Research Fellow

Job Description

Research Fellow (Fixed Term for 12 months): Grade: 7

Department: School of Management: Location: Canary Wharf, London

Reports to

Dr. Kenan Arifoglu, Dr. Aras Selvi Or Dr. Yi-Chun Akchen, Dr. Mengzhenyu Zhang

Context

The UCL School of Management is home to UCL’s business and management research and education programmes. The school has forged a reputation for world-leading research and teaching in the areas of innovation management, the creation and growth of technology-intensive organisations, business analytics, and entrepreneurship.

The 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF) rated the majority of the research outputs of the UCL School of Management as “world-leading” or “internationally excellent”; at 95%, this was the second highest percentage of any business school in the UK.

The School is accredited by both the AACSB and AMBA and is a member of the Chartered Association of Business Schools. Our academic staff, comprised of over 100 academic and education faculty, is organised around five research groups: Strategy & Entrepreneurship, Organisations & Innovation, Operations & Technology, Marketing & Analytics, and Finance, Accounting & Economics. We offer innovative undergraduate, postgraduate, PhD, MBA and executive programmes in Management, Entrepreneurship, Business Analytics, Information Management Systems, and Finance, designed to prepare students for leadership roles in the next generation of innovation-intensive organisations. The school’s faculty members come from all over the world, with PhDs from Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Columbia, UCLA, Northwestern, Cornell, Duke, Cambridge, and London Business School, among others.

The school is home to over 2,300 students, with more than 55% from outside the UK.

This is an exciting time to join the UCL School of Management, which, since 2025, has been undergoing a rapid expansion to deliver a new strategy that will see staff and student numbers double over the coming years. This growth includes new degree programmes, additional staff, and enhanced facilities at our Canary Wharf campus, supporting our mission to educate socially conscious entrepreneurial leaders equipped to tackle the world’s greatest challenges.

Further information about the School can be found here: www.mgmt.ucl.ac.uk/

Main purpose of the job

UCL School of Management Operations and Technology group is seeking a motivated, independent, and highly skilled Postdoctoral Research Fellow to contribute to a research agenda in the following two potential directions:

• Led by Dr. Kenan Arifoglu, Dr. Aras Selvi: research on end-to-end synthetic data generation and decision making under uncertainty. The work will develop new methods for generating privacy-preserving data that remain useful for the operational decisions ultimately made from them, rather than treating data generation and decision making as separate stages. A particular focus will be on high-stakes healthcare settings, where sensitive data must support reliable planning, capacity, and resource-allocation decisions under uncertainty despite privacy restrictions.
• Led by Dr. Yi-Chun Akchen and Dr. Mengzhenyu Zhang: projects on examining how firms, platforms, and market designers can use information and assortment strategically. Two related research projects are possible. The first project studies information disclosure combined with mechanism design in markets with private information. The second studies dynamic information and assortment policies in markets where customers arrive over time and do not observe the history of previous decisions. Both contribute to a broader understanding of how limited, carefully designed communication and menus can improve allocation, coordination, and revenue.

This post is research-only, for 12 months (fixed). The start date for the 12-month contract is flexible: anytime from January 2027.

Duties and responsibilities

The postholder will work with the principal investigators to write up findings for publication in peer-reviewed journals. The role offers the opportunity to lead on academic papers and develop independent research within the research directions described above.

Candidates should have a PhD in Operations Research, Operations Management, Economics, Computer Science, or related areas completed or near completion by the post start date, expertise in optimization methods or game theory, mechanism design, economic theory, and strong mathematical and analytical skills, including experience with formal proofs. In addition, candidates should have excellent written and oral communication skills and the ability to produce high-quality research, suitable for publication in peer-reviewed journals.

To apply for this post

To apply for this post, applications must include all three required documents: a Cover Letter, a CV, and one Writing Sample. Applicants must specify which research agenda they will pursue.

Applications may not be progressed if: 1) Any of the required documents are missing. 2) The Cover Letter does not explain how the applicant intends to use the 12-month appointment to meet the duties and responsibilities above.

Follow this process to apply

• Go to the online UCL School of Management website, find the online link to “Talent Link” and click on it, create an online application. Fill in the online application.
• On Talent Link, upload your Cover Letter (1 page, single-spaced). In the Cover Letter, specify which research agenda you will pursue and how you plan to use this 12-month appointment to meet the duties and responsibilities above.
• On Talent Link, upload your one writing sample. Ensure it connects to the research agenda you choose. You can upload other writing samples through “other documents”.
• On Talent Link, upload your CV.
• Check that all three attachments are uploaded successfully (Cover Letter, CV, Writing sample).
• Submit the application.

Please do not upload teaching statements.

For questions on the role, the research program and the duties/responsibilities, reach out to: a.selvi@ucl.ac.uk or zhenyu.zhangmeng@ucl.ac.uk For questions on visas, hiring/parental/medical leave policies and technical issues, contact: mgmt-hrsom@ucl.ac.uk

Person Specification

Note to job applicant: copy and paste the following criteria into your “Statement in support of your application” and describe underneath each criterion how you meet it, giving examples. You will be scored on how you meet each criterion.

Essential Criteria: Assessment method (Application form/ Interview / Practical Test)

Qualifications, experience and knowledge

A PhD (or being close to PhD completion) in Operations Research, Operations Management, Economics, Computer Science, or related areas. If the PhD has not been awarded before the employment start date, the post holder will be appointed at the Research Assistant grade 6B level.: Application Demonstration of interest in one of the two research agendas that are presented as core to this Job Role (see Job Description) – should be evidenced at application through the Cover letter: Application/Interview Expertise in optimization methods or game theory, mechanism design, economic theory, and strong mathematical and analytical skills, including experience with formal proofs. In addition, candidates should have excellent written and oral communication skills and the ability to produce high-quality research, suitable for publication in peer-reviewed journals – evidenced at application through the CV and writing sample(s): Application/Interview

Skills and abilities

Demonstrate ability to work on research agendas that fits within one of the two research directions, as presented within this Job Description – evidenced at application through the Cover letter and writing sample(s): Application/Interview Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English – evidenced through the Cover letter, manuscript/working paper/writing samples, and the CV. Verbal evidenced at interview stage.: Application/Interview

Ways of Working

Switching easily between tasks for different groups and stakeholders.: Application/Interview

Desirable Criteria

Working independently with little daily supervision – evidenced through the CV and at interview stage: Application/Interview

09/09/2026