Staff Testimonial
Michael Vallely
Postdoctoral Research Fellow Social Research
I joined the ESRI in August 2023 as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Social Research Division after completing my PhD (Economics) at the University of Glasgow. I would highly recommend working here to any early career researcher. The work at the ESRI is varied, relevant and has a strong impact on government policy. As part of our project, I have had the opportunity to engage in Public Patient Involvement (PPI) work and we formed a Steering Group to help guide and inform our work. So far, I have presented our work at conferences in Dublin, Galway Switzerland and at the University of Essex. I will also present chapter 3 of my thesis this month at UCL and LSE.
"My role provides me with some flexibility to work on my PhD chapters and side papers. This flexibility has provided me with extra time to prepare for my VIVA and work on re-drafting my thesis chapters for publication."
Chapter 1 has been published, Chapter 3 has received a R&R and Chapter 2 has been submitted to a journal. All of this would not be possible without a job that provides me with flexibility and time to work on these. I am also working on a paper with my office colleague and my other line manager. Publishing these along with the postdoctoral work will be hugely beneficial to my career development, which my manager is very supportive of. I meet with my manager weekly and she provides me with regular feedback and guidance.
I have also had many opportunities to be involved in broader ESRI activities and experiences which will also benefit my career development. I have undertaken media training, sat on an ethics panel and an interview panel, undertaken internal reviews and represented the ESRI at UCD’s Early Careers Researchers Networking event. In addition, I am the ESRI lead for a European conference in 2026. I am also a member of the EDI Committee and from this had the opportunity to be involved in the designing of the biennial workplace survey.
''My job provides me with great work-life balance which allows me to prioritise my health and my training.''
There is also a great social life at the ESRI. Everyone gets on really well and we have regular social events such as a book club, a journal club and quizzes. The ESRI is incredibly diverse and full of highly competent and skilled individuals. I am learning a lot from my peers and have no doubt I will only continue to grow both professionally and personally in this working environment.