Research Assistant – Spoken Language Production in Children

About the role

The Department of Psychology’s Centre for Neuroscience in Education is seeking a full‑time Research Assistant to support a three‑year project investigating spoken language production in children aged 2‑5 years. The role starts on 1 September 2026 (or as soon as possible) and will involve working closely with a team led by Professor Usha Goswami.

Key responsibilities

• Recruit and schedule 120 preschool participants.
• Administer pre‑existing computerised language tasks and behavioural assessments.
• Score, code and manage linguistic data, ensuring high data quality.
• Maintain the project database and assist with data entry and cleaning.
• Collaborate with the research team to monitor progress and meet milestones.

Required profile

• Degree in psychology, neuroscience, linguistics or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience conducting behavioural testing with toddlers or preschoolers.
• Strong organisational and communication abilities.
• Capacity to work independently within a multidisciplinary team.

Required skills

• Proficiency in MATLAB (preferred).
• Experience with linguistic coding and data management.

What we offer

• Fixed‑term contract for up to three years, funded by a research grant.
• Opportunity to contribute to cutting‑edge research on child language development.
• Access to university facilities and professional development support.