Research Support Officer (Case Centre on Public Leadership)

About the Blavatnik School of Government

Our vision is of a world better led, a world better served and a world better governed. We are a global school committed to improving the quality of government and public policymaking worldwide, through three routes: teaching current and future leaders; generating research with impact; and engaging with governments and practitioners.

What we offer

The School is a collaborative, friendly, and dynamic department based in an award-winning building in Oxford. We host regular events and talks with well-known guest speakers – all of which are open to staff. On the social side, we have regular coffee/cake mornings for staff, a family-friendly Halloween event, and Christmas and summer parties.

As an employer, we genuinely care about our employees’ wellbeing and this is reflected in the range of benefits that we offer including:

• An excellent contributory pension scheme
• 38 days’ annual leave
• Family leave schemes and a comprehensive range of childcare services
• Cycle loan scheme and discounted bus travel and Season Ticket travel loans
• Membership to a variety of social and sports clubs
• Opportunities for remote working.

More information about working at the School can be found by clicking the 'Apply' button above.

About the Role

The Blavatnik School of Government is in search of a Research Support Officer to join its award-winning Case Centre on Public Leadership, which develops case studies, simulations, and other teaching material based on real-world public policy challenges.

The material serves as the basis for interactive case discussions for students in the Master of Public Policy (MPP) programme and executive courses, as well as in institutions worldwide. The cases cover diverse topics and regions, exemplified by recent cases with subjects ranging from building digital leadership skills in Estonia to designing a language of instruction policy for Ghanian primary schools.

Your role will engage in a multifaceted position encompassing research, writing, and administrative duties. Research responsibilities involve conducting desk research to support case development and compiling background documents for potential projects. Writing tasks include crafting communications materials and contributing to the development of teaching notes (which help instructors understand how to teach the cases). Administrative duties entail supporting team operations, formatting documents for publication, and assisting with scheduling and event coordination.

About You

You should have excellent organisational and written communication skills, with the ability to take complex ideas and explain them clearly and convincingly. You must be effective at collaborating with others, including giving and receiving feedback, and skilled at building strong relationships with colleagues and stakeholders.

Additionally, you should be able to work independently, manage your workload, and adapt to changing priorities. Having diverse interests in the fields of government and public policy is important for this role. An undergraduate degree, along with proficiency with Microsoft Office and Adobe software, are essential.

This is a fixed-term, part-time (0.5 - 0.8 FTE) and therefore may be particularly suitable for an individual who is completing or has recently completed a Master’s degree or DPhil in the social sciences, especially in public policy or related fields.

Application Process

You will be required to upload a covering letter/supporting statement, CV and the details of two referees as part of your online application.

The closing date for applications is 12:00 noon (UK time) on Tuesday 2 April 2024.

Interviews will take place during week commencing 8 April 2024 and will be online.

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