Research Associate in Responsible AI. Centre for Protecting Women Online

Unit :  Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)
Salary :  £37,099 to £40,521
Location :  Milton Keynes
Please quote reference :  21579
Full Time, Fixed-term (4 years)
Closing Date :  16 May, 2024 - 12:00

Interview date: 7th - 14th June via Teams

It is anticipated that a hybrid working pattern can be adopted for this role, where the successful candidate can work from home and the office. However, as this role is contractually aligned to our Milton Keynes office it is expected that some attendance in the office will be required when necessary and in response to business needs. We’d expect this to be approximately 1-2 days per week.

Change your career, change lives

The 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.

This role will be associated with the Centre for Protecting Women Online, which is funded by a £7.7 million grant from Research England. The Centre for Protecting Women online will be a vehicle for understanding and addressing challenges posed to women’s safety online through a novel, interdisciplinary and ambitious research agenda. This will be combined with cross-sectoral, collaborative outputs and interventions which inform law, policy, technology development and practice to reduce online harms suffered by women and girls; minimise anti-social behaviours online whilst promoting pro-social behaviours and help build tech/ software that helps ensure accountability, credibility and helps facilitate justice. 

The position is based on the Knowledge Media Institute (KMi - https://kmi.open.ac.uk/ ). KMi is a multidisciplinary corporate R&D lab for the Open University, committed to world class research activity at the forefront of data science, Artificial Intelligence and new media technology. KMi has, for almost 25 years, deployed research results to address real world scenarios that have led to innovation in education and commercial settings. KMi currently consists of around 80 researchers, has published more than 1000 scientific papers since its creation, and has been involved in over 100 EU and national projects. The research conducted under these projects covers a wide range of issues related to the use of technology for social good. The successful candidate will also work very closely with colleagues at the school of Computing & Communications, particularly with the Software Engineering and Design research group (http://sead.open.ac.uk )

The role

We are looking for a dynamic person who would seek to play an active part in building the research culture in the centre. 

We are seeking candidates who have a strong background in Large-scale data analytics (with particular interest on social media analytics), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Responsible AI with an interest in the intersection between technology, sociology, psychology, policy, and law.

The post holder will focus on research relating to Responsible AI, focusing on analysing online spaces and the effectiveness and dangers of existing technology and platforms on the protection of women online. We expect the successful candidate to conduct large-scale collection, aggregation, structuring and analysis of online data, to investigate the risks and opportunities of existing technology under a Responsible AI lens, and to work towards novel socio-technical solutions focused on protecting women online.

We welcome applicants from a range of backgrounds, including professionals from academia and industry. Applicants will be considered based on their track record in research and academic leadership. In line with our commitment to the Athena SWAN initiative and the Race Equality Charter, we welcome and support all applicants equally.

Skills and experience

• PhD, or close to completion, in Computer Science or a relevant area
• An existing track record of publications in a relevant area (commensurate with career stage)
• Knowledge and familiarity with research on online environments, particularly social media
• Solid theoretical foundation and practical experience with large-scale data analysis/statistics, machine learning, natural language processing, and responsible AI
• Good programming skills applied to a variety of domains and technologies

• A strong record of research and/or knowledge exchange that is commensurate to the position.

More information on the required skills and experience is provided via the Job Description

If you would like to discuss the application or recruitment process before making an application, please contact Marian Cattermole at Resourcing Hub on 01908 655544 or [email protected] quoting the reference VRF 21579

What you get in return

We have a strong commitment to providing training and development in and beyond your current role. This includes thorough induction into the organisation and regular reviews of your training and development needs.

We also offer a great range of benefits that support our employees and their families for the long term. Staff Benefits include an attractive pension proposition and 33 days holiday per annum pro rata, plus Bank Holidays and Christmas closure days.

How to apply

Unless otherwise stated in the advert, all applications are completed online via the instructions on The OU Job’s page. Applications submitted via 3rd party websites will not be received.

Access details for disabled applicants are available from the Resourcing Hub, telephone: 01908 655544, quoting the vacancy reference above.

To apply for this role please submit the following as one document;

• CV
• Personal statement, up to 1,000 words, you should set out in your statement why you’re interested in this role and provide examples of where your skills and experience meet the required competencies for this role as detailed in the job and person specification.

Please save your document with the following file name as appropriate to the vacancy you are applying for: reference, surname, forename.

You will need to have your documents ready ahead of submitting the electronic application. Please click on the APPLY NOW button below to be redirected to our application page.

APPLY NOW

You will receive updates regarding your application from [email protected] . Please ensure this email address is added to your list of trusted senders so it does not go to your junk folder.

You can view your application communications on the Candidate portal .

Find out more about us and our mission by watching this short video (you will be taken to YouTube by clicking this link).

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.

Email : [email protected]  

Job related information : 

Attachment	Size

Attachment	Size
Job Description PDRA (KMi).docx	58.85 KB

• Terms and Conditions - Research Staff  (PDF)

• Terms and Conditions - Research Staff  (Word document)

Posting Date :  3 April, 2024 - 13:30