Teaching Associate (Evidence in Public Policy)

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 you

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 on our jobs page.

About the role

The Blavatnik School of Government is seeking to recruit a Teaching Associate to join the teaching team for Evidence in Public Policy, one of the compulsory modules within the Master of Public Policy (MPP). Evidence in Public Policy runs in Hilary Term (January-March).

Even the best-intentioned and most carefully designed policies sometimes fail to achieve their intended outcomes. Yet most policy decisions are taken without adequate recourse to available evidence, and rigorous evaluation of policies’ effects is rare. The aim of the Evidence in Public Policy module is to provide students with an understanding of how to evaluate the implementation and impacts of policies, as well as an understanding of how policymakers gather, generate, and use evidence in practice. The module will introduce students to methods - primarily quantitative - that are used to generate evidence.

As a Teaching Associate, you will be expected to serve as a Seminar Leader, take a lead role with respect to organisation of seminars, contribute to assessment, and assist the module convenors with administration. There may also be opportunities to undertake a small amount of lecturing.

This is a unique opportunity to gain valuable teaching experience at a graduate level within a friendly, dynamic, and world-class school of public policy. You will have the opportunity to engage with highly motivated students drawn from across the world who bring a range of professional and policy experiences, often at senior levels.

This post is on a variable hours basis and fixed-term for one year.

About you

You should have experience of research in a relevant field and have excellent communication and organisational skills. Relevant previous teaching experience, and an ability to relate theoretical issues to applied policy problems and deliver to a non-technical audience are also essential.

How to apply

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 noon (UK time) on Wednesday 3 July 2024. Interviews are expected to be held on Thursday 11 July 2024 via MS Teams.

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