Research Associate

Job Location: Milton Keynes, Remote/HybridDepartment: IET AcademicClosing Date: 14 December 2025Weekly Working Hours: 26.25Contract Type: Fixed Term ContractFixed Term Contract: End Date: 7.5 months from start dateWelsh Language: Not ApplicableChange your career, change livesThe Open University is the UK’s largest university, a world leader in flexible part-time education combining a mission to widen access to higher education with research excellence, transforming lives through education. Find out more about us and our mission by watching this short video (you will be taken to YouTube by clicking this link).About the RoleThis is a part-time fixed-term contract offering 26.25 hours per week.This is a dual role offering an exciting opportunity to be involved in the initiation phase of the successful delivery of the new Research Capability Hub (RCH) funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and contribute to the delivery of research career development activity across the Open University.The RCH will provide UK-wide research training and capacity building (TCB) for social scientists, and this role will be an integral part of the delivery team.The project will develop a new Hub for delivering research methods courses, transforming research training, enhancing accessibility and inclusion, and fostering community engagement of social science researchers across the UK. The Hub is committed to capacity building to enable its long-term sustainability and fulfil its strategic and impact agenda. The Hub will work with partners in the four nations and beyond, and has received a grant of £4.9 Million, with options for follow-up funding if the RCH meets the success criteria. More information about the RCH and its partners can be found here (Research Capability Hub | Institute of Educational Technology, The Open University).The research associate will work in a vibrant team of 20+ researchers, professionals, and technical experts from different UK institutions on a range of tasks, including:Support, test, develop, and evaluate a unified, streamlined access point for the Hub for UK social scientistsSupport launch event in January 2026 with relevant training providers and stakeholdersSupport and deliver Evidence-cafes and Q-methodology to identify what social scientists want in terms of research skills and training.Work effectively with other training providers and integrate existing resources in the Hub platform.Help to support effective instruments/approaches to categorise training activities, and support the development of validated instruments (pre-post) to measure expected impactThis role is based within the Institute of Educational Technology (IET) and will be line managed by the Project Co-Lead.Key ResponsibilitiesThe successful candidate will contribute and support all the activities the OU is leading on or is involved with. Duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited:To lead the initial mapping and curation of existing resources and trainings for social science researchers across different providers (ESRC and others).Contribute/co-design the Hub’s evaluation plan.To co-design a number of social science trainings contributing original insights to social science research training.To collect and analyse data (qualitative and quantitative) from initial course participants and project partners as needed.To contribute to the design of evaluation instruments for assessing programme’s impact on social science training.To co-produce reports and high quality publications in collaboration with project leads.To co-design an online Open Learn training in collaboration with partners.To monitor and report on programme progress using learning analytics data.To contribute towards gaining ethical clearance for research activities from the OU.To liaise closely with the OU PI and other team members as needed.To contribute to the development and implementation of the Data Management plan.To attend project meetings and events as required and make presentations if needed.Support preparations for the RCH launch event and other RCH eventsTo undertake other duties as may be reasonably requested and that are commensurate with the nature and grade of the post.About YouEssential Skills and ExperienceA completed PhD in Educational Technology, Technology-Enhanced Learning, or other relevant field.Experience of using participatory, co-production methods in research, ideally social science research methods.Experience of conducting and analysing quantitative data such as interviews, focus groups, observations.Experience of conducting and analysing quantitative data such as online surveys, learning analytics.Ability to work collaboratively in a team, ideally in interdisciplinary teams.Experience of authoring or co-authoring academic outputs (e.g., journal articles, books, research reports)Support with your applicationIf you have any questions, or need support or adjustments relating to your application, the recruitment process, or the role, please contact us on 01908 541111 or email careers@open.ac.uk quoting the advert reference number.What's in it for you?At The Open University, we offer a range of benefits to recognise and reward great work, alongside policies and flexible working that contribute towards a great work life balance. Get all the details of what benefits we offer by visiting our Staff Benefits page (clicking this link will open a new window).We are open to discussions about flexible working. Whether it’s a job share, part time, compressed hours or another working arrangement. Please reach out to us to discuss what works best for you.Next steps in the Recruitment processIf shortlisted, we anticipate interviews taking place W/C 5th January 2026.Early closing date notificationWe may close this job advert earlier than the published closing date where a satisfactory number of applications are received. We would therefore encourage early applications.How to applyTo apply for this role please submit the following document(s):CVSupporting statement (Your Supporting Statement should outline how your skills and experience meets the essential criteria listed above)You can view your progress and application communications when you are logged into our recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folders if you do not receive associated email updates.If you have any queries or questions about the recruitment process, or regarding your application,please contact:Careers@open.ac.uk .Looking for Associate Lecturer (AL) roles?Please use our AL home page to find AL vacancies.The Open University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion which is reflected in our mission to be open to people, places, methods and ideas. We aim to foster a diverse and inclusive environment so that all in our OU community can reach their potential. We recognise that different people bring different perspectives, ideas, knowledge, and culture, and that this difference brings great strength.We strive to recruit, retain and develop the careers of a diverse pool of students and staff, and particularly encourage applications from all underrepresented groups. We also aspire to make The Open University a supportive workplace for all through our policies, services and staff networks. #J-18808-Ljbffr