Senior PhD Coordinator
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Job Title: Senior PHD Coordinator
Salary: Band E £43,116 gross per annum (pro-rata)
Contract Type: 2 Year Fixed Term
Hours: Part Time 0.6 FTE (3 days per week or hours spread across 5 days will be accepted) (We understand the importance of work-life balance, and are happy to discuss the possibility of flexible working with applicants)
Location: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL), Harwell, Oxfordshire
Together, our scientist, technologists, engineers and business support team explore the unknown and turn what they find into work that changes the world around us.
Come and discover how much you can achieve when you're surrounded by world-leading experts, encouraged to constantly learn and empowered to explore your curiosity.
The Role
Acting as an Ambassador for STFC's PhD programme, you will support a range of projects to deliver and develop the current PhD programmes and engage with a variety of stakeholders. Whilst liaising with the STFC Research Office and Universities to ensure PhD students receive an effective experience, you will provide student support advice and guidance to managers, supervisors and PhD students. You will ensure all PhD students receive effective onboarding, Health and Safety training, pastoral support and build cross-campus and cross-facility networks.
Key Responsibilities
• Administration of the existing PhD students, ensuring they are correctly recorded on STFC systems and receive all appropriate STFC/UKRI training
• Provide student support advice and guidance to managers and supervisors at STFC as part of the PhD programme
• Develop a pastoral care function; meeting appropriately with PhD students to monitor their wellbeing and achievements and working with supervisors to resolve issues
• Work with subject matter experts in the organisation to oversee the technical quality and delivery of PhD research and training
• Manage and coordinate student onboarding to STFC
• Coordinate cohort activity/events, e.g. induction, training week
• Maintain an annual calendar of activities for all cohorts and ensure the smooth running of the programme through all key milestones, including induction, reviews, project allocation etc.
• Work closely with both internal and external stakeholders to communicate progress of key milestones and provide updates on the progress of all cohorts
Stakeholder Engagement
• Build effective relationships with key stakeholders across STFC
• Build and maintain strategic relationships with key stakeholders e.g. industry, academia, government
• Build cross-campus and cross-facility networks to connect PhD students
Person Specification:
• Knowledge/understanding of PhD programmes and motivation to continuously update knowledge
• Experience of providing pastoral support to students, ideally in a higher education setting
• Have worked in and/or have an understanding of an academic environment and the challenges faced by post-graduate students
• Experience of developing robust and successful processes
• Strong organisational skills and high levels of attention to detail
• Ability to develop strong, collaborative relationships with a range of internal and external stakeholders
• Ability to engage and support post-graduates at this stage of their career
This role will require occasional travel to all of STFC's UK sites
Our Benefits:
Our Benefits include a flexible working scheme (subject to business requirements), Defined benefit pension scheme, and 30 days pro-rata annual leave allowance plus 10.5 bank holiday/privilege days and several other benefits.
Join us and discover what's possible!
Please note that by applying for a long-term (6 months or over) fixed term assignment (level transfer or temporary promotion) may result in you not returning to your current role or Council but instead moving into the UKRI Redeployment Pool (on your substantive band if temporarily promoted) at the end of the assignment. It is therefore strongly recommended that you discuss with your line manager what will happen with your current role should you be successful. Please be assured that existing open-ended contracts remain in place.
About The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)
As one of Europe's largest research organisations, we ask the biggest questions in the universe to find answers that change the world around us. We seek understanding. We're proud of the impact we make. And we're committed to helping build a globally competitive, knowledge-based UK economy. Being part of all this means contributing to work that pushes boundaries and creates possibilities. You'll work with, and learn from, true experts. Whatever your role, you'll be free to question, and encouraged to share ideas. And, in a positive and supportive culture, you'll discover just what a difference you can make when you're equipped and inspired to excel.
We're a place where curious minds thrive. Not bound by profit, we explore ideas that others don't, ask questions that others won't, and discover answers that others are not equipped to find. And, alongside Mars landings and black holes, we also explore diverse, international projects in everything from science and engineering to computing and technology. Whether it's at the cutting edge or behind the scenes, our work is intellectually challenging. It's very often ground-breaking. And it's endlessly, irresistibly fascinating.
For more information about STFC please visit https://stfc.ukri.org/
You can also visit our careers site https://www.stfccareers.co.uk/
About UK Research Innovation (UKRI)
UKRI is an organisation that brings together the seven disciplinary research councils, Research England and Innovate UK. Together, we build an independent organisation with a strong voice and vision ensuring the UK maintains its world-leading position in research and innovation.
Supporting some of the world's most exciting and challenging research projects, we develop and operate some of the most remarkable scientific facilities in the world. We are pushing the frontiers of human knowledge through fundamental research and delivering benefits for UK society and the economy through world-class research, skills and business-led innovation.
More information can be found at www.ukri.org .
Choosing to come to work at UKRI means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme, excellent holiday entitlement, access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme. For more details, visit benefits of working for UKRI .
How we support EDI in the workforce
At UKRI, we believe that everyone has a right to be treated with dignity and respect, and to be provided with equal opportunities to thrive and succeed in an environment that enables them to do so. We also value diversity of thought and experience within inclusive groups, organisations and the wider community. For further information, please visit 'How we support EDI in the workforce' .
Disability Confident Employer
As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.
How to apply
Online applications only preferred for this role. Please submit a CV and covering letter which clearly outlines how you fulfil the criteria specified along with your motivation for UKRI and the role. Ensure that the job reference number is included in the filename description of each document uploaded. Note that failure to address the above criteria or submit an application without a covering letter may result in the application not being considered. Assessment will only be based upon the content of your submitted covering letter and CV and not the 'experience' section of the application.
UKRI seeks to ensure it creates and maintains a system of openness, fairness and inclusion - a collaborative, trusted environment, which is attractive to and accessible to everyone who is interested in developing their career with us.