Research Skills Advisor – Academic Services – 34343 – Grade 7

Job title:

Research Skills Advisor – Academic Services – 34343 – Grade 7

Company

University of Birmingham

Job description

Job Description:Position DetailsAcademic ServicesLocation: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UKFull time starting salary is normally in the range £35,880 to £45,163 with potential progression once in post to £47,874Grade: 7Full Time, PermanentClosing date: 6th November 2024‘Open House’ Drop In Session: We will be holding an ‘open house’ drop in session at the University’s Exchange building, in Centenary Square, Birmingham, between 10am and 5pm on Tuesday 24th October 2024. If you’re interested in working at the University of Birmingham and perhaps have a few questions, this is an opportunity to meet colleagues in the Recruitment team. It will be a relaxed and informal event – you can drop in at any time.Our offer to youPeople are at the heart of what we are and do.The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.Find out more about theBackgroundWe are currently recruiting for a Research Skills Advisor to join the Research Skills Team at the University of Birmingham. The closing date is the 6th of November 2024.Our small but dynamic team is well respected within the university and is adept at supporting researchers from PhD to professor with literature searching, reference management, curation of publication profiles on key databases and advocating for open research.If you have solid information skills and enjoy teaching others to develop their own, love supporting interesting people, and thrive in a fast-moving academic environment we’d love to hear from you. Interviews are likely to be during the first week of December 2024. Feel free to get in touch directly if you have any questions.Department overviewLibraries & Learning Resources supports the information resources and services needs of staff and students undertaking high quality research, learning and teaching at the University of Birmingham. The Research Skills Advisor is a member of the Research Skills Team, a team within the Collections, Discovery and Research Communications division of Libraries & Learning Resources.Role SummaryThe Research Skills Team directly supports the development of key skills of researchers from PhD level to professor. This enhances the research strengths of the University across a diverse student and staff population. The post holder will develop, deliver and evaluate a central and embedded offering of research skills, including baseline support for literature searching, research data management and open access, citation metrics and online identity management, scholarly communication including open research, digital and information literacy, as well as a broad range of postgraduate academic skills. Key audiences include postgraduate research students, early career researchers, and established academics in their field, as well as staff working across a range of Professional Services who support the research agenda.Main DutiesDevelopment of Library Research Skills Services through:

• Developing knowledge and understanding of the University’s strategies and corporate plans relevant to Research and Knowledge Transfer to contextualise research support for Library users.
• Supporting the Head of Research Skills with ensuring the Research Skills Team’s activities effectively align with broader strategic priorities.
• Contributing to the monitoring of service demand and quality, and team planning for sustainable service development.
• Maintaining a good knowledge of research developments within the University and how they impact on the needs of Library users.
• Contributing to, and where appropriate, leading approved projects, to time and within budget.
• Maintaining knowledge and understanding of good practice and service developments nationally in Libraries, through membership of appropriate professional bodies and networks, and contributing this awareness to planning within the University of Birmingham’s Libraries and Learning Resources.

To provide expert advice, support and training on a range of research skills, including core research skills, information and digital literacy. This will done by, for example:

• Supporting the implementation of Library Services policy frameworks and service levels relating to research skills delivery. This will include delivering both central and embedded training sessions, producing guides and learning materials using current and appropriate pedagogic principles.
• Ensuring that research skills provision is inclusive of the needs of all researchers.
• Supporting research skills mapping and other review activities e.g. against the Vitae Researcher Development Framework and Research Council guidelines.
• Contributing to the design and maintenance of online research skills content, re-using, adapting, sharing and repurposing materials to ensure effective use of resources, where appropriate.
• As directed, evaluating and monitoring programmes and online and printed resources.
• Contributing as directed to providing an enquiries service to complement frontline Customer Support provision.

Other Duties:

• To represent Libraries and Learning Resources both inside and outside the University as required, including occasional participation in University Open Days.
• To undertake other such duties as may be required from time to time in furtherance of the work of Libraries and Learning Resources.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent qualifications) plus relevant practical experience – where no equivalent qualification is held significant practical relevant experience and expertise in a series of progressively more demanding roles will be required.
• Evidence of literacy and numeracy, with the ability to write clearly, and to produce and analyse information and data.
• Proficient in the use of standard office software.
• Substantial experience in a customer facing role in a library.
• Understanding of the scholarly communications landscape, particularly in relation to literature searching and information literacy.
• Experience using a broad range of resource and discovery tools to an advanced level, including generating and interpreting bibliometric data.
• Methodical record keeping and attention to detail.
• Experience designing and delivering training and workshops to a range of audiences.
• Demonstrable ability to summarise and explain complex systems and processes clearly and at a level tailored for a given audience.
• Demonstrable negotiating and influencing skills.
• Approachability, diplomacy and confidence in dealing with a wide range of University staff, including tact and assertiveness as appropriate.
• Ability to prioritise and schedule work in the face of conflicting demands.
• Evidence of familiarity of the changing culture of Higher Education, including the importance of the research quality agendas.
• An understanding of pedagogic issues as applied to Higher Education.
• Knowledge of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act 2010, and how to actively ensure in day to day activity in own area that those with protected characteristics are treated equally and fairly.

Informal enquiries to Judith Hegenbarth, email:View our staff values and behavioursWe believe there is no such thing as a ‘typical’ member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone .

Expected salary

£35880 – 45163 per year

Location

United Kingdom

Job date

Thu, 17 Oct 2024 06:49:54 GMT

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