Data Science KTP Associate (Recommender System Design and Development)

Person Specification

The Requirements

Essential:

1. Qualifications

A first degree in Computer Science or other numerate discipline with a significant component of computing
MSc in Computer Science / Machine Learning / Data Science / Business Analytics

2. Experience

Excellent understanding and application of concepts, tools and techniques in machine learning
Excellent understanding of recommender system techniques and methods
Good understanding of the security and privacy of machine learning
Experience in designing, performing and completing a research project
Demonstrable ability of verbal and written communication of project results to a variety of audiences including non-technical ones
Evidence of ability to write reports and scientific papers

3. Skills

Recommender system techniques (and use of associated libraries and packages)
Machine learning
Programming languages, particularly Python
Data science
Privacy-by-design and security-by-design practices
User studies
Collection of heterogeneous data
Teamwork – demonstrable ability to work cooperatively as part of a team, including participating in research meetings
Independent work – demonstrate skills in time and project management
Excellent interpersonal and communication skills

4. Attributes

Ability to work and communicate with (very) different disciplines e.g., MoreLife psychologists, nutritionists and engage with MoreLife clients

Desirable skills:

PhD in Computer Science / machine learning / data science
Understanding of HCI, user experience evaluation and user-centred system design
Understanding of trustworthiness in AI (fairness, robustness, responsible AI principles)
Understanding of privacy-enhancing technologies and security principles
Understanding of agile methodology and project life cycle
Demonstrable ability to work cooperatively as part of a diverse and interdisciplinary team
Show ability to communicate efficiently with end-users
Good interpersonal and communication skills
Prior publication record in scientific venues

Durham University
Durham University is one of the world’s top universities with strengths across the Arts and Humanities, Sciences and Social Sciences. We are home to some of the most talented scholars and researchers from around the world who are tackling global issues and making a difference to people’s lives.

The University sits in a beautiful historic city where it shares ownership of a UNESCO World Heritage Site with Durham Cathedral, the greatest Romanesque building in Western Europe. A collegiate University, Durham recruits outstanding students from across the world and offers an unmatched wider student experience. Less than 3 hours north of London, and an hour and a half south of Edinburgh, County Durham is a region steeped in history and natural beauty. The Durham Dales, including the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, are home to breath-taking scenery and attractions. Durham offers an excellent choice of city, suburban and rural residential locations. The University provides a range of benefits including pension and childcare benefits and the University’s Relocation Manager can assist with potential schooling requirements.

Durham University seeks to promote and maintain an inclusive and supportive environment for work and study that assists all members of our university community to reach their full potential. Diversity brings strength and we welcome applications from across the international, national and regional communities that we work with and serve.

The KTP Project

The KTP Associate will lead a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project that is a collaboration between Durham University and MoreLife UK Ltd. based in Leeds. The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) scheme helps businesses to innovate and grow through the aid of discipline specific academic expertise. It does this by linking them with an academic supervisory team and a researcher in a university to work on a specific project.
Working alongside CTO, project managers, digital programme lead, psychology lead and software development team, the KTP Associate will be involved in a project to design, develop and implement innovative methods for delivering real-time personalised weight management interventions, via an accessible digital platform.
Department of Computer Science – The successful candidate will be working with academics in the Department of Computer Science. The Department is a UK Top 10 Department according to the Complete University Guide 2023. We are committed to high quality research and are proud of the people who make it happen. Computer Science increased excellence in all areas of research since the last research assessment exercise, moving 6 places up the ranking to the 20th position for REF 2021. Our research strengths include AI, computer vision, theoretical computer science, high-performance computing, digital humanities and bioinformatics. We put high emphasis on equality, diversity and inclusion for our staff and students. Since 2020, the department has moved into a new purpose-built building. Our strong alumni network contributes to the department in many ways – including our External Advisory Board, visiting speakers, student placements, and philanthropic support of scholarships. We have some highly influential alumni in the Tech Sector.
MoreLife (more-life.co.uk/) is a health and well-being company providing services to NHS England and local authorities. The services include weight management, smoking cessation, and active well-being programmes, NHS health checks, consultancy and training. The staff include psychologists, nutritionist, dietician, sports/activity leaders. The staff and services are supported by a digital infrastructure comprising a staff-facing data management system and client-facing system. The company has a strong track record of multi-disciplinary research; the CEO Paul Gately is a Professor of Sports. MoreLife is located in Headingley, Leeds.

Specific responsibilities of the Associate:
• Identify internal stakeholders of MoreLife (UK) Ltd. Understand company business & capabilities. Problem statement and project scope formulation.
• Review of state-of-the-art. Identify methods, including: responsible AI, privacy-enhancing technologies, machine learning algorithms for recommender systems, user interface (UI) adaptation, HCI, application evaluation and user studies.
• Develop system specifications
• Back-end design and development: Develop and evaluate the personalised RS; Developing UI adaptation logic
• Develop system prototype: inputs, data storage, methodologies for protection of personal data, output implementation and integration.
• Evaluate RS using standardize performance metrics.
• Evaluate the application (RS and UI) in an online user study.
• Implementation and integration with MoreLife systems.
• Promotion of the project, final reporting, including progress reviews and updates to stakeholders.
• Journal/conference paper writing and publishing.