Sowerby Lecturer in Philosophy of Medicine
Department: Philosophy
About us:
The Department of Philosophy at King’s College London is seeking an outstanding philosopher for a three-year Sowerby Lectureship, with research expertise and/or teaching experience in Philosophy of Medicine and/or related areas. The successful candidate will pursue an original programme of research at an international standard and contribute to the research, teaching, and wider activities of the Sowerby Philosophy and Medicine Project, including conferences, workshops, reading groups, colloquia, and public events.
The Department of Philosophy is one of the largest and most distinguished in the UK. We have particular research strengths in the history of philosophy, philosophy of mind and psychology, philosophy of language and linguistics, metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of science and ethics and political philosophy.
About the role:
The Department of Philosophy at King’s College London is seeking an outstanding philosopher for a three-year Peter Sowerby Lectureship, with research expertise and/or teaching experience in Philosophy of Medicine and/or related areas. The successful candidate will pursue an original programme of research at an international standard and contribute to the research, teaching, and wider activities of the Sowerby Philosophy & Medicine Project, including conferences, workshops, reading groups, colloquia, and public events.
This is a full time (35 hours per week), and you will be offered an a fixed term contract for 3 years..
About you:
To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:
Essential criteria
- A PhD in Philosophy or relevant related area (awarded or viva passed) at time of appointment.
- A strong record of research achievement and potential in philosophy of medicine, relative to career stage.
- Relevant teaching competence and experience and outstanding ability to engage, teach, supervise and support undergraduate and postgraduate students.
- Understanding of equality, diversity and inclusion issues; how they may impact on academic content and issues relating to student need.
- The ability and willingness to undertake administrative and organisational responsibilities as required.
Desirable criteria
- A record of research achievement that demonstrates potential for non-academic impact and wider benefits beyond academia.
- Experience in the organisation of conferences and workshop and the managing of research networks.
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 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.
Grade and Salary: £45,829 - £53,462 per annum, including London Weighting Allowance
Job ID: 162565
Post Date: 03-Nov-2026
Close Date: 17-Nov-2026
Contact Person: Mark Textor
Contact Details: Mark.Textor@kcl.ac.uk
