Responsibilities include providing: teaching, advice and training on techniques/procedures, operation of the scanners and data and image analysis; facilitating the efficient and ethical operation of animal experiments involving imaging to achieve the aims of various research programmes.  In addition, the post holder will be expected to extract maximum value and capability from the imaging facilities, by developing and implementing novel quantitative imaging protocols and flexible data analysis pipelines in response to the needs of colleagues. 

Duties also include good communication, critical evaluation and problem-solving skills, use and monitoring of safe working practices to maintain and improve health & safety compliance.  Included are completing risk assessments, SOPS, adjusting protocols and facilities to reduce levels of risk including negative environmental impacts. When required, reporting accidents/ incidents and participating in accident investigations. 

Independent decisions will be expected, in a timely manner to solve problems which impact the facilities and contribute to collaborative decisions. This role requires the postholder to work independently based on an agreed work plan, setting own priorities and working cooperatively with stakeholders to achieve the service objectives.

The post holder will keep informed about developments in relevant technical/scientific fields and adopt and adapt new approaches/ methodologies to meet local needs. By forging relationships with colleagues in the university and externally, they will contribute to our collaborative and multi-disciplinary ethos and culture. 

This is a full-time 35hours per week role, and you will be offered a fixed term contract for 24 months.

About You

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. PhD qualified (or near completion) in Medical Physics/Imaging Biology/related field, or undergraduate qualification in a relevant discipline with experience equivalent to a PhD qualification in similar posts with evidence of increasing levels of responsibility.  
2. Sustained experience of working with small animal imaging (PET, SPECT, MR, Optical etc) or other medical imaging discipline. 
3. Experience of small animal disease models, anaesthesia, surgery, drug administration and other aspects of small animal experimentation and study design. 
4. Understanding and knowledge of hardware and software in relation to medical imaging with proven technical problem-solving and trouble-shooting abilities. 
5. Systematic approach to problem solving with evidence of strong critical thinking skills. 
6. Knowledge of a range of radionuclides and other ionising radiation, and the regulatory context of the use of radiation. 
7. Experience with data management, data reconstruction and analysis. 
8. Proven experience working with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, comfortable and confident to present area of responsibility and expertise to auditors and inspectors. 

Desirable criteria

1. Home Office Personal Licence. 
2. Experience with a range of radionuclides and other ionising radiation. 
3. Self-motivated, showing initiative, flexible and co-operative. 
4. Able to handle several projects at once and prioritise and work to targets and deadlines. 
5. Statistical analytical skills and/or pharmacokinetic modelling. 

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further Information

At King’s, we believe that the diversity of our community and a culture that is welcoming, open, inclusive and collaborative, are great strengths of the university.

The Equality Act of 2010 protects the rights of our students and staff and provides a framework to fulfil our duties to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and in addition, to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. At times, this will include balancing rights and beliefs that can feel in tension.

We are committed to free speech and to academic freedom, believing that our foundational purpose as a university, is to create spaces where a wide range of ideas, including ideas that are controversial, can be discussed and debated, and where members of our community can express lawful views without fear of intimidation, harassment or discrimination.

When engaging in the robust exchange of ideas, we ask that our community is mindful of our Dignity at King’s guidance.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the person specification section of the job description. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘ How we Recruit’ pages.