University of Oxford All Souls College Post-Doctoral Research Fellowships 2018, UK

(FIVE-YEAR, NON-RENEWABLE)

£41,231 to £44,052 (including housing allowance of £9,533 if eligible)

The College intends to elect up to four Post-Doctoral Research Fellows on Saturday, 19 January 2019, one in each of the following subjects: Literature in English; Mathematics; Modern Languages; and Social and Political Sciences (limited to Politics and International Relations, Social Anthropology, and Sociology). The Fellowships are for five years, fixed-term, and non-renewable*. Successful candidates will be expected to take up their Fellowships on 1 October 2019 or such other date as may be agreed in advance with the College. 

ELIGIBILITY AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

Normally, the College will only accept applications from those who have been awarded their doctorate since 1 August 2016 or expect to have been awarded their doctorate by 1 October 2019.  (Doctoral award should be taken as the date of the successful defence of your doctoral dissertation at a viva voceexamination, or where there is no viva, the date of award on the degree certificate.)  If you believe there are special reasons (e.g. grave illness, parental leave) why you think these normal eligibility criteria should be waived in your case, you are encouraged to submit your application well before the 7 September 2018 deadline, including details for consideration by the Eligibility Panel. 

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

JOB DESCRIPTION 

The pri­­mary duty of a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow is to pursue in Oxford an independent programme of advanced study and research for publication as approved by the College at the time of election.

Leave of absence to work away from Oxford may be granted on the recommendation of the College's Academic Purposes Committee, but only where the Committee is satisfied that such leave is necessary for the pursuit of the Fellow's programme of research.

Fellows are required to report regularly to the Academic Purposes Committee on their progress towards completion of their approved research programme within the term of the Fellowship. The College does not, however, regard Fellows as tied indissolubly to that particular programme and will be willing to entertain applications to vary it.  Post-Doctoral Research Fellows are also encouraged to undertake appropriate lecturing, teaching and supervision of research in the University.

Post-Doctoral Research Fellows are full Fellows of the College and members of its governing body. As such, they are expected to attend and participate in all College meetings and may be required to serve on College committees and assist with the annual Prize Fellowship examinations.  As the College is a charity of which the Fellows are trustees, the successful applicants must be eligible to be Charity Trustees and discharge this responsibility effectively –see Becoming a trustee - Charity Commission.

REMUNERATION AND ENTITLEMENTS

Stipend:  The annual stipend is £41,231 to £44,052 (including housing allowance). For those who live in College or who are otherwise not eligible for the housing allowance, the annual stipend is £31,698 to £34,519. The exact stipend varies according to amount of teaching undertaken.  To qualify for the higher rate of pay in any academic year (i.e. £44,052 if housing allowance is included), a Fellow must undertake to give not fewer than sixteen lectures in the University in that year.  Pay will be on a pro-rated intermediate scale if fewer lectures are given.  These stipends are paid on the basis that the Fellow is engaged full-time on the research for which the Fellow is elected.  The Fellowship may not be held in conjunction with another Fellowship or funding and should a Fellow receive remuneration from other sources, the College may adjust his or her stipend accordingly.  

Housing Allowance/Finance/Accommodation:  Subject to availability, the College may be able to offer at no charge single residential accommodation in the College or one of its annexes, but this is a taxable benefit and no housing allowance will be paid. A Post-Doctoral Research Fellow living out of College but within 25 miles of Oxford is eligible for a pensionable housing allowance of £9,533 per annum.  The College operates a joint equity scheme for purchasing property which is available to Fellows re-locating to Oxford.  

Pension:  The College is a member of the USS pension scheme in which Post‑Doctoral Research Fellows will be enrolled automatically.

Dining Rights:  Fellows are entitled to lunch and dinner at common table without charge.

Relocation Costs:  In appropriate cases, the College will also contribute towards relocation, including visa and NHS surcharge, costs.

Medical Insurance:  Fellows and their immediate dependants are also eligible for participation in the College’s medical insurance scheme.  There is no charge for this but it is a taxable benefit.

  Where a Fellow uses a University nursery for childcare, it may also be possible for nursery fees to be paid under a salary sacrifice scheme.  

ACADEMIC SUPPORT

A Post-Doctoral Research Fellow is entitled to a study in College or one of its ancillary buildings.  Studies are connected to the University IT network and the College assists with the purchase of computing equipment with the balance funded through a Fellow’s academic allowance (currently £3,750 per annum). The latter is intended to support research expenditure including book purchases, conference attendance, etc..  Fellows may apply for additional funding to support research work or conferences.

Each Post-Doctoral Research Fellow has a designated mentor within the College.

APPLICATIONS

You should apply by completing the on-line application form accessed via the College website (http://www.all-souls.ox.ac.uk/) (Appointments pages) by 4pm (UK time), Friday, 7 September 2018.  You must submit with your application:

1. a curriculum vitae;
2. a short thesis abstract (200 to 500 words maximum);
3. a statement of proposed work (1,000 words maximum, including references, figures and bibliography):a clear and comprehensive statement of your proposed course of future research work during the five years of the Fellowship.If you intend to spend part of the Fellowship preparing your thesis for publication you should say so in your application and give an estimate of how much time that may take.
4. a sample of written work (10,000 words maximum, including references and bibliography) to serve as evidence of your qualities as a scholar and researcher.This should be a published paper, an extract from the thesis, or equivalent.
   NOTE: Each document submitted for items (i) to (iv) above must be in English, combined in a single PDF file, unsigned and not encrypted.
5. the names and addresses of two referees who have agreed to give a confidential assessment of your work.

NOTE: Once you have submitted your application, the College will contact your referees.  They will be sent e-mail instructions for providing their assessments which must be submitted by 4pm (UK time), Friday, 14 September 2018.  You must log in to your application to check whether your references have been received and, if necessary, to amend referees or their contact details.  It is your responsibility to check referees’ availability to provide a reference in the required timescale.

Your referees will also be asked whether they can confirm the actual or intended viva date (month and year) or equivalent date representing the successful completion of your PhD to confirm your eligibility for this competition.

The College obtains further independent academic assessments of the work and research proposals of short-listed candidates.  Candidates on the final short-list for interview will be notified in the week beginning 17 December 2018.

If you are short-listed, you will be asked to submit an electronic copy of your entire thesis (or equivalent work).

If the research project is laboratory based, short-listed candidates will be asked to provide a letter of support from a suitable host department in Oxford confirming that laboratory space and access to shared equipment can be provided without cost to the College.

Candidates selected for inclusion on the final short-list will be interviewed by members of the Nomination Committee and College-appointed external assessors in the presence of the Fellows of the College on Friday, 11 January and Saturday, 12 January 2019.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES, PROOF OF RIGHT TO WORK ETC.

In order to enable the College to monitor the effectiveness of its equality policy and procedures, all candidates are invited to complete the confidential recruitment monitoring form which is processed entirely separately from the applications, and plays no part in the selection process. 

All appointments are subject to the satisfactory completion of a medical questionnaire and the provision of proof of the right to work in the UK before the appointment can commence.  Where necessary, the College will meet the costs of visas for applicants and their dependants.

FURTHER QUERIES

Please see the Frequently Asked Questions for further information and advice.  Any applications for the waiver of normal eligibility criteria will be considered by the College PDRF Eligibility Panel following submission of the application.  In the event of technical problems with your application, please contact online.apps@all-souls.ox.ac.uk or +44 (0)1865 279323. 

PRIVACY NOTICE

All applicants should read the Privacy Notice for applicants for Fellowship and staff appointments at the College.  

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*All Souls has a strong commitment to supporting early career researchers by enabling them to build a very strong research profile at the early stage of their career; for structural reasons the Fellowships are therefore fixed term and non-renewable.

For more information click "LINK TO ORIGINAL" below.