Research Development Officer

Overview

As a member of the Research Development Team, you enable successful pre-award research applications by supporting proposal development, budgeting, and funder compliance. You will work across the university to identify opportunities, coordinate submissions, and deliver training and guidance. This role fits within RED, contributing to research excellence and impact. You’ll help maintain data systems and support policy, ethics, and governance in a collaborative, researcher-focused environment. A key hook is shaping how the university secures and manages external funding at scale.

Pay / Benefits

• 33 days annual leave
• 9 buildings closed days
• flexible working patterns
• supportive, inclusive environment

Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive pre-award support to ensure accurate, compliant proposals
• Interpret funder budget rules and align with university pricing policies
• Track proposals from development to award setup and deliver training on costing and online submission
• Produce data reports and analyses for Research Leaders and RED Management
• Support research activity data maintenance and disseminate funding opportunities
• Contribute to inductions and training; support ethics, governance, and data management policy
• Maintain and update research management systems ensuring data integrity and compliance
• Update training resources and research communications using Teams and SharePoint
• Liaise with external funders and collaborating institutions; coordinate with other university departments

Key requirements

• Honours degree or equivalent with professional administrative capability
• Excellent written and oral communication, ability to produce high-quality written work independently
• Proactive, able to manage day-to-day responsibilities with minimal supervision
• Flexible, adaptable with strong prioritisation and ability to meet competing deadlines
• Strong organisational and forward-planning abilities under pressure
• Customer-focused approach with experience shaping services or processes
• Attention to detail and accuracy; reliable outputs
• Team player with collaborative approach and ability to share knowledge

• clear communication
• initiative
• prioritisation
• knowledge of full economic costing (fEC) and costing principles
• experience with Worktribe or similar research management systems
• experience with external funder submission systems (e.g. UKRI Funding Service, EU portals, Flexigrant)

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