EPSRC Vacation Internship

Project title: Elucidating the Mechanism of Action of Antibacterial Surfaces: From Molecular Interactions to Microbial Inhibition

Start and end date: Internships must take place between Monday 23 June and Friday 19 September 2025 and will last up to 10 weeks.

Working hours: Full-time, 36.25 hours a week

Pay Rate: Spinal point 10

Location: University of Nottingham, University Park

Dress code: Smart/casual

The duties will include:

• Carrying out laboratory research, data generation and data analysis on the research project.
• Complying with all training and safety regulations, drafting scientific reports and writing.

Skills and experience required for the role:

• Familiarity with basic microbiology and lab safety in a containment level 2 laboratory.
• Experience utilising the MIC assay and the disc diffusion assay to assess microbiological efficacy/

What you can expect to gain from this role:

• Greater understanding of microbiological testing, including ISO standard testing.
• Experience working with novel antimicrobial materials.
• Experience working with industry.

Widening Participation Criteria

Please note that candidates must fulfil at least one of the following criteria:

• Identify as having Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) ethnicity
• Identify their gender as being female or non-binary
• Be in receipt of a University of Nottingham core bursary or Nottingham Potential bursary
• Have a declared disability
• Most recent school or college was a state school, i.e. not a private school
• Be a mature student (21 or over at the start of their undergraduate course)
• Have spent more than three months in local authority care
• Be under 25 and estranged from their family
• Be a carer
• Have refugee status from the Home Office
• Have been in receipt of UK government funded ‘free school meals’ (FSM) during

any period in their secondary education

• The home address used on their UCAS application is in an area where people are

less likely to go to university*

* Students can check their postcode here to see if this criteria applies to them (please note that the postcode checker is for Contextual Admissions and if it says ‘You may be eligible for a contextual offer’ then you would fulfil the criterion for this application too)

Application Instructions:

Application closing date: 5 May 2025

The Careers and Employability Service supports student and alumni to make choices about their future after their studies. To support you every step of the way, the team can help you to:

• ace the recruitment process providing advice on CV writing and interview preparation.
• explore a wide range of careers areas through web resources and sector events.
• connect with employers with vacancies through careers fairs.
• generate career ideas if you're not sure what you want to do.
• develop the skills you need to be successful in the workplace.
  

Go to the Careers and Employability Service website to find out more.

Our University is a supportive, inclusive, caring and positive community. We warmly welcome those of different cultures, ethnicities and beliefs – indeed this very diversity is vital to our success, it is fundamental to our values and enriches life on campus. We welcome applications from UK, Europe and from across the globe.

Further information:

The University of Nottingham will ask you whether you have any unspent criminal convictions as part of our pre-assignment checks. If the position you are applying for is ‘exempt’ from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 you will be asked to confirm both spent and unspent convictions at the point of offer. Examples of such posts include clinical, medical and allied health roles, roles involving childcare services. A DBS check may also be required.

The University will only use information relating to criminal convictions where the law allows us to do so in line with our Data Protection Policy. Personal data relating to criminal convictions will be retained confidentially and securely and access to that data will be strictly controlled. More information relating to the manner in which we process your personal data is located within our privacy notice for staff, job applicants and others working at the University. Information about your rights relating to the use of your personal data can be found within our website privacy notice.

What Next: To apply for this vacancy please click ‘Apply Now’ to complete your details.

Please contact JobZone@nottingham.ac.uk for further information. Please note that applications sent directly to this email address will not be accepted.