Research Fellow, Radicalisation & Terrorism

The Henry Jackson Society (HJS) is the UK’s boldest think tank and policy-shaping force, constantly ahead of the curve on the big issues of international and domestic importance, and we are expanding. We are looking for a new Research Fellow, specialising in countering radicalisation and terrorism, to join us on the next stage of our organisational journey. This has already taken us to the status of a household name in the international political and media constellation.

When HJS was founded back in 2005, the global environment was very different to what it has become today. Over that time, the threats to the free world internationally and to free societies domestically have multiplied, but there has been one constant: HJS’s willingness and ability to fight for the principles and alliances which keep societies free – working across borders and party lines to combat extremism, advance democracy and fundamental human rights, and make a stand in an increasingly uncertain world.

Reflecting this, we have refocussed our work into two main streams: “Securing our Societies” and “Advancing the Free World”. The Securing our Societies Programme focuses on threats to free societies within the West, while the Advancing the Free World Programme examines how the enemies of the free world are operating internationally. Obviously, there is interplay between the two streams as the challenges we face are often not as obliging as to lend themselves to easy classification.

HJS has a well-established team of energetic and determined Research Fellows working across the thematic topics that the Society studies.  To build on their successes, we now look to grow the research team further.

What we are looking for

In order to meet our ambitious agenda, we are looking to expand our existing research team with a new position requiring expertise in countering radicalisation, extremism, and terrorism in the U.K.

We are looking for a motivated, independent researcher, with a background in public policy, academia, risk analysis and/or journalism, who will be able to manage their own research projects from conception through to final publication. In particular, we want a Research Fellow with a U.K. based perspective and with experience of, and an interest in, looking across the board at Islamist, Far Right and Far Left extremists.

You will be amenable to being assigned HJS research agenda projects as well as capable of coming up with your own innovative ideas for research projects. You will need to be able to assist in organisation-wide research projects on an ad-hoc basis, work well to publishing and media deadlines, create rapid reaction pieces at short notice and be able to produce a range of material for the HJS website, in-house uses and external publications.

The position will include a wide variety of responsibilities and an opportunity to contribute to one of the most incisive research teams in the think tank world, and to build your own media and political profile.

You will have writing and communications skills, as well as experience with media. You will also be expected to develop self-sufficiency for your work stream financially, so some past examples of your ability to generate project funding or donations will prove helpful in your application. Above all though, we want you to be passionate about our issues and hungry to make a difference in the public policy world – recognising that this is not a normal 9-5 job where you switch off once you turn off your laptop because (a) you don’t want to and (b) you understand that this is not how the policy world works. The rewards, both professionally and personally are vast, as our existing and past researchers are shining examples of, but they require dedication and commitment to achieve.

Join us – and help make history.

Main Duties

• To conceptualise, plan and execute a series of exciting research projects over the course of each year, complete with deliverables, ensuring compliance with good practice in relation to the conduct of research;
• To add value to organisational projects by applying your specific skillsets to a wide range of projects, as needed.
• To conduct your own high-quality research and writing, including contributing to drafting funding bids and proposals;
• To proof and edit research output;
• To engage in public speaking and media commentary;
• To develop a network of professional contacts within your field of expertise;
• To fundraise/secure grants to support your work;
• To moderate and find speakers for online and hybrid events that discuss topics in your field of interest;
• To promote your work and represent your discipline and the work of HJS internally and externally, and to act as part of the HJS family in supporting colleagues doing the same.

Person Specification

Essential:

• Ideally more than 2 years’ relevant research or writing experience in a working environment post-university study;
• A postgraduate degree in international relations, politics, economics, history, statistics, or related disciplines or equivalent professional experience;
• Enthusiasm for collaborative, team, and mixed-method research;
• Familiarity with freedom of information requests and open-source data gathering;
• Confident writing and speaking skills, and experience of communicating research and policy recommendations to a variety of audiences;
• Demonstrable expertise and interest in one of the following areas: China; the Indo-Pacific; the MENA region; quantitative analysis; big data.
• Experience in policy-oriented research
• Excellent project management, prioritisation, and time-management skills;
• Ability to take responsibility for and work independently on specific project tasks as agreed with project directors;
• Ability to conduct research on a comparative and international basis;
• Ability to communicate with stakeholders from a variety of backgrounds;
• Hard-working and motivated with exacting attention to detail;
• Proficiency in MS Office tools;
• Sympathy with our ideals expected.
• If applying for a role as a Research Fellow specialising in quantitative analysis or big data, then experience of working with SPSS and/or Stata is essential. For all other Research Fellow roles, it is desirable but not essential.

Desirable

• PhD;
• Fundraising or successful grant-writing experience;
• Advanced qualifications in quantitative analysis and/or data interpretation.
• Arabic, Urdu, Pashto, Farsi, Russian, Mandarin, Cantonese, or another regional language would be an advantage;
• Understanding of public, international, or counter-terrorism law and the institutions that uphold and adjudicate upon it;
• Experience of working with policymakers;
• Experience with broadcast media.

Salary

£25-50k, dependent on experience and career level. A junior researcher would be expected to earn £25-35k and a mid-higher level at £35-50k.

To apply:

Please complete the online form and supply the following:

1. CV.
2. Cover letter – please include your salary expectations.
3. Links to examples of your published output and broadcast experience (if available), plus any evidence of fundraising/grant writing success.

Closing date – 23^rd May 2021