Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Associate in MRI Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping

UCL and Perspectum are coming together through a Knowledge Transfer Partnership, a national scheme which helps businesses to innovate and grow by linking them with a university and a highly qualified graduate, known as a KTP Associate.
We are seeking a KTP Associate to work full time on an innovative project putting the latest academic research into practice, based at the Perspectum offices.

The aim of the KTP project is to implement state-of-the art technology to detect blood-iron in the brain using an MRI technique known as Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM), making it ready for clinical trials, for use on patients living with a progressive neurological condition called infratentorial superficial siderosis (due to the deposition of the iron-containing compound, haemosiderin, around the brain and spinal cord), and with potential relevance for people being treated with new medications that slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

As a KTP Associate, you will integrate UCL’s QSM research into Perspectum’s offerings, translating it into a software-as-a-service solution with the goal of commercialisation and market deployment. You will optimise a robust acquisition protocol and processing pipeline for QSM and validate this against clinical data.

The project will embed and translate state-of-the-art MRI QSM diagnostic techniques for the brain into Perspectum, with the aim of incorporating them into future products. You will need to address technical challenges associated with delivering a QSM algorithm that is robust for all patients, and you will be expected to produce high-quality research publications and will manage the project of translating the MRI QSM methods into a commercial setting.

You will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the project and will be expected to show initiative and independence of thought in applied research and embedding knowledge. You will also demonstrate innovation and project management skills.
You will be physically based at the Perspectum offices in Oxford and will receive regular supervision from Professor David Werring and Professor Karin Shmueli at UCL.

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, it also offers great benefits, such as:
• The ability to work on a complex project in line with your research interests at the heart of a dynamic innovation-focused UK company, alongside academic experts.
• The opportunity to publish your work in collaboration with UCL.
• Attendance at international conferences to share your work, with £2,500 for travel and £4,000 for materials for the project.
• Support to develop your technical and commercial skills with a £4,000 dedicated personal development budget for your exclusive use.
• Fast track your career development by joining the KTP Scheme; one of the UK’s largest and most well established graduate employment programmes.
• Access to UCL’s extensive range of benefits.
The Associate must start work before 22 June 2025.

Lead and manage the KTP project on MRI brain QSM techniques between UCL and Perspectum.
• Develop proprietary QSM pipelines within Perspectum.
• Act as the primary point of contact between the academic and industrial project partners.
• Write, read, and understand technical reports and algorithm specifications.
• Keep up to date with advances in MRI QSM, through team meetings and conference attendance.
• Support business development.
• Collaborate with product management and software engineering teams on product development.
• Integrate your work with the QSM research and development programme at UCL, implementing, applying, and extending state-of-the-art algorithms.
• Report to the executive team on achievements and milestones.
• Design, build, and apply software-as-a-service for QSM.
o Support the team to develop proof-of-concept and prototype software.
o Validate QSM estimation methods against clinical biomarkers in appropriate patient groups.
• Develop IP and patent applications as needed.