Research Fellow (1 Year Contract)

About the role

The Research Fellow is the senior research role within URO and provides intellectual, methodological and strategic leadership across research, institutional research, research administration, research governance, grant development and University-wide initiatives. The position operates with a high degree of autonomy, leading and overseeing multiple concurrent projects, advising senior stakeholders and mentoring junior research staff. It is a one-year contract.

Key responsibilities

• Lead complex qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods research from design through to dissemination, providing methodological leadership and quality assurance
• Oversee quantitative analysis using SPSS, Stata, R and Microsoft Excel, and guide junior staff in analytical approaches
• Lead literature reviews, evidence synthesis, environmental scans and benchmarking, and turn evidence into reports, journal articles, working papers, policy papers and presentations
• Manage multiple concurrent research projects and initiatives, setting workplans, milestones and deliverables and meeting tight or competing deadlines
• Provide senior-level research administration, including project set-up, documentation, progress monitoring, reporting, committee submissions and close-out
• Allocate and oversee work by Research Associates, Research Assistants and project staff, and coordinate stakeholders such as PIs, faculty, research centres, funders and external partners
• Contribute substantially to grant writing and proposal development, identify funding opportunities and partnerships, and support research portfolios and pathways to follow-on grants
• Advise on research ethics, integrity, governance, data protection and responsible conduct of research, and lead or support reviews, audits and compliance exercises
• Analyse research performance, capability and grant activity, and develop indicators and recommendations for institutional planning
• Mentor research staff and interns, represent URO in committees and forums, and provide flexible support for special assignments

Required profile

• PhD from a recognised university, preferably in Education, Social Sciences, Psychology, Public Policy, Business, Data Analytics or a related discipline
• Typically five or more years of relevant postdoctoral, research or professional experience, with leadership of complex research, evaluation, policy or institutional projects
• Strong record of working independently, managing multiple stakeholders and projects, and turning research evidence into strategic, policy or operational recommendations
• Demonstrated experience in grant writing and research development; experience mentoring or supervising research staff is strongly advantageous

Required skills

• Advanced research design with strong qualitative capability and competence in SPSS, Stata, R and Microsoft Excel
• Advanced analytical writing, evidence synthesis, grant writing, policy analysis and research outputs
• Understanding of research governance, ethics, integrity and higher education research environments
• Advanced project and programme leadership, including risk, dependency and stakeholder management