Advertised from 1 September 2025

Role

About the role and why we need you

You can make an impact every day using your passion for science and your excellent communication skills. Our Science Communications team have a key role at Worldwide Cancer Research, engaging the wider team and our supporters (known as Curestarters) about the incredible research we fund.

We are looking for a creative, multi-skilled Science Communications Officer to champion our research and our global researchers through compelling storytelling. This involves collaborating across the charity to ensure content is accurate and audience appropriate. You’ll also be interacting with everyone in the organisation to help them understand how cancer behaves and how our research is helping to find new cures. 

Our values are curious, united, real, entrepreneurial and spirited, all of which you’ll have the opportunity to demonstrate in your work. You’ll be curious about our research and be innovative in how you present it. Your strong interpersonal skills will help you to work well with other teams, particularly Marketing and Fundraising, to help us provide the best supporter experience and grow our Curestarter community. 

We need someone who shares our enthusiasm for discovery cancer research and who has experience of breaking down complex science into easy-to-understand content and fascinating stories. From presenting to colleagues to creating social media posts, you’ll be required to balance different tasks efficiently and to manage your own time effectively. 

Who are we?  

At Worldwide Cancer Research, we start new cures. Cancer is still one of the leading causes of death worldwide, but cutting-edge science can give us hope. Discovery research seeks to uncover new knowledge that could change the way we think about cancer. It reveals new ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat cancer that can save lives.

We actively seek unconventional and imaginative ideas from scientists at all stages of their career, across the globe. In some cases, we are the only organisation that will fund a scientist’s idea. We take an unbiased approach to research funding by focusing on supporting only the best ideas for new cures. By having a diverse research portfolio, we increase our chances of finding breakthroughs.

Our vision is of a day when no life is cut short by cancer, and we believe we can achieve this by starting the life-saving advances of the future by sowing the seeds of discoveries. Anyone that helps bring forward breakthroughs – including our staff, our supporters, and the researchers we fund – is a Curestarter.

As a charity, we are committed to opportunity without barriers, and we are striving to seek, value and learn from different perspectives and experiences. We want Worldwide Cancer Research to be an inclusive organisation – where everyone can be themselves and feel valued – as diverse as the scientific community we fund and the families whose lives we impact. 

We are committed to ensuring that we provide equal opportunities to every applicant regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. We aim to ensure that our recruitment process is unbiased and that everyone is treated equitably because our team members are at the heart of everything we do to start new cancer cures around the world.

To help start new cancer cures and save lives, we are looking for a Science Communications Officer to join the busy Science Communications team at Worldwide Cancer Research, to help the charity run its multi-million-pound funding programme for discovery cancer research.

Hours: Full time and fixed term for one year. 35 hours a week over core working hours of 10am - 3pm, Monday to Friday, with a one-hour lunch break. The office is open 8am – 7pm daily and our hybrid working policy requires all full-time employees to work at least two days a week in the Edinburgh office.  

Benefits: 10% employer pension contribution; private medical insurance; employee assistance programme and counselling service; enhanced maternity/paternity/adoption pay; enhanced sick pay; 31 days’ paid holiday/year plus four paid winter public holidays; 2-weeks fully remote working/year; three paid carer days/year; death in service benefit; cycle to work and travel season ticket schemes.

To support the Team’s work-life balance, we work a nine-day fortnight where the charity is closed every second Friday.

Application notes

Please email your CV and a one-page cover letter to: recruitment@worldwidecancerresearch.org 

Focus the content of your letter on: 

1. An example of how you have translated complex science into easy-to-understand content

2. An example of when you have worked in a team and what you did to help that team succeed

Your letter will be the key to your success and applications without letters may not be considered. Please consider the use of AI in your application carefully. We would like original cover letters reflecting your individuality and suitability to the role.  

Please tell where you saw the role advertised. 

• You will find the full job profile and our benefits on Worldwide Cancer Research careers 
• Closing date is Sunday 21 September 2025, midnight.
• Interviews will be held on Tuesday 7 October 2025 in Edinburgh - we will contact all applicants as soon as possible after shortlisting for interview.

We are a disability confident committed employer - please contact Paula Cahill, our HR Manager, if you have any questions about our recruitment process, accessibility and adjustments to support you: paulac@worldwidecancerresearch.org

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