The University of Sheffield is a remarkable place to work. Our people are at the heart of everything we do. Their diverse backgrounds, abilities and beliefs make Sheffield a world-class university.

We offer a fantastic range of benefits including a highly competitive annual leave entitlement (with the ability to purchase more), a generous pensions scheme, flexible working opportunities, a commitment to your development and wellbeing, a wide range of retail discounts, and much more. Find out more about our benefits (opens in a new window) and join us to become part of something special.

Overview

Education Development Services (EDS) brings together teams who support students and academics to develop skills and enhance their pedagogical practice. Within EDS, The Academic Skills team provides a range of opportunities for all students from all disciplines to develop their underpinning academic and study skills. 

The Academic Skills Adviser (Maths & Stats) will lead on activities relating to statistics including; 1:1 support for students, a programme of statistics related workshops, collaborative work with academic departments, and the development of high quality online and face-to-face learning resources which enable students to fulfil their academic potential and become graduates who are confident in their quantitative skills. This role will enhance the support provided at key transition stages for students by identifying and/or producing new self-study resources for maths, suitable for HE preparation and foundation through to final year and postgraduate project work.

You will have a good honours degree in maths, statistics or a related subject with substantial statistical content.  We are particularly interested in someone with a strength in statistics teaching and an enthusiasm for engaging learners with statistics. 

The Academic Skills Team is a friendly, collaborative and highly professional team.  We are keen to recruit colleagues from diverse backgrounds and with a wide range of workplace experiences.  We will provide the support and training you need for the role as well as supporting your ongoing professional development within the Higher Education sector.  

Main duties and responsibilities

• Work closely with the MASH Manager to deliver, review and improve the provision of statistics skills support.

• Provide statistics support for one-to-one and small group appointments and drop-in sessions, both face-to-face and online.

• Lead the design and delivery of a range of small group workshops for statistics as part of the MASH workshop programme, to meet the needs of students across all levels of study, both face-to-face and online.

• Collaborate with academic schools to support the development of maths related resources, working with schools to implement and embed these where appropriate.

• Contribute towards an annual programme of “skills audits” (formative assessments written by the MASH team) for students as part of intro week activities, ensuring that question banks are maintained and updated.

• To identify and/or produce self-study resources including digital materials to support students at different levels of study, from HE preparation/foundation through to final year and postgraduate project work. With a particular focus on accessibility and creating accessible resources.

• Record, monitor and report on student attendance at one-to-one and small group appointments using the 301 Student Record System.

• Where appropriate, contribute to the line management of a small team of fixed-term contract PGR Tutors including the design and delivery of training/ guidance and the provision of ongoing support.

• Work with colleagues across the Academic Skills Team to lead, contribute to and support a range of projects that support the ongoing development of the service.

• As a member of staff you will be encouraged to make ethical decisions in your role, embedding the University sustainability strategy into your working activities wherever possible.

•  Any other duties, commensurate with the grade of the post. 

Person Specification 

Our diverse community of staff and students recognises the unique abilities, backgrounds, and beliefs of all. We foster a culture where everyone feels they belong and is respected. Even if your past experience doesn't match perfectly with this role's criteria, your contribution is valuable, and we encourage you to apply. Please ensure that you reference the application criteria in the application statement when you apply.

Further Information

Next steps in the recruitment process

It is anticipated that the selection process will take place on 7 November. This will consist of a 15 minute presentation, an interview and an opportunity to meet some of the team informally. We plan to let candidates know if they have progressed to the selection stage by 10th October. If you need any support, equipment or adjustments to enable you to participate in any element of the recruitment process you can contact April Dawson on a.dawson@sheffield.ac.uk

Our vision and strategic plan

We are the University of Sheffield. This is our vision: sheffield.ac.uk/vision (opens in new window).

What we offer

• A minimum of 41 days annual leave including bank holiday and closure days (pro rata) with the ability to purchase more.

• Flexible working opportunities, including hybrid working for some roles.

• Generous pension scheme.

• A wide range of discounts and rewards on shopping, eating out and travel.

• A variety of staff networks, providing opportunities for social interaction, peer support and personal development (for example, Race Equality, LGBT+, Women’s and Parent’s networks).

• Recognition Awards to reward staff who go above and beyond in their role.

• A commitment to your development access to learning and mentoring schemes; Professional Services Shared Skills Framework

• A range of generous family-friendly policies

  • paid time off for parenting and caring emergencies

  • support for those going through the menopause

  • paid time off and support for fertility treatment

  • and more

More details can be found on our benefits page: sheffield.ac.uk/jobs/benefits (opens in a new window).

We are a Disability Confident Employer. If you have a disability and meet the essential criteria for this job you will be invited to take part in the next stage of the selection process.

We are a research university with a global reputation for excellence. Our ideas and expertise change the world for the better, making a real difference to society. We know that when people come together with different views, approaches and insights it can lead to richer, more creative and innovative teaching and research and the highest levels of student experience. Our University Vision (www.sheffield.ac.uk/vision) outlines our commitment to building a diverse community of staff and students that recognises and values the abilities, backgrounds, beliefs and ways of living for everyone.