Imperial College London, Department of Mathematics

Fellowship ID:

434-RF [#22733, ENG02710]

Fellowship Title:

Chapman-Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellowship, a program of Schmidt Futures (Research Fellow) ENG02710

Fellowship Type:

Fellowship or award

Fellowship Location:

London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Appl Deadline:

finished (2023/08/02, finished 2024/03/30, listed until 2023/09/28)

Fellowship Description:

*** this fellowship has been closed. ***

Salary: £58,345 per annum Location: White City Campus

Job Summary Applications are invited for prestigious Chapman-Schmidt Fellowships in AI for Science, a program of Schmidt Futures, in the Department of Mathematics and I-X, commencing September 2024. There are several positions available, which will each be fixed term for 2 years. We have a programme of additional support for women in AI for Science including additional funds for their career development and a community of IX AI in Science women.

Fellows will join the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Network of researchers and will join a unique co-located cohort of top scholars with tailored training and one-on-one career development. The fellowships are flexible and independent, allowing recipients to freely explore while drawing on expert faculty mentors of their choice. These fellowships have the aim of identifying excellent researchers and accelerating them in using AI to advance and disrupt Science or Engineering.

Here ‘AI’ is interpreted very broadly, e.g.: topics in Bayesian Inference and Control Theory; ‘Science’ covers any typical topic in Natural Science and Engineering (Epidemiology, Biology and basic science in biomedicine are included but very clinical medical themes are not covered, including conventional medical imaging). Examples include Bayesian optimization for molecular or materials design; machine learning for single cell data; physics-based ML for turbine design and astrostatistics. These posts are not suitable for generic AI research with general application: candidates must be aiming to substantially advance a particular area of science. Applicants could view themselves as AI researchers tackling particular pieces of science or science researchers using AI to transform their area. Extensive AI knowledge is not a prerequisite. Please check the additional remit and application advice that can be found here. Applicants working in AI-based industry, with a desire to return to academic research, are encouraged to apply. The Chapman-Schmidt Fellows will be collocated with all other AI in Science fellows within Imperial’s dynamic new AI campus, I-X, and alongside other AI researchers including across Imperial’s faculties and departments.

Duties and responsibilities The Chapman-Schmidt Fellows will produce independent and original research, using AI to advance science, within the Department of Mathematics and I-X, submit publications to refereed journals, and help with teaching and administration. The post holders will be expected to undertake a self-directed program of research and scholarship, play a role in the national and international research community, in addition to teaching students at undergraduate level.

Essential requirements The essential requirements for this post are as follows:

• PhD (or equivalent) in Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, Computing, Mathematical Engineering. Computational Biology or a related subject. • The potential for leadership qualities in the subject, as illustrated, for example, through showing initiative on research projects. • An outstanding research record commensurate with their level of experience as demonstrated, for example, through an outstanding thesis, publications, conference presentations, code etc. • The ability to contribute significantly to the research environment of both I-X and the Department of Mathematics as demonstrated, for example, through a proven track record of successful research interactions. • A proposal which is within the AI in Science research remit. • Research Fellows will be expected to have several years of experience post-PhD (in research or AI-based industry) and experience supervising team members.

Further Information Further information about Imperial College London, the Department of Mathematics and the I-X AI in Science Centre can be found at: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/mathematics and https://www.imperial.ac.uk/ix-ai-in-science/

In addition to completing the online application, candidates should upload following documents: • A full CV including publications and

A single file with: • Publication Elaboration: 1 page (or less) outlining the contributions of up to three papers by the applicant, suitable for a general/lay reader. • Research Proposal Lay Summary: 1 page (or less) summarising the proposed research, suitable for a general/lay audience including the title of the research project. Particular attention will be paid to this summary. It should answer the question of why/how this application of AI (in a wide sense) will be transformative for the target area of science. The proposal should start by mentioning at least one mentor who could support the application – one mentor should be within the Department of Mathematics, but others could be outside. Mentors should be contacted in advance of the application. It is not essential that the mentor in Mathematics (or outside) be a close fit to the proposed research, but this is likely to make the science more credible. • Research Proposal: a 3 pages or less proposal that explains why and how the proposed research could be transformative for a particular area of science. It can be structured around background, a small number of hypotheses/aims, and work packages. It can be assumed that the reader will first read the Lay Summary and so content need not be repeated. • Training Plan: a ½ page or less plan, identifying any particular skills that need to be acquired for the proposed research to succeed. Training is a key part of the proposed fellowship, whether helping an AI expert master a scientific topic or a scientific topic expert acquire AI skills. • Kindness Statement: a ¼ page or less outline of your view on the need for kindness among scientists. The fellows will join a larger cohort of ~20 fellows in AI for Science with opportunities for outreach and Lower-and Middle Income Country (LMIC) engagement. • Mobility Statement (for applicants currently at Imperial only): Schmidt Futures seeks to enable national and international mobility: candidates from outside Imperial are particularly encouraged to apply. Candidates that are already in Imperial are asked to supply several sentences in their mobility statement outlining, in a distinctive and compelling manner, how remaining in Imperial is the best route for their personal growth. Applicants from Imperial are required to move from their existing supervisor to entirely new mentors for their Schmidt Fellowship, to increase both their independence and their breadth of experience (existing mentors cannot become secondary mentors).

Please note that applications that focus on method development alone or method development with broad application to numerous example areas will not be considered: a focus on advancing new science in a particular area is essential. The use of AI must serve a catalytic role: applications which use AI in a manner judged routine across the specific field (e.g., this would apply to some parts of bioinformatics) maybe be at a disadvantage. With exceptions like AI for Mathematical Proofs, publications/ outputs in mainstream venues read by a broad range of scientists/ engineers, will typically be expected. Applicants interested in 4 year roles should apply for the Imperial College Research Fellowships, supported by Schmidt Futures – these and other posts can be found here

We have partnered with the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and the CNRS. If you are applying for one of these joint fellowships, we require that the listed principal mentor be in the Maths Department at Imperial, but a secondary supervisor must be at ICR/CNRS: please indicate this in your proposal details and in the appropriate fields in the online form and find further details in the FAQ found here.

Please read the FAQ regarding the application process and remit found here.

This is a full time, fixed term opportunity for 2 years, based at White City Campus.

If you have any queries about the posts, please contact e.boyce@imperial.ac.uk

Interviews will take place in November 2023.

The College is a proud signatory to the San-Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), which means that in hiring and promotion decisions, we evaluate applicants on the quality of their work, not the journal impact factor where it is published. For more information, see https://www.imperial.ac.uk/research-and-innovation/about-imperial-research/research-evaluation/ The College believes that the use of animals in research is vital to improve human and animal health and welfare. Animals may only be used in research programmes which are ultimately aimed towards finding new treatments and making scientific and medical advances, and where there are no satisfactory or reasonably practical alternatives to their use. Imperial is committed to ensuring that, in cases where this research is deemed essential, all animals in the College’s care are treated with full respect, and that all staff involved with this work show due consideration at every level. Find out more about animal research at Imperial

We are not accepting applications for this job through MathJobs.Org right now. Please apply at https://www.imperial.ac.uk/ix-ai-in-science/ .

Postal Mail:

: Department of Mathematics
Imperial College London
South Kengsington Campus
London
SW7 2AZ

Web Page: http://www.imperial.ac.uk