Data Manager E-Risk

Job description

This is an exciting opportunity for a candidate with strong data management experience to support a new phase of data collection for a large ongoing longitudinal twin study. The Environmental Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study (https://eriskstudy.com/) has been following a cohort of 2232 twin children born across England and Wales in the mid-1990s since they were 5 years old. They have been assessed multiple times during childhood and adolescence and we have now secured funding to assess them again at age 30.

The post holder will be responsible for ensuring the quality and integrity of the data collected during this phase of the E-Risk Study. This will include conducting extensive quality checks of completed assessment booklets; overseeing data capture and secure storage of all data; cleaning data and deriving variables; and integrating data linked from other sources into the cohort database. Throughout the project the post holder will maintain the study’s Management Information System, which contains up-to-date contact details for Study members. The post holder will also be responsible for preparing and disseminating datasets to research collaborators for analysis, with the opportunity to contribute to research publications. Finally, the post holder will contribute to the development of training materials and other resources to promote this incredibly valuable dataset to the wider research community.

The post holder will be based at the SGDP Centre, IoPPN Denmark Hill campus in London but there will be the option of working from home 1-2 days per week. Part-time job shares will be considered for this post. The post is initially offered until 31st August 2026 with the possibility of a 6-month extension.

We particularly welcome applicants who are disabled, LGBTQ+ and/or from a minority ethnic background, as they are under-represented at King’s. We are deeply committed to embedding good equality and diversity practice into all our activities so that the university is an inclusive, welcoming, and inspiring place to work and study. The SGDP Centre (https://www.kcl.ac.uk/mental-health-and-psychological-sciences/about/departments/social-genetic-and-developmental-psychiatry) strives to be an open and supportive community, with a strong emphasis on working practices that promote diversity and inclusion, including an anti-racism working group.

This post will be offered on a fixed-term contract until 31-Aug-2026

This is a full-time post - 100% full time equivalent (though part-time job shares will be considered)

Key responsibilities

• Responsible for ensuring integrity, quality, and secure storage of data collected at age 30.
• Maintaining the study’s computerised Management Information System.
• Liaising with the Project Coordinators to issue twins in monthly batches for the research workers to assess.
• Supporting Project Coordinators in training research workers, ensuring data is collected accurately and consistently.
• Conducting extensive quality checks of assessment booklets returned on a monthly basis by research workers and provide feedback to them to rectify errors/missing information.
• Management of data capture procedures (e.g., scanning of booklets) including thorough cleaning of all data received.
• Deriving and checking composite variables from interview data.
• Integrating data linked from other sources (e.g., health, education, geographical & criminal records) into the cohort database.
• Assisting with preparation of interview materials as required.
• Monitoring data flow to ensure the study is completed within deadline and budget.
• Preparing documentation relating to measures utilised and variables derived for this phase of data collection.
• Meeting with the project team fortnightly to update on progress of data collection and other aspects of data management.
• Conducting studies to document data quality, such as studies of inter-rater reliability.
• Creating a fully searchable data dictionary to be hosted on the E-Risk website.
• Contributing to training materials (e.g., videos, webinars) to promote this incredibly valuable dataset to the wider research community.
• Preparing & securely distributing datasets to research collaborators.
• Providing independent statistical analysis checks of team members’ analyses and contributing to research publications.

The above list of responsibilities may not be exhaustive, and the post holder will be required to undertake such tasks and responsibilities as may reasonably be expected within the scope and grading of the post.

Skills, knowledge, and experience

Essential criteria

1. Holds a degree/professional qualification in an area relevant to this post (e.g., epidemiology, computer science, health informatics, psychology, statistics, or related disciplines) OR has substantial experience of data management for research projects.
2. Experience of successfully managing data within a longitudinal cohort study.
3. Knowledgeable about how to appropriately handle confidential information and store data securely.
4. Ability to work autonomously and take responsibility for independent projects.
5. Experience of using Microsoft Access and Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) programming language.
6. Experience of effectively handling large and complex datasets, including cleaning of data, quality control, and derivation of variables.
7. Evidence of excellent attention to detail.
8. Experience of using statistical packages (e.g., Stata, R) and computerised systems for managing data and research-related information.
9. Knowledgeable about statistical methods and willingness to learn new techniques.
10. Ability to work well within an interdisciplinary team environment.

Desirable criteria

1. Knowledgeable about twin studies and relevant analysis techniques.
2. Experience with HTML web programming.
3. Experience of creating training materials/resources.
4. Experience of linking routine data to cohort datasets.

Further information

Candidates are encouraged to specifically address the Essential criteria (and where relevant the Desirable criteria) listed above in their covering letter. We aim to hold interviews online towards the end of June with a potential start date of 4th September. 

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 advert. 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