Associate Professor in Social Research Methods (T&R)

Heriot-Watt University has established a reputation for world-class teaching and leading-edge, relevant research, which has made it one of the top UK universities for innovation, business and industry.

Nearly 30,000 students study with Heriot-Watt across business, engineering, design and the social, physical, biological and sports sciences. Our student body is roughly split evenly between the UK, our two campuses in Dubai and Malaysia, and online, with the latter being distributed across almost all the countries of the world. We also have many partnerships with other institutions world-wide who award Heriot-Watt degrees.

About our Team

The School of Social Sciences consists of three core academic units:  The Department of Psychology, the Department of Languages & Intercultural Studies and Edinburgh Business School (EBS), plus a School-wide Doctoral Centre.  The School delivers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate taught and research degrees across the University’s Edinburgh, Dubai and Malaysia campuses, as well as through a range of high quality distance learning programmes.  Research in the School is based around seven Research Centres, focusing on areas such as logistics and sustainability, data analytics and network analysis.

We have an established set of values that help us to nurture innovation and leadership, and show our commitment to continuous improvement and development in all our activities.

This post is located within the School of Social Sciences Doctoral Centre, which – in addition to overseeing the School’s thriving PhD and DBA community – is responsible for delivering research methods teaching across various levels within the School.  The Doctoral Centre comprises academics from across the disciplines represented in the School, supported by a dedicated professional services team.  Our research covers an array of topics, with an increasing focus on methodology itself as a focus of enquiry.  We manage all aspects of the PhD and DBA programmes in the School, including a Postgraduate Certificate that delivers innovative research methods education to our doctoral students through a flexible distance-learning model.  We have aspirations to expand this, and are currently developing a Master’s programme in social science research methods.  Members of the team also contribute to research methods teaching at undergraduate and PGT level across the School.

Detailed Description

Reporting to the School of Social Sciences’ Director of Doctoral Programmes, Prof. Stephen Gibson, this post is intended to play a significant role in leading research methods teaching in Edinburgh Business School.  In addition, the role-holder will supervise doctoral research across our DBA and PhD programmes, and will contribute to wider developments in research methods teaching.  The successful candidate will also pursue a research agenda related to their specialist area of methodology, and will be a member of one of the EBS Research Centres.  For more info, please visit https://www.hw.ac.uk/ebs/research.htm.

 We are particularly interested in applicants who have expertise in advanced quantitative methods/data science, with a disciplinary background that is aligned to business management or a related discipline.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

Reporting to the Director of Doctoral Programmes, the post-holder will:

• Assume the role of EBS Head of UG/PGT Research Methods Teaching, taking strategic responsibility for the delivery of business-focused methods training, and operational responsibility for tasks such as allocation of tutors and marking.
• Develop and deliver teaching in social science research methods to students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes in Edinburgh Business School.
• Act as course leader for one or more specific methods courses.
• Provide flexible, appropriate, and timely support to students using a variety of media.
• Prepare and mark assessments as required, and in line with School policies and standards.
• Act as Chair for Boards of Studies meetings related to research methods.
• Engage in research, focusing on methodological issues as well as discipline-specific matters, applying for funding and engaging in collaborative work as appropriate.
• Produce high quality research publications.
• Supervise doctoral research.
• Undertake other duties as required by the Director of Doctoral Programmes.

Education, Qualifications and Experience

Essential criteria

• A PhD in a relevant field.
• Expertise in social scientific research methods.
• Leadership experience in a learning & teaching context (e.g. programme leadership).
• Understanding of typical HE quality assurance processes and practices.
• Substantial experience of teaching research methods in a business school or similar context.
• Experience of successful doctoral supervision.
• Understanding/experience of research practices in commercial organisations as well as in academia.
• A world-leading publications record, with clear plans for continued development.
• A track record of successful research funding applications.
• Willingness and ability to travel to and teach on HWU global campuses.

Desirable criteria

• Expertise in advanced quantitative methods/data science
• Experience of the development and delivery of distance-learning materials.

When applying for this role, please submit a single PDF that includes a cover letter that identifies how your skills and experience are a good match for this position, an academic CV that highlights your research and teaching experience, and the names and contact details for two referees.

Informal enquiries concerning the role should be directed to Prof. Stephen Gibson (s.gibson@hw.ac.uk).

If you any difficulties applying or have any questions please contact Yvonne Constantino, y.constantino@hw.ac.uk.

For more information about the role and to apply, please visit;  https://enzj.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX/job/2823/?utm_medium=jobshare