"Research Fellow (109373-0724)"

Location  

University of Warwick Campus, Coventry

Department  

Department for Education Studies

Position Type  

Fixed Term, Full Time

Duration  

Ending 31 March 2027

Salary  

£33,966 to £44,263 per annum

About the Role  

For informal enquiries, please contact Dr Rebecca Morris (Associate Professor) at rebecca.e.morris@warwick.ac.uk.

The Department of Education Studies is looking to recruit a Research Fellow to work on an EEF-funded evaluation of tutoring for post-16 GCSE Resit students. The study, led by Dr Rebecca Morris and Dr Tom Perry, begins in Summer 2024 and runs until March 2027. Co-investigators on the project include Dr Paul Thompson (CIDD, University of Warwick) and Dr Ellie Willard (Leeds Beckett University).

This project is a large-scale, national evaluation of a tutoring intervention which has been developed and is implemented by the charity, Get Further. The evaluation will include further education (FE) colleges across England and will seek to understand the impact of this tutoring approach on young people’s attainment in English and Maths GCSE, as well as on their feelings of confidence, engagement and motivation.

Working closely with the research leads and other members of the team, the post-holder will be responsible for and engaged with a range of activities across the duration of the study, including:

• Project planning, management and organisation.
• Liaison and communication with EEF (project funders) and Get Further (intervention developers)
• Reviewing literature and preparation of ethical approval documents
• Supporting with the development and completion of evaluation documents (e.g. project protocol)
• Design of research instruments
• Data collection and fieldwork in colleges across England
• Regular communication and engagement with participating colleges, leaders and teachers.
• Data analysis and synthesis
• Writing up and publication/presentation of findings.

 The role is full-time (1.0 FTE) although we will consider job shares.

 Some travel within the UK will be required as part of this role. Travel and subsistence expenses will be covered for this work.

Successful applicant to start as soon as possible.

This role will require an enhanced DBS check.

About You  

Essential

Applicants should:

• Hold a doctorate in education or a related field (e.g. psychology, sociology, social policy, economics), or be close to completion
• Have knowledge and experience of the school and/or post-16 education sector in the UK.
• Have excellent communication skills, both written and verbal
• Be able to liaise confidently and professionally with funders, colleges, teachers and others involved with the project.
• Have excellent IT skills, including an up-to-date and comprehensive knowledge of Microsoft Office, and a willingness to learn new IT platforms and skills
• Have excellent organisational skills.
• Have experience of managing large-scale or complex research projects
• Have experience of designing and carrying out mixed methods research studies.
• Experience of organising and carrying out data collection in schools or colleges, including interviewing staff and students, using questionnaires and/or carrying out observations.
• Record keeping, data management and meeting deadlines will be essential for this role
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with experience in establishing and managing effective relationships with diverse groups to deliver projects or activities.
• Willingness to travel to a number of destinations across England for contribution project meetings, data collection, and conferences.

Desirable

• Knowledge and/or experience of English/Maths GCSE curriculum and assessment, and GCSE resits
• Knowledge of randomised control trials in education
• Evidence of research-focused publications

Training will be provided for each aspect of the study. The successful candidate will also have the opportunity to contribute to all outputs from the study, including journal articles, research reports and conference presentations.

For further information regarding the skills required for this role please see the personal specification section of the attached job description.

If you are near submission or have recently submitted your PhD but have not yet had it conferred, any offers of employment will be made as Research Assistant at the top of level 5 of the University grade structure. Upon receipt of evidence of the successful award of your PhD, you will be promoted to Research Fellow on the first point of level 6 of the University grade structure. 

About the Department  

For further information about the Department for Education Studies, please visit our website.

About the University  

Born in the 60s with a mindset of boldness, imagination and collaboration, the University of Warwick is a world-leading research-intensive university with the highest academic and research standards. We’re one of the world’s top universities, ranked 67th in the world and 10th in the UK*, with 92% of our research assessed to be ‘world leading or internationally excellent’**. 

You'll be joining a diverse, innovative and globally connected community committed to igniting real world progress. Here at Warwick, we offer you opportunities to follow your ambitions as long as you bring the energy and determination to succeed.

*QS World University Rankings 2024

** Research Excellence Framework 2021

To find out more about us visit our website.

How to Apply  

CLOSING DATE: Wednesday 14th August 2024 at 11.55pm

To apply, please click ‘Apply’ below and submit an application form by the closing date. Please plan for any potential delays as you will not be able to submit an application past this deadline (even if you opened the form at, say, 11.30pm).

Please attach a CV and cover letter.

• Your CV should include your most recent employment experience, any other relevant experience, and education history.
• Your cover letter must detail how you meet each of the essential criteria found in the Job Description document below (desirable criteria too, where possible).

Please see here for guidance on writing a cover letter. We highly recommend using individual criteria as headers and giving examples below, though you are free to format the letter as you wish.

To streamline our hiring processes, we can only accept applications via our official website, warwick-careers.tal.net.

Interview Date: TBC

Start Date: TBC

What we Offer  

We will provide you with a great range of benefits, which include an attractive pension scheme, 30 days holiday plus Christmas closure, excellent learning and development opportunities, and savings on a wide range of products and services. We offer a generous maternity/paternity/adoption/parental leave policy, and onsite childcare facilities. 

We recognise the importance of a healthy work/life balance and offer you access to flexible working, for more information click here. 

We are proud to say that we are a Living Wage employer.

If you are considering relocating to the UK, read our Relocation Guide to find out more about what Warwick has to offer and what might be involved in the process.

Our Commitment to Inclusion  

Warwick is committed to building an organisation of mutual respect and dignity, promoting a welcoming, diverse, and inclusive working and learning environment. We recognise that everyone is different in a variety of visible and non-visible ways, and that those differences are to be recognised, respected, and valued. Where possible, we go beyond legislation to provide a place where everyone can thrive, supporting all staff to achieve their full potential. We aspire to remove economic, social, and cultural barriers that may otherwise prevent people from succeeding. 

We therefore welcome and encourage applications from all communities regardless of culture, background, age, disability, sex/gender, gender identity or expression, ethnicity, religion/belief, or sexual or romantic orientation. To find out more about our social inclusion work at Warwick visit our webpages here. 

The University currently holds a Race Equality Charter Bronze Award, Athena Swan Sliver Award and a Disability Smart Bronze Award. The University of Warwick is also one of the six founder institutions of the EUTOPIA European University Alliance. 

Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS)

The University of Warwick complies with the DBS Code of Practice and undertakes not to discriminate unfairly against anyone who makes a Disclosure relating to a conviction or other information revealed. More information is available on the University’s Vacancy pages and applicants may request a copy of the DBS Code of Practice.

Right to Work in the UK   

If you do not yet have the right to work in the UK and/or are seeking sponsorship for a Skilled Worker visa, please follow this link which contains further information about obtaining the right to work in the UK.