Postdoctoral Research Associate

Working at Durham University

A globally outstanding centre of teaching and research excellence, a warm and friendly place to work, a unique and historic setting - Durham is a university like no other.

As one of the UK's leading universities, Durham is an incredible place to define your career.The University is located within a beautiful historic city, home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and surrounded by stunning countryside. Our talented scholars and researchers from around the world are tackling global issues and making a difference to people's lives.

We believe that inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things in the world. Being a part of Durham is about more than just the success of the University, it's also about contributing to the success of the city, county and community.

Our University Strategy is built on three pillars of research, education and wider student experience, but also on our keen sense of community and of inspiring others to achieve their potential.

Our Purpose and Values

We want our University to be a place where people can be free to be themselves, no matter what their identity or background. Together, we celebrate difference, value one another and are each responsible for creating an inclusive community that is respectful and fair for all.

Find out more about the benefits of working at the University and what it is like to live and work in the Durham area on our Why Join Us? - Information Page

The Role and Department

We are recruiting a team of ambitious early career policy sociologists to contribute to a major new £1.5million UKRI-funded project From the Centre to the Periphery -which addresses regional economic disparities within the UK, and specifically examining the role education can play to reduce deep-seated spatial divides.

We will address this major policy challenge by carrying out the first quasi-experimental evaluation of the Opportunity Areas programme, a £100million national area-based initiative that sought to close gaps in social mobility between different regions and places of the UK. It was a long-term investment in areas of the country that have the most pronounced levels of deprivation and where social mobility is the lowest. Working with our local authority partners, the Department for Education and other third-sector organisations, our research will help to shape future area-based education and social policy.

Those appointed to these posts will work directly with our interdisciplinary team of geographers, sociologists and educationalists, including Professor Michael Donnelly (Education, Bath), Professor Nadia Siddiqui (Education, Durham), Professor Richard Harris (Geography, Bristol), Dr Joanne Davies (Education, Bath), Dr Ceri Brown (Education, Bath), Professor Matt Dickson (IPR, Bath) and Professor Nick Pearce (IPR, Bath).

In this current round of appointments, we are recruiting a full-time Durham-based Research Associate (1.0FTE) as well as a part-time Bath-based Research Assistant (0.50FTE). These posts represent an exciting opportunity for ambitious and enthusiastic early career researchers to join one of the largest studies ever to have been carried out into spatial inequalities in education and social mobility within the UK.

These posts represent an excellent opportunity for early career researchers wishing to develop an academic career in public policy research - those appointed will receive mentoring from the senior colleagues involved in the project to develop co-authored and sole-authored outputs in leading academic journals that are world-leading in quality. We will work with the team to develop their own careers and provide the mentorship to enable them to apply for their own follow-on projects.

The Durham-based Research Associate will primarily be responsible for large-scale primary data collection based on interviews, focused groups, observations of official meetings and panel discussions. We are seeking experienced researchers with a strong background in social policy evaluations and expertise in applying research methods for understanding policy mechanisms. Ideal candidates will bring expertise in assessing policy impact and effectiveness, with a focus on the nuances of policy design and implementation. They will be involved in all aspects of data collection across 24 case-study locations, data analysis and the production of academic and non-academic outputs. We are looking for a policy sociologist with strong qualitative research skills, including an ability to engage with stakeholders that include children and young people, teachers, school leaders, and policy-makers.

The University of Durham's School of Education is one of the best research leading departments in the UK with an outstanding reputation for excellence in research and employability of our students. We ranked joint first in REF2021 for our research impact and academic outputs. The School of Education is recognised for prolific research environment where doctoral students and early career researchers receive exposure to world-class research. Our researchers have opportunities of working with experienced academics on high-quality and large-scale research.

For details on the Bath-based Research Assistant please see here.

Key responsibilities:

This appointment will be a fixed-term Post-doc Research Associate, (1.0FTE, 2 years), Durham University

• To assist the research leads (Durham, Bristol and Bath) in developing field study protocols an
• To prepare data from field-studies and prepare the data for analyses and synthesis.
• To prepare and deliver presentations on research outputs/activities to audiences which may include research sponsors, academic and non-academic audiences.
• To publish high quality outputs, including papers for submission to peer reviewed journals and papers for presentation at conferences and workshops under the direction of the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder.
• To assist with the development of research objectives and proposals.
• To conduct individual and collaborative research projects under the direction of the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder.
• To work with the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder and other colleagues in the research group, as appropriate, to identify areas for research, develop new research methods and extend the research portfolio.
• To deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines by discussing with the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder and offering creative or innovative solutions.
• To liaise with research colleagues and make internal and external contacts to develop knowledge and understanding to form relationships for future research collaboration.
• To plan and manage own research activity, research resources in collaboration with others and contribute to the planning of research projects.
• To deliver training in research techniques/approaches to peers, visitors and students as appropriate.
• To contribute to fostering a collegial and respectful working environment which is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect.
• To engage in wider citizenship to support the department and wider discipline.
• To travel within the country for data collection and dissemination of research findings .

The post-holder is employed to work on this research project line managed by Prof Nadia Siddiqui. Whilst this means that the post-holder will not be carrying out independent research in his/her own right, the expectation is that they will contribute to the advancement of the project, through the development of their own research ideas/adaptation and development of research protocols.

Successful applicants will, ideally, be in post by 1st February 2025.

Working at Durham

A competitive salary is only one part of the many fantastic benefits you will receive if you join the University: you will also receive access to the following fantastic benefits:

• 30 Days annual leave per year in addition to 8 public holidays and 4 customary days per year - a total of 42 days per year.
• The University closes between Christmas and New Year - please include or delete if not applicable.
• We offer a generous pension scheme, As a new member of staff you will be automatically enrolled into the University Superannuation Scheme (USS).
• No matter how you travel to work, we have you covered. We have parking across campus, a cycle to work scheme which helps you to buy a bike and discount with local bus and train companies.
• There is a genuine commitment to developing our colleagues professionally and personally. There is a comprehensive range of development courses, apprenticeships and access to qualifications and routes to develop your career in the University. All staff have dedicated annual time to concentrate on their personal development opportunities.
• Lots of support for health and wellbeing including discounted membership for our state of the art sport and gym facilities and access to a 24-7 Employee Assistance Programme.
• On site nursery is available plus access to holiday camps for children aged 5-16.
• Family friendly policies, including maternity and adoption leave, which are among the most generous in the higher education sector (and likely above and beyond many employers).
• The opportunity to take part in staff volunteering activities to make a difference in the local community
• Discounts are available via our benefits portal including; money off at supermarkets, high street retailers, IT products such as Apple, the cinema and days out at various attractions.
• A salary sacrifice scheme is also available to help you take advantage of tax savings on benefits.
• If you are moving to Durham, you may be eligible for help with removal costs and we have a dedicated team who can help you with the practicalities such as house hunting and schools. If you need a visa, we cover most visa costs and offer an interest free loan scheme to pay for dependant visas.

Discover more about our total rewards and benefits package here.

Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion

Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key component of the University's Strategy and a central part of everything we do. We also live by our Purpose and Values and our Staff Code of Conduct. At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. It's important to us that all colleagues undertake activities that are aligned to both our values and commitment to EDI.

We welcome and encourage applications from those who are currently under-represented in our work force, including people with disabilities and from racially minoritised ethnic groups.

If you have taken a career break or periods of leave that may have impacted on the volume and recency of your research outputs and other activities, such as maternity, adoption or parental leave, you may wish to disclose this in your application. The selection committee will take this into account when evaluating your application.

The University has been awarded the Disability Confident Employer status. If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role.

Contact Information

Department contact for academic-related enquiries

Professor Nadia Siddiqui at nadia.siddiqui@durham.ac.uk

Contact information for technical difficulties when submitting your application

If you encounter technical difficulties when using the online application form, we prefer you send enquiries by email. Please send your name along with abrief description of the problem you're experiencing toe.recruitment@durham.ac.uk

Alternatively, you may call 0191 334 6801 from the UK, or +44 191 334 6801 from outside the UK. This number operates during the hours of 09.00 and 17.00 Monday to Friday, UK time. We will normally respond within one working day (Monday to Friday, excluding UK public holidays).

University contact for general queries about the recruitment process

e.recruitment@durham.ac.uk

How to Apply

To progress to the assessment stage, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification below. It will be at the discretion of the recruiting panel as to whether they will also consider any desirable criteria, but we would urge candidates to provide evidence for all criteria.

While some criteria will be considered at the shortlisting stage, other criteria may be considered later in the assessment process, such as questions at interview.

Submitting your application

We prefer to receive applications online. We will update you about your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to make sure you have not missed any of our updates.

What to Submit

All applicants are asked to submit:

• a CV and cover letter which details your experience, skills, and achievements in meeting (or the potential to meet) the criteria set out below.
• Next Steps

Short-listed candidates will be invited to the University, either virtually or in-person and will have the opportunity to meet key members of the Department. The assessment for the post will normally include a presentation to staff and students in the Department followed by an interview and we anticipate that the assessments and interviews will take place over two days.

In the event that you are unable to attend in person on the date offered, it may not be possible to offer you an interview on an alternative date.

Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement Job Applicants/Potential Job Applicants - Durham University which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.

When appointing to this role the University must ensure that it meets any applicable immigration requirements, including salary thresholds which are applicable to some visas.
Person Specification

Essential Criteria:

Qualifications

A good first degree in disciplines of Social Sciences

A PhD (or be close to submission) in Education or a related subject.

Experience

Experience in conducting high quality academic research (large-scale primary and secondary data collection and data analysis in evaluation designs, structured reviews, reporting of results for academic audience and other stakeholders in education.

Experience in managing fieldwork/ process evaluation for programme evaluations.

Demonstrable ability to write material of a quality commensurate with publication in highly-ranked journals.

Demonstrable ability to present research papers at national/international conferences and communicate complex information to specialists and within the wider academic community.

Skills

Excellent skills for data management

Demonstrable ability to work cooperatively as part of a team, including participating in research meetings.

Ability to work independently on own initiative and to strict deadlines.

Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

Be able to travel long distance within the country for fieldwork.

Desirable Criteria

Experience

Experience in process evaluation designs, policy document analysis, and expert knowledge of area-based interventions.

Strong publication record in peer-reviewed journals, commensurate with stage of career.

A track record of presenting research at conferences, symposia, or meetings, commensurate with stage of career.

Demonstrable ability to develop research proposals and designs in collaboration with other academics.

Skills

Demonstrable ability to plan and manage independent research.