Senior Research Fellow

Full-Time, 12 Month Contract

Are you interested in doing research with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population with a focus on health equity?

Do you have a PhD and experience in mixed methods research?

The Wardliparingga Aboriginal Health Equity Theme (AHE), located on the lands of the Kaurna people at SAHMRI, is a leading national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led unit dedicated to wellbeing and achieving health equity among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia through quality and safe health and medical research.

Our research is rigorous, dynamic and community responsive. It is governed and done in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Our program of research responds to community priority areas; chronic disease, social and emotional determinants of health, aged care and healthy ageing.

Our methodological strengths lie in population health, implementation science and health services research.

About the Role

We are seeking a Research Fellow to join our team, and support in delivering the important and rewarding research that Wardliparingga is doing with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community in South Australia and across the Nation.

The focus of this position will be to provide high level research support across a variety of research projects within Wardliparingga. You will work with our team to conduct and contribute to high quality mixed methods research in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, that will lead to improving health and social outcomes for the population.

If you share our values and principles of research conduct, we want you to join our research team

Key responsibilities include:

• Support the development and implementation of research activities
• Provide leadership, coordination and oversight to research across a range of research activities.
• Provide high-quality research support to project team members to successfully achieve research milestones and outputs.
• Prepare resources and/documentation required to successfully keep collaborating organisations, research partners and Chief Investigators engaged and informed.
• Lead the preparation of ethics applications, service and site agreements, reporting and study documentation and dissemination of research outputs and outcomes.
• Attract and assist with the preparation of applications for external refereed research grants.
• Promote scholarship and integrity and support a culture of excellence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research.
• Foster and support local and national links and strategic collaborative relationships that build understanding and skills with relevant research institutions, universities and community bodies including health and workforce services and government collaborators, that assist in the advancement of research objectives.
• Ensure research and other outputs are compliant with National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and Australian Vice-Chancellors' committee (AVCC) guidelines and principles of research conduct with vulnerable or disadvantaged groups and in keeping with the principles of the South Australian Aboriginal Health Research Accord.
• Communicate research findings and assist with the development and implementation of knowledge translation activities, within high impact peer-reviewed journals, at conferences and within committees and other bodies relevant to the role.

About You

The successful candidate will possess the following key attributes:

• PhD in Public Health, Health Services Research, Epidemiology, Health Science or a related discipline as well as demonstrated experience in successfully meeting research project milestones to completion, supervising, and working with Aboriginal organisations and healthcare services.
• 5 years minimum experience in a health-related research field.
• Demonstrated experience in the conduct of all stages of the research process
• Sound knowledge of population health relevant to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and ability to utilise evidence-based information sources to the design and delivery of research projects
• Demonstrated experience in design and conduct of qualitative and quantitative research methods.
• Experience in working within a research team, as well as taking the lead on research projects.
• Actively contribute to the research by collaborating with the research team to successfully deliver project milestones and Key Performance Indicators within allocated budgets.
• The ability to enhance the research profile of the Wardliparingga Aboriginal Health Equity by conducting research and/scholarly activity, independently and/or as a member of a team, which results in securing competitive funding and publications in peer-refereed journals.
• High-level verbal and written communication skills, including academic writing, with the ability to present information effectively and clearly to a wide audience.
• Communicate research findings and assist with the development and implementation of knowledge translation activities, within high impact peer-reviewed journals, at conferences and within committees and other bodies relevant to the role.
• Experience and/or demonstrated ability to work in a culturally safe, sensitive and accountable manner with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander individuals, communities and stakeholders.

Special Requirements

• Some out of hours work may be required.
• DCSI Employment Screening, Police Check and working with Children checks are required.
• Some travel interstate and intrastate, including to urban, regional, or remote parts of South Australia may be required.
• SAHMRI is required to implement the Addressing vaccine preventable disease: Occupational assessment, screening and vaccination policy for SAHMRI employees carrying out work in any SA Health Facility.

Immunisation Risk for this position is Category C (minimal patient contact)

Everything we do is underpinned by our core values and our institute is dedicated to grow a culture that pursues, enables and demands research excellence. We are proud of the work we do and work hard as a team to make a positive difference to the community.  Our values of excellence, innovation, courage, integrity and teamwork are what help us achieve our goals. If these are also your values and goals, apply today.

As a not-for-profit organisation, SAHMRI employees can access salary packaging options up to $15,900. Salary packaging lets you pay for things like the everyday costs of living with money from your salary before tax. This reduces your taxable income, meaning you could pay less tax and take home more of what you earn. For more information on salary packaging please see the Maxxia website.

For a copy of the position description, please click here.

For more information, please contact Kate Kwenda at

Applications close: 16th November 2025

Applications may close earlier than advertised if a suitable candidate is found prior to the close date.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are strongly encouraged to apply