Research Associate

Research Associate

This is a readvertisement – the job description and working hours have been updated and previous applicants are welcome to apply.

Job Purpose

To make a leading contribution to the policy engagement and knowledge exchange strand of the UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship project Civic Imaginary Partnerships, based in the Division of Urban Studies and Social Policy. The project examines how people and organisations understand, negotiate and imagine the futures of their places through long-term, collaborative and ethnographic research.

You will join a collaborative and supportive project team that values curiosity, intellectual generosity and the different forms of expertise held by researchers, policymakers, practitioners and community partners. We welcome applicants whose experience has been developed in academic, policy, public-sector, third-sector or community settings. You will work closely with colleagues and partners while having genuine scope to bring your own ideas, relationships and interests to the role.

Working with Dr Michael Howcroft, the wider research team, the College of Social Sciences Knowledge Exchange team and project partners, the postholder will connect project research with live debates in place-based policy and practice. They will develop relationships and activities across neighbourhood and community, local authority, devolved and UK levels. This will include representing the project at relevant party political conferences, policy forums and practitioner events; engaging with policy and civic networks; undertaking policy mapping and qualitative research; and translating project findings into briefings, workshops, roundtables and other accessible outputs.

The successful candidate will have scope to shape this programme of work and develop their own profile at the intersection of research, policy and community practice. The role includes a dedicated budget for relevant travel, conferences, networking and professional development. The working pattern can be agreed flexibly and may include clustering hours around key policy events and periods of travel. Reasonable adjustments and alternative arrangements will be considered to ensure that travel requirements do not create unnecessary barriers.

For further details or an informal conversation about the role, please contact Dr Michael Howcroft [email protected]

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Perform the following activities in conjunction with the Project PI and research team as appropriate:

1.  Take a leading role in planning and delivering the project’s policy engagement and knowledge exchange activities, developing relationships across community, local authority, devolved and UK policy settings.

2.  Develop accessible, audience-specific outputs—including policy briefings, consultation responses, workshops and roundtables—which connect project findings with live policy debates and practice.

3.  Undertake policy mapping, documentary analysis and qualitative research in relevant settings, including party conferences across the political spectrum, policy forums, network meetings and place-based initiatives, in accordance with appropriate ethical and research-governance requirements.

4.  Capture evidence and learning about the reach, use and influence of policy and knowledge exchange activities, contributing to project reporting and the development of future work.

5.  Establish and maintain your research profile and reputation and that of the University of Glasgow/School/Research Group/area, including establishing and sustaining a track record of independent and joint publications of international quality, enhancing the research impact in terms of economic/societal benefit, and gathering indicators of esteem.

6.  Present work at international and national conferences, at internal and external seminars, colloquia and workshops to develop and enhance our research and/or impact profile.

7.  Contribute to identifying funding and partnership opportunities and to developing proposals that extend the project’s research, relationships and policy impact.

8.  Engage in personal, professional and career development, to enhance both specialist and transferable skills in accordance with desired career trajectory.

9.  Undertake any other duties of equivalent standing as assigned by the Head of School and/or PI.

10.  Contribute to the enhancement of the University’s international profile in line with University strategy.

These key tasks are not intended to be exhaustive but simply highlight a number of major tasks which the staff member may be reasonably expected to perform.

Knowledge, Qualifications, Skill & Experience

Knowledge & Qualifications

Essential

A1 Normally Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 12 (PhD) plus track record of emerging independence within a research/professional environment, or alternatively possess professional qualifications and experience equivalent to PhD level plus the requisite experience.

A2 A comprehensive and up-to-date knowledge of current issues and future directions within one or more relevant areas of place-based policy, community development, civic participation, placemaking or local government.

A3 Well-developed knowledge and experience of qualitative research methods relevant to the project, including documentary analysis and one or more of interviewing, observation, ethnographic, participatory or community-engaged methods.

Desirable

B1 Knowledge of the different relationships between neighbourhood, local, devolved and UK policymaking, including awareness of place-based policy across the four nations of the UK.

Skills

Essential

C1 Ability to design and facilitate workshops, roundtables or other knowledge-exchange activities.

C2 Developing track record of research outputs compatible with enhancing the School’s research profile in accordance with School objectives.

C3 Effective organisation skills to manage time, prioritise and deliver appropriate research, knowledge exchange and administrative responsibilities.

Experience

Essential

E1 Experience of translating research or evidence for policy, practitioner or community audiences, for example through policy briefings, consultation responses, evidence syntheses, toolkits, workshops or roundtables.

E2 Experience of building and sustaining productive relationships with policy, public-sector, third-sector and/or community partners, alongside excellent interpersonal, team and listening skills.

E3 Commitment to open and responsible research practices, including accessible dissemination and the appropriate sharing of research materials, while respecting confidentiality, consent and obligations to community and policy partners.

Desirable

F1 Experience of making distinct contributions to identifying and pursuing research funding (or equivalent business development) applications.

F2 Proven commitment to supporting the career development of colleagues and to other forms of collegiality appropriate to the career stage, including some experience of research project supervision.

F3 Experience of engaging with policy networks, political conferences, practitioner forums or other environments in which policy agendas and relationships develop.

Terms and Conditions

Salary will be Grade 7, £41,064 - £46,049 per annum pro rata.

This post is part time (14 hours per week) and fixed term until 10 November 2028.

Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG)

The University of Glasgow is committed to safeguarding children and protected adults by ensuring that individuals in regulated roles are appropriately vetted and monitored.

The University of Glasgow’s PVG policy aligns with the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 and reflects the legal requirements effective from 1 April 2025, including the mandatory PVG Scheme membership for regulated roles.

The post for which you are applying is considered to be a regulated role under the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020. Under the Act, individuals working in a regulated role must be a PVG Scheme member before employment. If you are successful in your application, the offer of employment will be conditional subject to a satisfactory PVG Scheme record check. We will be in touch regarding requirements related to this.  Further information is available at:  https://www.mygov.scot/pvg-scheme

The University of Glasgow has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.  If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.

As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

1 A warm welcoming and engaging organisational culture, where your talents are developed and nurtured, and success is celebrated and shared.

2 An excellent employment package with generous terms and conditions including 41 days of leave for full time staff, pension - pensions handbook https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/payandpensions/pensions/, benefits and discount packages.

3 A flexible approach to working.

4 A commitment to support your health and wellbeing, including a free 6-month UofG Sport membership for all new staff joining the University https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/staff/healthwellbeing/.

We believe that we can only reach our full potential through the talents of all. Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of our values. Applications are particularly welcome from across our communities and in particular people from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community, and other protected characteristics who are under-represented within the University. Read more on how the University promotes and embeds all aspects of equality and diversity within our community https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/.

We endorse the principles of Athena Swan https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/athenaswan/ and hold bronze, silver and gold awards across the University.

We are investing in our organisation, and we will invest in you too. Please visit our website https://www.gla.ac.uk/explore/jobs/ for more information.

Closing Date:  21 October 2026 at 23:45pm