Research Associate (Evaluation)

About us

King’s College London is an internationally renowned university delivering exceptional education and world-leading research. The University is dedicated to driving positive and sustainable change in society and realising our mission of making the world a better place.

The Strategic Vision 2029 looks forward to King’s College London’s 200th anniversary in 2029 and sets out ambitious plans in five key areas:

• Educating the next generation of change-makers
• Challenging ideas and driving change through research
• Giving back to society through meaningful service
• Working with our local communities in London
• Fostering global citizens with an international perspective

As part of the Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy, the Policy Institute at King’s combine the rigour of academia with the agility of a consultancy and the connectedness of a think tank.

This role sits within a dedicated evaluation and research group within the Policy Institute. The group partners with government departments, public bodies, charities and other organisations to understand the impact of their work. Our activities include:

• Designing and delivering impact evaluations to assess the impacts of interventions on key outcomes, using experimental and quasi-experimental approaches
• Conducting implementation and process evaluations to explore how interventions operate in practice and how they are experienced by those involved.
• Supporting organisations to develop robust internal evaluation capacity, including the systems, skills and processes needed to embed evaluation in their work.

Beyond individual projects, the Policy Institute advocates for the use of evidence in policy and practice and works closely with members of the What Works Network to strengthen the wider evaluation ecosystem and promote the adoption of evidence-based interventions. See more at: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/policy-institute/about/edit

About the role

The Research Associate (Evaluation Manager) will play a key role in delivering the Policy Institute’s ongoing and new evaluation and research projects. Current work spans evaluations of programmes across primary, secondary, and further education; interventions aimed at reducing homelessness; and initiatives supporting young people into employment.

The role has a strong focus on quantitative evaluation methods. The ideal candidate will have advanced training in quantitative research methods (for instance statistics, econometrics, or similar subjects) – and substantial experience using R. They will have a strong track record of applying these skills across programme evaluations and other research projects, encompassing quantitative data management and analysis, evaluation design, data collection oversight, project workstream management, and contributing to the development of funding proposals.

We are particularly interested in candidates with experience of delivering commissioned research within a research organisation, consultancy, or academic setting. We also welcome candidates who bring subject-matter expertise from working in relevant policy areas, such as education, employment, youth violence reduction, homelessness, or related fields.

The successful candidate will be highly organised, analytically rigorous, comfortable working collaboratively across multiple projects, with the flexibility and adaptability to thrive in a fast-paced research environment.

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week), offered on an indefinite term contract.

Research staff at King’s are entitled to at least 10 days per year (pro-rata) for professional development. This entitlement, from the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, applies to Postdocs, Research Assistants, Research and Teaching Technicians, Teaching Fellows and AEP equivalent up to and including grade 7. Visit the Centre for Research Staff Development for more information.

About you

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

Essential criteria

1. A PhD in a relevant subject or equivalent professional experience (3-5 years in a research role).
2. Practical experience developing quantitative analysis plans and/or trial protocols.
3. Substantial experience cleaning, managing, and analysing large or complex datasets with a strong command of R (preferred) or Stata, and ability to produce clear, well-documented code.
4. Advanced training in, and applied experience of, quantitative research methods, such as statistics or econometrics, and programme evaluation methods, including experimental and quasi-experimental approaches (e.g., randomised controlled trials, difference-in-differences, regression discontinuity) and matching approaches.
5. Practical experience applying quantitative research methods to evaluation or research projects, for instance managing quantitative workstreams within projects in the areas the team works on: education, employment, financial inclusion, violence reduction, homelessness, or civic/political participation.
6. Excellent project management, organisational and time-management skills, with a high level of attention to detail.
7. Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
8. Ability to work collaboratively and effectively as part of a project team across multiple projects.

Desirable criteria

1. Experience working on commissioned research or consultancy-style projects, including managing relationships with funders and other project stakeholders and partners.
2. Experience of designing survey studies and/or of analysing survey data
3. Experience applying for research and evaluation project funding through applying to tenders

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.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is evolving rapidly, and we recognise its growing role in professional work. Applicants may use AI tools to support preparation of their application, for example to research the role or structure written responses. However, applications must reflect the applicant’s own work and experience. AI tools should not be used during interviews or assessment activities unless this has been agreed in advance as a reasonable adjustment. Further guidance on the use of AI in recruitment can be found here.

We reserve the right to close adverts early due to the volume of applications we receive. While the closing date may change, all adverts will close at 23:59 to allow sufficient time for applications to be submitted on that day.

We encourage you to apply at the earliest opportunity to avoid disappointment as once we have closed a vacancy you will be unable to submit your application.

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

Interviews are due to be held in late September/early October 2026.

This post is subject to Barring and Disclosure clearences.

This post that replaces Domenica Avila (Post ID: 510787) has been approved today by the faculty commitee to be advertised as a permanent post.

Grade and Salary: £45,031 - £52,514 per annum including London Weighting Allowance
Job ID: 160868
Post Date: 19-Oct-2026
Close Date: 09-Nov-2026
Contact Person: Susannah Hume
Contact Details: susannah.hume@kcl.ac.uk