Research Coordinator

This competition is open to all applicants however internal candidates and applicants who were former employees of the University of Alberta in the past 18 months will be given priority consideration before external candidates. Please indicate your internal status using the "Advertisement" drop down menu when applying.

This position is a part of the Non-Academic Staff Association (NASA).

This position has a term length of 12 months plus 1 day and offers a comprehensive benefits package which can be viewed on our Benefits Overview page .

Location

Work primarily takes place at North Campus Edmonton.

Working for the University of Alberta

The University of Alberta acknowledges that we are located on Treaty 6 territory, and respects the histories, languages and cultures of First Nations, Métis, Inuit and all First Peoples of Canada, whose presence continues to enrich our vibrant community.

The University of Alberta is teeming with change makers, community builders, and world shapers who lead with purpose each and every day. We are home to more than 40,000 students in 200+ undergraduate and 500+ graduate programs, over 13,000 faculty and staff, 260,000 alumni worldwide and have been recognized as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for over a decade.

Your work will have a meaningful influence on a fascinating cross section of people—from our students and stakeholders, to our renowned researchers and innovators who are quite literally curing diseases, making discoveries and generating solutions that make the world healthier, safer, stronger, and more just.

Working for the Department/Faculty Summary

The Community-University Partnership for the Study of Children, Youth, and Families (CUP) is a unique collaboration among the University of Alberta, community agencies, and organizations in and around Edmonton and across Alberta. We are committed to improving the development of children, youth, families and communities by creating and mobilizing evidence-informed knowledge that impacts programs, practices, and policies. CUP has a 20-plus year history of collaborative community-based research experience.  CUP is led by a steering committee comprised of over 25 leaders from municipal and provincial government, not-for-profit agencies, school boards, and foundations. CUP provides research and evaluation support to community partners whose areas of interest and inquiry fit within CUP’s strategic plan. 

Position Summary

Under the supervision and guidance of the Associate Director of CUP, the Research Coordinator manages the projects that the Associate Director is lead on.  In particular, the Associate Director is the lead of the Evaluation Capacity Network (https://www.evaluationcapacitynetwork.com/ ), which is focused on building the evaluation capacity of the early childhood and social serving sector more broadly. The Research Coordinator is responsible for contributing to research and evaluation activities (including project design, management, data collection, analysis and research dissemination). Additionally the Research Coordinator will contribute to a larger team of researchers and students and will be responsible for facilitating communication between team members, manage/coordinate the day-to-day operations of the projects and manage the overall milestones and study targets to ensure projects completion. 

Duties

Project Management – 50%

• Develops and monitors workplan activities, and deliverables, in collaboration with the Associate Director or other project managers/leads to ensure project deliverables are met in a timely, cost-efficient manner
• Ensures overall research and evaluation work identified by the Associate Director is carried out in an effective manner. Assesses and communicates project resource requirements and proactively anticipates project issues and develop strategies for resolution
• Plans, maintains, and adapts overall research project schedule to ensure timelines/deliverables are met in coordination and as approved by Associate Director
• Reports on project milestone progress and completion to the Associate Director
• Responsible for the development of data collection tools and coordinates the project team to facilitate data collection. Establish and maintain appropriate procedures and protocols for data collection and information management, and oversees completeness and accuracy of data entry/analysis completed by the Research assistants and students
• Provides expertise in scoping review methods
• Conduct analysis of quantitative and/or qualitative data using appropriate software and techniques (e.g., SPSS, NVivo)
• Maintains and protects confidential research data, adhering to ethical conduct and privacy requirements at all times
• Translates technical and/or analytical results into useful information for community partners
• Organizes and participates in team meetings (5-8 people), documents and reports on progress
• Collaborates on research designs and manages the implementation of the research process between the community and the university
• Researches application guidelines and processes for grants, awards and other funding sources and ensures compliance with those guidelines and policies
• Supports grant writing application activities including writing content and coordinating expert contributions under the direction of the Associate Director
• Drafts budgets and budget justifications for successful grant applications
• Contributes to ethics applications by editing, and formatting. Submits and maintains ethics approvals as required and updates as necessary
• Develops strategy for and conducts literature reviews and environmental scans as it relates to current or new projects
• Travels for meetings related to research and evaluation activities in the community

Communication and Knowledge Mobilization – 35%

• Initiates and coordinates meetings to communicate the progress and outcomes of the projects with community partners
• Connects with partners from community organizations
• Coordinates large partner meetings including travel, accommodations, venue, refreshments, IT requirements including video conferencing, participant expense reimbursements
• Organize partner networking events
• Supports opportunities for collaboration with community members in conducting research; liaising between the project team and the community
• Prepares knowledge translation dissemination products including research posters, PowerPoint presentations, abstracts and research reports
• Assists with communications to internal and external stakeholders; may liaise with community leaders and members
• Prepares written progress and final reports for community partners and funders
• Drafts letters of support
• Participates in external Advisory Committee
• Participates in scholarly activities such as:  preparation of publications and presentations at national and provincial scientific conferences, and at other academic and community settings

Mentoring & Supervision – 10%

• Coordinates and manages activities and daily work assignments of casual support staff, graduate students and volunteers as appropriate
• Oversees progress and reviews updates
• Supervises and mentors staff and/or students
• Assists in the hiring, training, and direction of Research Assistants, Grad students, and/or other contributors to the project as required

General Duties – 5%

• Performs other research related duties as assigned

Minimum Qualifications

• An undergraduate degree and significant experience in a discipline related to the social determinants of health (e.g. Education, Anthropology, Human Ecology, Nursing, Psychology, Public Health, or Sociology).  Master’s degree or PhD preferred.
• Project management experience in a research environment as well as experience supervising staff.
• Experience in community-based research, evaluation, and/or knowledge mobilization
• Experience managing data collection and analysis in a research program/project
• Experience with qualitative and quantitative research/evaluation data collection, analysis, management and mobilization.
• Experience in collaborating and communicating with interdisciplinary partners from various organizations and sectors.
• Ability to work with a high degree of independence in a team environment 
• Exceptional organizational and time management skills. The incumbent must be able to prioritize and manage the diverse workload to meet the high demands of the job and the multiple concurrent projects, be flexible and highly organized, and the ability to work within tight deadlines in a challenging environment.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills including the ability to listen and communicate effectively and sensitively, including cross-cultural sensitivity
• Experience with, University policies and functions relative to research administration
• Must have experience working in interdisciplinary settings and teams with an ability to effectively coordinate the work and inputs of multiple people and groups
• Strong research grant writing skills
• Strong analytical and problem solving skills
• Ability to follow detailed protocols with minimal supervision
• Ability to work with little guidance as well as in a team environment
• Willingness to work in downtown Edmonton and to travel around the City of Edmonton for data collection and meetings
• Sensitivity to ethical issues, especially privacy and confidentiality
• Previous work experience at the University of Alberta in a research setting is considered an asset

Note: Online applications are accepted until midnight Mountain Standard Time of the closing date.

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those individuals selected for an interview will be contacted.