Associate Professorship of Social Policy and Director, Economics, Inequality & Opportunity Programme (EIO)

About the role

We are seeking a distinguished and high-impact scholar for a joint appointment as Associate Professor of Social Policy in the Department of Social Policy and Intervention (DSPI, www.spi.ox.ac.uk)  and Director of the Economics, Inequality & Opportunity (EIO) Programme of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School (INET Oxford, www.inet.ox.ac.uk).

EIO has been a major programme of research at the Institution for New Economic Thinking Oxford and the Department of Social Policy and Intervention since 2014. The research programme is broad-ranging and interdisciplinary in scope, probing the drivers and implications of economic inequality through the perspectives of social policy, economics, sociology and political science.

The appointee will provide the overall vision and strategy for the EIO research programme and actively engage in the academic life of the Department and INET Oxford. They will direct a programme of leading-edge research with responsibility for recruiting and supervising research staff and engaging with collaborators both in Oxford and internationally. They will serve as a member of the INET Oxford Management Committee with oversight of the EIO programme’s budgets and responsibility for setting standards of work and ensuring compliance. They will prepare funding proposals and reports to funders as required.

They will be expected to publish work in high impact peer-review journals and present at international conferences and workshops, communicating research findings to a wide range of stakeholders, including policymakers. They will also supervise Masters and DPhil students and contribute to teaching and administration in the Department of Social Policy and Intervention.

The appointment will be made in association with a non-tutorial fellowship at Nuffield College.

About you

The successful candidate will be an internationally recognised scholar with a relevant doctorate and significant post-qualification research experience. They will have an outstanding research and publication record with a track record of applying innovative approaches to questions of economic inequality and other topics related to the INET Oxford EIO and DSPI research and teaching agendas.

The ideal candidate will be a scholar on the topic of inequality, have strong empirical and quantitative skills, who will collaborate with colleagues at INET Oxford and DSPI to explore and develop novel, pathbreaking methods of research (including novel data and modelling methods) that can help illuminate the causes for inequality, policies that might alleviate it, and its interaction with other economic outcomes.

With demonstrable experience of working collaboratively with both internal and external stakeholders in a team-oriented environment, the postholder will have experience in developing, resourcing, and leading significant programmes of research, along with a successful record of supervising junior researchers and graduate students. They will also be a strong communicator with the ability to communicate research outputs to both academic and non-academic audiences to enable broader public impact of the work.

Further information can be obtained from hrteam@spi.ox.ac.uk. All enquiries will be treated in strict confidence and will not form part of the selection decision.

How to apply

As part of your application, you will be asked to upload a CV, including a full list of publications, a supporting statement (4 pages maximum) and a research statement (2 pages maximum). The supporting statement should explain how you meet the each of the selection criteria for the post using examples of your skills and experience. This may include experience gained in education or employment. The research statement should summarise the past, current and future direction of your research, highlighting how your research has evolved and your key achievements.

You are also required to provide details of three referees. Please note that referees will not be contacted at application stage and we will contact you to gain your approval prior to requesting any references.

Only online applications made by 12 noon UK time on 19th March 2025 will be considered. Interviews will be held on 31 March 2025.

The Department of Social Policy and Intervention holds a Bronze Athena Swan Award which demonstrates our commitment towards advancement of gender equality in higher education and research institutions: equal opportunities, representation and success for all.

Applications are particularly welcome from women and black and minority ethnic candidates, who are under-represented in academic posts in Oxford.