Postdoctoral Research Associate

Join Cambridge University Press & Assessment and University of Cambridge Libraries & Archives for a 12-month, practice-based research project at the intersection of scholarly communication and research culture. Working with colleagues across the University Library, the Press, and Cambridge University's research communities, you will have the opportunity to develop your research career while helping shape practical, evidence-led approaches to sharing and recognising research outputs. 
  
About the role   

You will lead the day-to-day delivery of an action research programme investigating how researchers publish and share their work, how they receive credit, and where current systems fall short of their needs. Reporting to the Policy Director at Cambridge University Press & Assessment and working closely with the University Library's Scholarly Communication Specialist Dr Samuel Moore, you will generate original evidence, test approaches with research teams, and develop recommendations to inform future publishing and open research decisions. 

Additional responsibilities and accountabilities include:  

• Design and deliver a rigorous research programme, refining research questions, methods and protocols with the project leads and exercising independent academic judgement. 

• Design, deploy, and analyse a survey of Cambridge researchers to establish a baseline of publishing practices, motivations, pressures and dissemination preferences. 

• Review evidence on research credit, attribution, research culture and emerging dissemination models, and use the findings to inform practical research and intervention design. 

• Conduct qualitative research with STEM and AHSS research teams, including interviews and participant observation, with appropriate research ethics, consent and data management. 

•  Co-design, facilitate and evaluate practical interventions and prototypes with researchers, exploring attribution, incentives, modular outputs or alternative dissemination pathways without assuming a predetermined solution. 

• Plan and support cross-disciplinary workshops and engagement with researchers, publishing colleagues and other stakeholders to develop community-endorsed recommendations. 

• Analyse and communicate findings through a final open project report, presentations, conference contributions and publishable academic work, with clear methods and appropriate caveats. 

• Coordinate day-to-day research activity, participant relationships, documentation, reporting and milestones to ensure delivery of the project on time. 

This position has been classified as a hybrid role, requiring the selected candidate to typically spend 40-60% of their time collaborating and connecting face-to-face at their dedicated location. Aside from our hybrid principles, other flexible working requests will be considered from the first day of employment, including other work arrangements should you require adjustments due to a disability or long-term health condition.   

About You   
  
You will have a PhD in a relevant subject, or have submitted your PhD with completion expected before the role begins. You will have experience developing research objectives, conducting individual and collaborative research, designing and carrying out qualitative or mixed-methods studies, interpreting findings rigorously and writing for publication. You will understand qualitative and survey methods, research ethics, consent and responsible data management, and be able to engage critically with questions of scholarly communication, dissemination, research culture, assessment, attribution or open research. You will bring strong organisation, independent academic judgement and excellent written and verbal communication skills, and be able to work inclusively with researchers and stakeholders across disciplines. 

If you meet the above minimum requirements, we encourage you to apply. Your application will be even stronger if you can also demonstrate the following desirable criteria:  

•  Research or professional experience in scholarly communication, publishing, open research, research culture or research assessment. 

• Experience working in STEM and/or arts, humanities and social sciences research contexts. 

•  Experience of action research, participatory research, co-design or intervention-based research. 

• Experience designing or analysing surveys of researchers. 

• Familiarity with contribution, research credit or attribution frameworks such as CRediT. 

• Experience presenting research at workshops, conferences or sector events and contributing to published outputs. 

• Experience working in partnership across academic and professional-service environments. 

For a detailed job description, please refer to the link at the bottom of the advert on our careers site.  

We are a Disability Confident (DC) employer that is committed to equality and inclusion ensuring our recruitment process is accessible to all. The DC scheme's Offer of an Interview commitment applies to applicants who opt in, and disclose a disability or a long-term health condition, and who best meet the minimum criteria for the role. In instances where interviewing all qualifying candidates is not practicable and/or appropriate, we prioritise those who best meet the minimum criteria, as we would for applicants who do not have a disability or long-term health condition.   

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is an approved UK employer for the sponsorship of eligible roles and applicants under the Skilled Worker visa route. Please refer to the gov.uk website for guidance to understand your own eligibility based on the role you are applying for.

Rewards and benefits   

We will support you to be at your best in work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world-class, flexible rewards package, featuring family-friendly and planet-friendly benefits including: 

• 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays  

• Private medical and Permanent Health Insurance   

• Discretionary annual bonus   

• Group personal pension scheme  

• Life assurance up to 4 x annual salary   

• Green travel schemes   

Ready to pursue your potential? Apply now.  

We aim to support candidates by making our interview process clear and transparent. The closing date for all applications will be 15 November. Shortlisted candidates can expect interviews to take place on the week commencing 30 November. 

If you are shortlisted, you can expect an interview in-person at Cambridge University Press & Assessment offices in Cambridge.  You may also be asked to carry out a role related presentation as part of this process. 

If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process due to a disability or a long-term health condition, there will be an opportunity for you to inform us via the online application form. We will do our best to accommodate your needs.  

Please note that successful applicants will be subject to satisfactory background checks including DBS due to working in a regulated industry.  

We are committed to an equitable recruitment process. As such, applications must be submitted via our official online application procedure. Please refrain from sending your CV directly to our recruiters. If you experience technical difficulties or require additional support with submitting your online application, contact the Recruiter.  

Why join us 

Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You will belong to a collaborative team that is exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe – for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.   

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it is safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background.  

We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities.  

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