Research Assistant (Co-Creating a Development Needs Analysis for PGRs project)

Full Job Description

Grade UE06 Step 1 – currently £31,396 per annum pro rata, £17.20 per hour.

Institute for Academic Development, Student Services, University Secretary’s Group

Part Time -  7 hours per week

Fixed Term Contract - Start date projected to be early April 2024, with an end date of 31^st July 2025.

This role is a UoE student experience position for a currently matriculated University of Edinburgh PhD student. You must be a matriculated University of Edinburgh student for the duration of the contract.

The Opportunity:

The Institute for Academic Development are seeking a part-time (7 hour per week) Research Assistant to work on the Co-Creating a Development Needs Analysis for PGRs project. 

The Research Assistant will assist the Principal Investigator and team on the project ‘Co-Creating a Development Needs Analysis for postgraduate researchers (PGRs’) by conducting a literature review and benchmarking, contributing to the data collection and analysis of surveys, and the co-delivery of focus groups. The Research Assistant (RA) will also support the writing up of the results. 

This role is a UoE student experience position for a currently matriculated University of Edinburgh PhD student. 

For a student experience post, you must be a matriculated University of Edinburgh student for the duration of the contract. Given the length of the contract, the role may therefore suit an earlier or mid-stage PhD student.

The focus groups will take place in the University Central Area. Other desk-based activities can be conducted remotely. We anticipate a working pattern of 1 day a week with some flexibility at times of peak activity (e.g. focus groups) where it may involve more than one day; this would be compensated for in other weeks. 

To informally discuss the role you can contact   

Your skills and attributes for success: 

• Relevant degree essential (relevant postgraduate qualification desirable). 
• Training in research methods
• Experience of taking forward research projects 
• Ability to compile and analyse relevant literature 
• Expertise in gathering and analysing qualitative and quantitative data
• Excellent organisational skills 
• Ability to work independently 

Click to view a copy of the full job description (opens new browser tab) to see the full list of essential and desirable criteria for the role

As a valued member of our team you can expect:

• A salary of: £17.20 per hour, which is equivalent to Grade UE06 Step 1 £31,396 per annum. 
• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging and rewarding place to work. 
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, such as a generous holiday entitlement, a defined benefits pension scheme, staff discounts, family-friendly initiatives, and flexible work options. Check out the full list on our staff benefits page   (opens in a new tab) and use our reward calculator to discover the total value of your pay and benefits 
• The IAD actively supports its staff to engage in continuing professional development. The University of Edinburgh offers a wide range of free training opportunities for University staff, including digital skills, management skills, and many more. 

Important information about applying 

As part of your application please upload an up-to-date CV as well as a cover letter or supporting statement outlining your suitability and motivation for the role. 

If you are a student who is also a UoE staff member (e.g. if you are a part-time Tutor, etc) please do not type in your UoE staff email address to apply. If you do, this will redirect you to People and Money (P&M), and you cannot apply to student employment roles in P&M. Using a personal non-University email address instead for your application should work.

After the closing date, updates on your application will be sent via HR system-generated notification emails. Please double check the junk mail and clutter folders on your email client, in case notifications are routed there. 

The University will employ full-time PGR students for no more than an average of 9 hours per week across the academic year (as per its policy ), and you must make sure any employment complies with any visa or funding conditions you may have.

Key dates to note

Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm GMT. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browsers local time zone. 

We anticipate we will hold the interviews in early- to mid-March 2024.

Championing equality, diversity and inclusion

The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter and we are also Stonewall Scotland Diversity Champions, actively promoting LGBT equality. 

Prior to any employment commencing with the University you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our right to work webpages   (opens new browser tab)

The University is unable to sponsor the employment of international workers in this role. International applicants will therefore be unable to apply for and secure a Skilled Worker visa. They will only be able to take up this role if they can demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.