Digital Learning Developer

The University      

At Durham University we are proud of our people.  A globally outstanding centre of educational excellence, a collegiate community of extraordinary people, a unique and historic setting – Durham is a university like no other. We believe that inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things professionally and personally.      

Across the University we have a huge variety of roles and career opportunities, which together make us a large and successful community, which is a key hub of activity within our region and nationally.  We would be thrilled if you would consider joining our thriving University.     

Further information about the University can be found here .   

The Role and Department   

Durham University Business School, one of the longest established business schools in the UK, is a multi-disciplinary school characterised by academic excellence, internationally-rated research and superb student support services. The School’s diversity and international standing is reflected in the student intake (with over 110 nationalities); accreditation by AASCB, AMBA and EQUIS; and high positions in the UK and European Business School rankings. Further information about the School can be found at www.durham.ac.uk/business.
The School and wider University is committed to providing a high-quality inclusive teaching experience for all of our students, using digital technologies and pedagogies to their best advantage whenever appropriate. This role will make a significant contribution to this ambition. The successful candidate will provide specialist advice and will be responsible for designing, developing, testing and refining high quality digital learning resources, activities, and programmes to support Durham’s diverse student community.

The Digital Learning Developer role is based within the School’s Educational Development Unit which has three key service areas:

The successful candidate will provide specialist advice and will be responsible for designing, developing, testing and refining high quality digital learning resources, activities, and programmes to support Durham’s diverse student community. You will be experienced in 
designing and producing high quality blended and remote, online learning projects with up-to-date knowledge of developments in this field to include pedagogy and technology. You should also have a good understanding of other key aspects of higher education, such as 
curriculum design, assessment practices and teaching large cohorts and experience of advising groups, programme teams and individual academic colleagues in relation to this.

Further information about the typical role requirements is at the bottom of this job description.      

Working at Durham       

A competitive salary is only one part of the many fantastic benefits you will receive if you join the University: you will also receive access to the following fantastic benefits:       

• 30 Days annual leave per year in addition to 8 public holidays and 4 customary days per year – a total of 42 days per year.     
• The University closes between Christmas and New Year – please include or delete if not applicable.    
• We offer a generous pension scheme, As a new member of staff you will be automatically enrolled  into the University Superannuation Scheme (USS).   
• No matter how you travel to work, we have you covered.  We have parking across campus, a cycle to work scheme which helps you to buy a bike and discount with local bus and train companies.   
• There is a genuine commitment to developing our colleagues professionally and personally.  There is a comprehensive range of development courses, apprenticeships and access to qualifications and routes to develop your career in the University.  All staff have dedicated annual time to concentrate on their personal development opportunities.    
• Lots of support for health and wellbeing including discounted membership for our state of the art sport and gym facilities and access to a 24-7 Employee Assistance Programme.   
• On site nursery is available and access to holiday camps for children aged 5-16 throughout the year.
• Family friendly policies, including maternity and adoption leave, which are among the most generous in the higher education sector (and likely above and beyond many employers).   
• The opportunity to take part in staff volunteering activities to make a difference in the local community   
• Discounts are available via our benefits portal including; money off at supermarkets, high street retailers, IT products such as Apple, the cinema and days out at various attractions.    
• A salary sacrifice scheme is also available to help you take advantage of tax savings on benefits.    
• If you are moving to Durham, we can help with removal costs and we have a dedicated team who can help you with the practicalities such as house hunting and schools.  If you need a visa, we cover most visa costs and offer an interest free loan scheme to pay for dependant visas.     

Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion

Our collective aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and we believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work.       

As a University equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key part of the University’s Strategy and a central part of everything we do.  We also live by our values and our Staff Code of Conduct,  At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. It’s important to us that all of our colleagues are aligned to both our values and commitment to EDI.      

We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our work force including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.  If you have taken time out of your career, and you feel it relevant, let us know about it in your application.  If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role.   

What you need to demonstrate when you apply/Person Specification  
  
When you apply it is important that you let us know what skills/experience you have from a similar role and/or what skills/experience you have which would make you right for this role.  Further information about the role and responsibilities is at the end of this job description.  Where a criteria has an asterisk* next to it, it may be given additional weighting when your application is considered.    
  
Your application should cover the following criteria:  

Essential Criteria

Qualifications/Experience

Skills/Abilities/Knowledge

Desirable Criteria        

How to Apply    

To progress to the assessment stage, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification above. It will be at the discretion of the recruiting panel as to whether they will also consider any desirable criteria, but we would urge candidates to provide evidence for all criteria.  Please don’t forget to check if there is any weighted criteria (see above).      

While some criteria will be considered at the shortlisting stage, other criteria may be considered later in the assessment process, such as questions at interview.           

Submitting your application       

We prefer to receive applications online.   We will update you about your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to make sure you have not missed any of our updates.       

What you need to submit     

• A CV: and      
• A supporting statement or covering letter which outlines how you meet all of the criteria within the Person Specification. 
• EDI Statement which should include how you consider this in projects you have either led or have made substantial contributions to. 
• An example of an online learning activity you designed and a short reflection of how successful you felt it was in achieving its goal.      

Contact details           

For a chat about the role or any further information please contact Allison Bell, Senior Instructional Designer & Educational Development Unit Team Lead - [email protected].      

Typical Role Requirements  

Teaching and Learning Support

• Design and deliver training and development for colleagues in aspects of digital pedagogy, both face-to-face and online.    
• Identify and design activities to meet learning objectives and outcomes, engaging in scholarship of teaching and learning with a focus on digital pedagogy.  
• Collaborate with stakeholders (e.g. academic and professional services teams) to provide specialist advice and support to academics on the design of online and blended learning materials and programme.
• Provide informed and credible advice, backed by evidence in relation to pedagogy and technology wherever possible, to colleagues on the most suitable options to provide an effective and engaging student experience.
• Keep abreast of learning design, technology-enhanced learning and analytics developments, issues, technologies and practices, and their implications for the School; conducting investigation and sharing/presenting findings where appropriate.
• Record, monitor and collate information to analyse patterns and trends as part of teaching and research activities.
• Be responsible for the design, set-up, maintenance and integrity of teaching, research and learning facilities, technology and resources within a specialist project/initiatives.
• Support the delivery of undergraduate and post graduate teaching and learning activities, and income generation, where appropriate.
• Contribute to the planning, design and delivery of research outputs and prepare innovative teaching/research proposals.

Service Delivery/Development

• Show a commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and the University’s values. 
• Provide specialist advice and guidance relating to your professional area of expertise in line with the University’s policies, regulations and values.
• Provide the best possible service by continually reviewing what is required from academic and professional services staff, students and others who you work with and contribute to ideas and service improvements.
• Provide specialist knowledge and support when interpreting and analysing complex data and information sources.
• Look for ways to improve processes, techniques and outputs/results across all areas of your work.
• Identify any learning needs that should be met by the service and design activities and arrange any training.
• Oversee specialist risk assessments and safety procedures and resolve incidents that require specialist expertise. 

Planning and Organisation
•    Provide specialist advice to resolve technical problems, plan projects and continually develop and improve the service.
•    Seek feedback from staff, students and other key stakeholders so that the service is being adapted to meet customer expectations and to plan future requirements.
•    Manage budgets and expenditure including buying (and returning) goods and services, in coordination with Team Lead.

Communication/Liaison
•    Provide specialist advice and guidance on University health and safety and compliance issues.
•    Use your operational expertise to lead and participate in business meetings, working groups and sub-committees (e.g. programme reviews).
•    Collaborate with internal and external academics, industry and technical specialists to support the delivery of teaching and research projects and to contribute to the generation of external income.
•    Liaise with internal and external agencies, local authorities, industries and visitors where appropriate.
•       Create positive working relationships, including internal and external networks, using your networks to increase your knowledge and skills and swap information with peers.
•    Contribute to promotional events and presentations at conferences.

•    Any other reasonable duties.

Useful links      

Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement Privacy Notices - Durham University  which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.           

When appointing to this role the University must ensure that it meets any applicable immigration requirements, including salary thresholds which are applicable to some visas.