The Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER)The Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER), at the University of Essex, has a worldwide reputation as a multidisciplinary centre of quantitative social science research. ISER is seeking to appoint a quantitative social scientist with a background in in demography, social epidemiology, sociology or related quantitative field to the post of Senior Research Officer to contribute to the research programme of the ESRC-funded Research Centre on Micro-Social Change (MiSoC). MiSoC is a multi-disciplinary research centre, with existing researchers having backgrounds in Sociology, Demography, Economics, Social Policy, Political Science, Social Statistics and Epidemiology.
Duties of the RoleThe person appointed will work mainly under the direction of Emily Grundy on topics related to health and well-being in later life, intergenerational exchanges and their impacts on health and changes and variations in family and social networks. We are seeking to appoint a highly motivated researcher with strong analytic skills who will be involved in data preparation, advanced quantitative analysis and presenting and co-authoring research findings and papers. The person appointed will also have the opportunity to contribute to the development of a research agenda and develop their own interests, provided these are compatible with the overall MiSoC programme.
Planned work includes collaboration with the Centre for Fertility and Health, a Norwegian Centre of Excellence, based in Oslo so willingness to travel would be an advantage.
The post holder will also be expected to play an active and constructive role in the MiSoC team, engaging in activities beyond own role to promote the work of the team as required by the Principle Investigator of the project.
A full list of duties and responsibilities can be found within the job pack.
Qualifications and Skills requiredApplicants are required to hold a doctoral level degree in Demography, Sociology, Social Epidemiology or related quantitative social science or be close to completion of a PhD.
Knowledge of advanced quantitative methods for social scientists and experience in undertaking research on ageing, family demography and/or health is essential. In addition, you will possess experience of data management, statistical analysis and programming in Stata, R or similar software packages and of discussing research with or presenting research to non-academics
Applicants at this level are expected to have evidence of a developing research agenda and experience of contributing to small research programmes or defined areas of larger projects, and of developing research objectives and proposals.
This post is available for two years in the first instance. Whilst it is a full-time post, part-time working will be considered at a minimum of 0.85 FTE (30.6 hours per week). This is a research position and there are no teaching duties associated with the post.
At the University of Essex, internationalism and diversity is central to who we are and what we do. We are committed to being a cosmopolitan, internationally oriented university that is welcoming to staff and students from all countries, faiths and backgrounds, where you can find the world in one place.
To support this commitment we have our Global Forum, a staff-led network that promotes and celebrates the rich cultural diversity among Essex staff, and our Colchester campus based Faith Centre, which hosts regular services, meetings and events organised by our chaplains and faith representatives. For more information see: https://www.essex.ac.uk/life/student-facilities/religion-and-faith
Please see the attached job pack, which contains a full job description and person specification, which outlines the full duties, skills, qualifications and experience needed for this role plus more information relating to the post. We recommend you read this information carefully before making an application. Applications should be made on-line, but if you would like advice or help in making an application, or need information in a different format, please telephone the Resourcing Team (01206 876559).
*More information: Working at the University