Postdoctoral Researcher In the Social Sciences, Psychology or Education

JOB DESCRIPTION

Postdoctoral Researcher
Level 1
DCU Institute of Education
Up to 2 Years (48 Months)

Dublin City University

Dublin City University (DCU) is a young, ambitious and vibrant university, with a mission ‘to transform lives and societies through education, research, innovation and engagement’. Known as Ireland’s ‘University of Enterprise’, DCU is a values-based institution, committed to the delivery of impact for the public good. DCU was named Sunday Times Irish University of the Year 2021.

DCU is based on three academic campuses in the Glasnevin-Drumcondra region of north Dublin. More than 18,000 students are enrolled across five faculties – Science and Health, DCU Business School, Computing and Engineering, Humanities and Social Sciences and DCU Institute of Education.

DCU is committed to excellence across all its activities. This is demonstrated by its world-class research initiatives, its cutting-edge approach to teaching and learning, its focus on delivering a transformative student experience, and its positive social and economic impact. The university continues to develop innovative programmes in collaboration with industry, such as the DCU Futures suite of degrees, which are designed to equip graduates with the skills and knowledge required in a rapidly evolving economy.

DCU’s pursuit of excellence has led to its current ranking among the top 2% of universities globally. It is also one of the world’s Top Young Universities (QS Top 100 Under 50, Times Higher Top 150 Under 100). In the Times Higher Education University Impact Rankings 2021, DCU ranked 23rd in the world for its approach to widening participation in higher education and its ongoing commitment to eradicating poverty, while it ranks 38th globally for its work in reducing inequality and 89th globally for gender equality.

The university is ranked 23rd in the world and first in Ireland for its graduate employment rate, according to the 2020 QS Graduate Employability Rankings. Over the past decade, DCU has been the leading Irish university in the area of technology transfer, as reflected by licensing of intellectual property.

As part of this role the researcher will be required to participate in the DCU Research Career Framework. This framework is designed to provide significant professional development opportunities to Researchers and offer the best opportunities in terms of a wider career path.

Background & Role

Autism-Friendly Schools is an innovative and timely research study which aims to capture the perspectives of autistic pupils and their families of experiences in education in Ireland. This highly interdisciplinary project is led by Dr Sinéad McNally (Lead Principal Investigator) at the DCU Institute of Education and Dr Mary Rose Sweeney (STEM co-Principal Investigator) at the DCU School of Nursing, Psychotherapy and Public Health. Using a survey design of child-centred interviews and large-scale questionnaires for adult respondents, this project aims to achieve the first systematic investigation of the lived experience of autistic pupils in Ireland to identify principles to guide inclusion in Irish education.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

Reporting to the lead Principal Investigator, Dr Sinéad McNally, the Postdoctoral Researcher will:

• Conduct a specified programme of research on the experiences of autistic pupils in primary and secondary schools under the supervision and direction of the lead Principal Investigator Support in identifying and developing future research and funding initiatives
• Engage in the dissemination of the results of the research in which he/she is engaged with the support of and under the supervision of the lead Principal Investigator Supervise and support undergraduate students working in this area with their research
• Engage in appropriate training and development opportunities as required by the lead Principal Investigator, the School, or the University
• Liaise with both internal and external stakeholders including industry and academic partners/collaborators Carry out administrative work associated with the programme of research as necessary

Minimum Criteria

Applicants should have a PhD in Psychology or Education. In addition, it is desirable that the candidate has experience in qualitative analysis and an emerging publication record.

Candidates will be assessed on the following competencies:

Discipline knowledge and Research skills – Demonstrates knowledge of psychology or education or both, and the ability to conduct a specific programme of research within either discipline

Understanding the Research Environment – Demonstrates an awareness of the research environment (for example funding bodies) and the ability to contribute to grant applications

Communicating Research – Demonstrates the ability to communicate their research with their peers and the wider research community (for example presenting at conferences and publishing research in relevant journals) and the potential to teach and tutor students

Managing & Leadership skills - Demonstrates the potential to manage a research project including the supervision of undergraduate students