Research Assistant/Associate in International Comparative Analysis of Innovation Policies (Fixed Term)

A position exists, for a Research Assistant/Associate at the Institute for Manufacturing, Department of Engineering, to work on international comparison of innovation policies. The RA will undertake independent and collaborative research under the guidance of Dr Eoin O'Sullivan (Centre for Science, Technology & Innovation Policy).  The post holder will be located in West Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK.

The key responsibilities and duties are:

Research on the following topics:

• Undertaking international comparative analysis of innovation policies and industrial policies (including programmes, institutions, sources of evidence, and policy analysis).
• Framework building and systematizing methods for international comparative analysis of innovation and industrial policies relying on a variety of different types of local, national, and international policy documents.
• Policy analysis of national research & innovation strengths in key emerging technology domains (including opportunities for international collaboration)

Methodological approaches and topics of interest include:

• Applying qualitative research methods, including thematic analysis or content analysis of policy documents and policy tools, to provide insights on innovation and industrial policy.
• Developing and applying research designs using text-as-data such as natural language processing for policy analysis (e.g., topic modelling of patent abstracts and beyond) to provide insights on innovation and industrial policy.

Other tasks will include:

• Developing research objectives and proposals for own or collaborative research
• Writing up research work for presentation and publication
• Communicating technical materials to academics and policymakers
• Building external contacts with government agencies

Required qualifications, experience and skills include:

• Has obtained (or is close to obtaining) a PhD in innovation/engineering management; R&D policy; economics (related to a relevant research domain)
• Research experience in technology/innovation management, science/technology/innovation policy, innovation economics.
• Research experience related to relevant policy topics (e.g: R&D policy, innovation policy, comparative policy analysis)
• Record of publishing in high quality technology policy-related research outputs (commensurate with career stage)
• Experience in qualitative policy document analysis.
• Experience in mixing and articulating quantitative and qualitative analyses.
• Experience of systematic analysis of policy practitioner literature.
• Experience of engaging with officials in government agencies
• Strong writing skills, including ability to communicate complex concepts to stakeholders

Appointment at Research Associate level is dependent on having a PhD. Those who have submitted but not yet received their PhD will be appointed at Research Assistant level, which will be amended to Research Associate once the PhD has been awarded.

Salary Ranges:

Research Assistant: £29,605 - £33,966; Research Associate: £36,024 - £44,263

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 12 months in the first instance.

Please ensure that you upload your Curriculum Vitae (CV) and a covering letter in the Upload section of the online application. If you upload any additional documents which have not been requested, we will not be able to consider these as part of your application. Please submit your application by midnight on the closing date.

If you have any questions about this vacancy or the application process, please contact:

• Dr Eoin O'Sullivan (eo252@cam.ac.uk) for queries of a technical nature related to the role
• Geraldine Guceri (gcg22@cam.ac.uk) for queries related to the application process 

Please quote reference NM41107 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

 he University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

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