The Centre for the Study of Existential Risk (CSER) invites applications for a part-time Research Assistant (0.6 FTE, equivalent to 22.2 hours per week) to work closely with the Centre Director S.M. Amadae (https://www.cser.ac.uk/team/s-m-amadae/), delivering briefings, reviewing papers, and supporting research projects and proposals. This is a 12-month appointment in the first instance starting mid-August 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter.
The Research Assistant will cover topics such as AI’s impact on human abilities to govern catastrophic risk, and nuclear war and security. They will have the opportunity to sharpen skills across a range of activities, including academic writing, presenting to senior stakeholders, and grant-writing.

Applicants should have:

• Interest in a career analysing the relationship between developed and new technologies and international security
• An undergraduate or Master’s degree, or equivalent experience, in a field such as political science, international relations, science and technology studies, international law, or philosophy of science
• The ability to critically review and summarise academic and policy texts, independently review and collect relevant additional documents, and communicate their findings to expert and non-expert audiences
• The ability to work as part of a team from a range of backgrounds ¿ from law to immunology and artificial intelligence - and in close collaboration with project leaders
• Interest in helping to write research proposals: suggesting methods and partners as well as planning out activities and costs.

CSER has developed a community working together on the complex challenges of managing extreme risks and we are looking for candidates who will contribute to this community and work as part of a team, both within CSER and with our many research partners.

In order for your application to be considered, please upload the following:

• Your Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• A covering letter of no more than 1,000 words. Please outline any skills and experience you have that would be relevant for this role. Please include examples and evidence that demonstrate your skills/capabilities.
• The names and contact details of two referees who are familiar with your work.

Informal enquiries about the role are welcomed and should be directed to: recruitment@cser.cam.ac.uk.
For questions about the application process, please contact the Schools HR Team on sahhr@admin.cam.ac.uk.
The closing date is midnight (BST) on Sunday 6 July 2025. Interviews are expected to be conducted online in mid-late July 2025, subject to change.
Click the ‘Apply’ button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
Please quote reference GO46048 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK

Please refer the Job description for details