Post Doctoral Research Assistant

0.4 fte contract until Feb 2028 

The role

Applicants are invited to apply for the post of Postdoctoral Research Assistant (PDRA) to a research project funded by the European Commission, Horizon Europe, titled ALPHABETICA: Activating Learning Paths: Holistic Arts-Based Education and Training for Inclusion and Cultural. ALPHABETICA aims to provide effective solutions that allow children and young people at risk of poverty or social exclusion to access arts and arts-based education through co-creative participatory research actions. The project is led by a team at the University of Bologna, Italy, and involves collaboration across eight European countries. The successful candidate will be working with the UK team, which is a collaboration between Oxford Brookes University and The Open University. You will be working closely with the grant holders Prof Guida de Abreu (Oxford Brookes University) and Prof Sarah Crafter (OU).

What will you be doing?

The post holder will be based in the School of Psychology, Social Work & Public Health at Oxford Brookes University. Main duties include contributing to the implementation and day to day running of the UK arm of the research project and supporting Prof de Abreu and Prof. Crafter in overseeing the coordination of a key Work Package involving the wider European team. The UK team is also responsible for designing and delivering the pilot action - Our Caring World Through Art. This pilot action seeks to examine the means by which young people from disadvantaged communities can make use of art in education to access ‘care in their worlds’. The pilot action will take place in a formal setting (school) and out-of-school community setting (local library). It will involve working with young people aged 3-18 year olds, teachers, library staff members, and families. The post holder will play a full role in the design, implementation of artistic activities and data collection, and have a major role in analysis, writing up and dissemination of the project activities.

Qualifications and experience 

The successful applicant should be an experienced researcher with a PhD, or very close to completion of a PhD and equivalent substantial professional experience, in Art Education/ Creative arts and work relevant to fields such as Children and Young People’s Education; Cultural and social heritage and education, Children and Families. They should have experience using co-creation and arts-based participatory action research with young people. The successful candidate will also have a strong interest in social inequalities and improving the lives of young people; be able to think creatively and innovatively; and be committed to empowering and contributing to meaningful change.

For informal enquiries about the post, please contact Professor Guida de Abreu gabreu@brookes.ac.uk.

Interviews are expected to take place on: 10 January 2025

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