Queen's on quest for recruits

Queen's University Belfast is advertising 45 posts in the first tranche of a £259 million investment in staff, students and facilities.

Some £28 million has been earmarked as part of the five-year plan for a recruitment programme aimed at attracting 140 academics from around the world.

The posts span a range of disciplines, from history and anthropology to bioinformatics and aeronautical engineering.

Peter Gregson, the vice-chancellor, said the university had a responsibility to offer a broad range of courses in Ireland, particularly in science.

"Unlike the many reports of closures of chemistry departments, we have a new combined School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering," he said. The school is advertising for two chairs and a lecturership.

The university is seeking senior and junior staff, from readers and professors to teaching fellows and lecturers. It is investing a further £10 million in new centres of excellence to build on expertise in sustainability, health, Irish studies and child protection and welfare.

Some staff would be in post for the forthcoming research assessment exercise, Professor Gregson said, but the recruitment programme was a long-term investment and not driven by the RAE.

"This major investment is to secure Queen's position as a global leader in research and education," he said. "We are offering salaries that are competitive nationally and internationally."