The Alan Turing Institute

The Alan Turing Institute is the UK’s national institute for data science and artificial intelligence. The Institute is named in honour of the scientist Alan Turing and its mission is to make great leaps in data science and artificial intelligence research in order to change the world for the better.

The Curriculum Development Lead will contribute to a new Data Skills Taskforce project to develop an Executive Education resource. This online portal will support C-Suite executives and managers to increase data capability by providing national-scale training which reduces financial and geographic barriers to access and supports business development and value creation from data.

The role holder will be responsible for leading on the curriculum development for the project, including scoping (identification of focus groups, scoping project breadth, identifying delivery options), curriculum material design (static and interactive web content) and embedding the project (developing train-the-trainer resources, evaluating project outcomes).

The project is expected to last for 4 months, and the role is offered as a secondment at 0.4 FTE. The role will report to the Head of Researcher Development and Training and the Data Skills Policy Lead who will coordinate the new curriculum development into the growing SME portal project, also run from the Turing by the Data Skills Taskforce.

The Data Skills Taskforce

The creation of the Data Skills Taskforce was a key recommendation in the Nesta and Universities UK report, Analytic Britain. The report found that there were many agencies in the UK exercising leadership to address the skills shortages arising in industry from the data revolution. However, collaboration was needed to address this national challenge and to identify good practices for education and skills provision.

The DST is co-chaired by Ray Eitel-Porter (Managing Director, Accenture Analytics) and Sir Adrian Smith (Institute Director and Chief Executive, The Alan Turing Institute), who are supported by a steering group with representatives from DCMS, The Alan Turing Institute and the Taskforce’s Data Skills Policy Leader (hosted at The Alan Turing Institute).

Duties and Responsibilities

• Work in partnership with project partners (including academic and industry) to identify, design and develop online training materials to support organisations’ data skills development.
• Collate and translate ideas and content from stakeholders into high quality online training materials.
• Identify, select and adopt pedagogic practices most appropriate to the planned learning and integrate developments in training strategy from both the industrial and academic sectors and promote collaboration in skills development
• Ensure training materials comply with accessibility and usability guidelines, copyright legislation, and be made available open source.
• Undertake evaluation and user testing of new learning materials and resources, including industry and academic consultation.
• Contribute to the definition of standards within the field of data science e.g. development of apprenticeships / national curricula
• Create, curate and promote resources to signpost opportunities for accessing and utilising top-quality content and data through connections with major UK data skills organisations
• Build an extended community of academics and industry partners to contribute to the ongoing success of the portal including train-the-trainer activities
• Produce regular project management reports for project stakeholders.
• Relay findings to the Data Skills Taskforce and other UK organisations to support the development of future strategic developments and encourage national level interest

Essential

• Post-doctoral experience in a data science related field
• Experience of managing complex projects with multiple stakeholders to tight deadline
• Experience of curriculum design, ideally for continued professional development
• Experience of practical and administrative generation of training resources / teaching
• Ability to research and summarise a broad range of data skills training materials and to discern the quality of the resources
• Excellent communication skills in written and oral form to a variety of audiences
• Proactivity in forming network connections in the context of private, academic and industry sectors
• Collaborative mentality for project work
• Independence to drive projects forward and manage own workload

Desirable

• Strong ability to evaluate both quantitative and qualitative data
• Interest in the international data skills landscape to benchmark UK provision in a broader context
• Experience of curriculum co-design in collaboration with academic and industry partners
• Experience leading or contributing to open access curriculum initiatives.
• Understanding of the social, ethical and commercial impact of data skills
• Experience of working with SMEs
• Experience of online learning platform development
• Experience evaluating programmes to drive continued improvement

Terms and Conditions

This a full-time fixed term contract post, initially for 4 months. The equivalent annual salary is ranging from £45,000 - £50,000 plus excellent benefits, including flexible working and family friendly policies, https://www.turing.ac.uk/work-turing/why-work-turing/employee-benefits

Application procedure

If you are interested in this opportunity, please click the apply button below. You will need to register on the applicant’s portal and complete the application form including your CV, covering letter and contact details for your referees. If you have questions or would like to discuss the role further with a member of the Institute’s Recruitment Team, please contact them on 0203 862 3357 or email [email protected].

Closing date for applications: 22 March 2020

Equality Diversity and Inclusion

The Alan Turing Institute is committed to creating an environment where diversity is valued and everyone is treated fairly. In accordance with the Equality Act, we welcome applications from anyone who meets the specific criteria of the post regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy, religion or belief or sexual orientation. Reasonable adjustments are available to support candidates through the application and interview process. Happy to Talk Flexible Working

Please note all offers of employment are subject to continuous eligibility to work in the UK and satisfactory pre-employment security screening which includes a DBS Check.