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Vacancy Pack

Contents:

1. Job details.

2. Main duties.

3. Role Profile.

4. Person specification.

5. Guidance notes on how to apply for a job at Cardiff University.

6. Information on the School / Directorate.

7. General information on working for Cardiff University.

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Section 1 - Job Details

Job Title: Research Associate.

School: Department of Endocrine and Diabetes Studies.School of Medicine.

Duration: Fixed-term for 3 years.

Salary Details: £29853 - £35646 per annum. (Grade 6).

Hours of work: This is a full time position of 35 hours per week.

Relocation Expenses

Relocation expenses may be available for staff needing to relocate in order to take up employment with the University. Full details can be found at www.cardiff.ac.uk/humrs/newstaff/index.html Information on properties and schools in the Cardiff area can be found at www.icwales.co.uk

Responsible to: Professor F Susan Wong.

Date of Appointment: This post is available from 01 October 2010.

Closing Date forApplications: 5pm GMT on Friday, 01 October 2010.

Working in the UK:

The University has a legal responsibility to ensure that prospective employees have the right to work in the UK before they commence employment. From November 2008 the UK government introduced a Points-Based Immigration System to enable overseas nationals to visit, study and work in the UK. Further information can be found at http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/workingintheuk/. We would draw your attention to Tier 1 (Highly Skilled Migrant Workers), and Tier 2 (Skilled Sponsored Migrant Workers). Please note that under Tier 2 (General) the qualification level for the post must be equivalent to National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) Level 3 or above, in order to secure a Certificate of Sponsorship.

For European Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss nationals wishing to work in the UK, please note that further information can be found at the following website http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/workingintheuk/eea/.

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Rehabilitation of Offenders:

This job is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

Please see Guidance Notes in Section 4 for further information.

Occupational Health Screening:

Owing to the nature of this job, a pre-employment Occupational Health screening check will be required, in accordance with Department of Health guidance where applicable. If you require additional information on this issue, please contact Occupational Health on occhealth@cardiff.ac.uk or 029 2087 4810 Please note that although a contract of employment can be issued subject to a satisfactory screening check, employment cannot start until the satisfactory check has been carried out

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Section 2 - Main Duties

Main Function of Post:

To work with members of the School and other research areas to develop and participate in research related to selection and activation of CD8 T cells in in vivo models of autoimmune diabetes. The research will particularly focus on central and peripheral tolerance in a project funded by the Medical Research Council.

Job Description: To undertake day to day research activity within the overall research programme using cellular immunological techniques that include cytotoxicity, cytokine analysis, proliferation, flow cytometry and other cellular immunological assays together with molecular immunological techniques.

To undertake administrative tasks associated with the research project, including the organisation of project meetings and documentation and the implementation of procedures required to ensure accurate and timely reporting

To suggest and contribute to the development of research techniques and methods in collaboration with colleagues

To carry out the laboratory techniques necessary for the project.

To perform data analysis and contribute intellectually to the project through the critical interpretation of data

To produce work of publishable quality for appropriate high quality peer reviewed journals

To present papers at national and international meetings

To contribute to the development of collaborative research grant proposals

To assist in the supervision of undergraduate student projects and the development of student research and assessment

To support the supervision of post graduate research students where appropriate

To work collaboratively with other staff within and external to the research team

To evaluate methods and techniques used and the results obtained by other researchers and relate evaluations to the area of research as appropriate

To update continually knowledge and understanding in the field or specialism and translate knowledge of advances in the subject area into research activity

To ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements in respect of equality and diversity, data

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protection, copyright and licensing, security, financial and other University policies, procedures and codes as appropriate.

To take reasonable care for the health and safety of yourself and of other persons who may be affected by your acts or omissions at work in accordance with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, EC directives and the University’s Safety, Health and Environment Policies and procedures and to cooperate with the University on any legal duties placed on it as the employer. As a member of staff with managerial/supervisory responsibilities you will also be responsible for ensuring that University policy and procedures and legal duties are applied within your areas and that appropriate risk assessments are undertaken, necessary actions are implemented and staff within your area are fully conversant and trained in respect of their Health and Safety obligations.

You may be asked to perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role.

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Section 3: Role Profile

The Role Profile defines the level of responsibility at which the duties of the job should be performed and is therefore used to further inform the Job Description detailed in Section.

Research Level 2(Building on the level of demand in Level 1)

COMMUNICATIONThe role holder is required to:

deal with routine communication using a range of media. communicate complex information orally, in writing and electronically. prepare proposals and applications to external bodies e.g. for funding and

accreditation purposes. communicate material of a specialist or highly technical nature.

TEAM WORK AND MOTIVATIONThe role holder is required to:

work with colleagues on joint projects, as required. collaborate with academic colleagues on areas of shared research interest. attend and contribute to relevant meetings. manage own research and administrative activities, with guidance if required.

LIAISON AND NETWORKINGThe role holder is required to:

liaise with colleagues and students. build internal contacts and participate in internal networks for the exchange of

information and to form relationships for future collaboration. join external networks to share information and identify potential sources of

funds.

SERVICE DELIVERYThe role holder is required to:

deal with internal or external contacts who ask for service or require information.

create a positive image of the institution by being responsive and prompt in responding to requests and referring the user to the right person if necessary.

Contact is usually initiated by the customer and typically involves routine tasks with set standards or procedures.

DECISION MAKING PROCESSESThe role holder is required to:

use new research techniques and methods. use initiative and creativity to identify areas for research, develop new

research methods and extend the research portfolio. use creativity to analyse and interpret research data and draw conclusions on

the outcomes. contribute to collaborative decision making with colleagues in areas of

research.

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PLANNING AND ORGANISING RESOURCESThe role holder is required to:

use research resources, laboratories and workshops as appropriate. plan and manage own research activity in collaboration with others.

INITIATIVE AND PROBLEM SOLVINGThe role holder is required to:

use new research techniques and methods. use initiative and creativity to identify areas for research, develop new

research methods and extend the research portfolio. use creativity to analyse and interpret research data and draw conclusions on

the outcomes. contribute to collaborative decision making with colleagues in areas of

research.

ANALYSIS AND RESEARCHThe role holder is required to:

develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research, with the assistance of a mentor if required.

conduct individual and collaborative research projects. write up research work for publication. continually update knowledge and understanding in field or specialism. translate knowledge of advances in the subject area into research activity.

SENSORY AND PHYSICAL DEMANDSThe role holder is required to balance with help, the competing pressure of research and administrative demands and deadlines.

WORK ENVIRONMENTThe role holder is required to be aware of the risks in the work environment and their potential impact on their own work and that of others.

PASTORAL CARE AND WELFAREThe role holder is required to show consideration to others.

TEAM DEVELOPMENTThe role holder is required to manage own research and administrative activities, with guidance if required.

TEACHING AND LEARNING SUPPORT The role holder is required to:

be involved in the assessment of student knowledge and supervision of projects.

assist in the development of student research skills.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCEThe role holder is required to:

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possess sufficient breadth or depth of specialist knowledge in the discipline and of research methods and techniques to work within established research programmes.

engage in continuous professional development. understand equal opportunity issues as they may impact on areas of

research content.

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Section 4 - Person Specification

Essential Criteria

Expertise/Competence/Skills1. Excellent oral communication skills with a well developed ability to liaise with

external collaborators and research partners, often at a variety of levels.2. Excellent organisational skills with a proven ability to prioritise and meet

deadlines within the framework of an agreed programme.3. Good liaison skills: the ability to build internal contacts and participate in

internal networks for the exchange of information and to form relationships for future collaboration.

4. Sufficient breadth or depth of specialist knowledge in immunology to develop further skills in and knowledge of research methods and cellular and immunological techniques in the area of immunology of diabetes.

5. Planning skills: competency to plan and manage own research activity in collaboration with others.

Qualifications (IT/Academic/Vocational)6. A first class or good second class degree in a relevant discipline, or equivalent

experience.7. A PhD (or to be in the submission process) in a relevant area, or other relevant

equivalent research experience.

Experience8. Previous experience in conducting and organising research projects.9. Experience of giving presentations at conference/meetings.10. A demonstrable history of contributing to excellent publications in the area.

Specific Qualities (eg attitudes)11. Self-motivated with a proactive approach to work.12. Use initiative and creativity to identify areas for research, develop new

research methods and extend the research portfolio.

Desirable Criteria

13. Experience in the investigation of autoimmune disease.14. Flexible working pattern to accommodate experiments that may require

working out of normal working hours.15. Completion of Home Office modules 1-4 and holds a personal licence.

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Section 5 - Guidance notes for completing Application Pack

Vacancy Information

We strongly advise that you carefully read all available information for this job before you start completing the form. The Vacancy Information includes a full job description and a person specification, which details the skills, qualifications and experience which are required for this job.

The Person Specification is split into 2 sections: essential and desirable. You should ensure that you meet all of the essential criteria for the job and that how you meet these criteria is communicated fully in your application.

The desirable section contains a list of skills, qualifications and experience which it would be beneficial for the jobholder to have.

All shortlisting decisions will be based initially on essential criteria, with desirable criteria being used to further select or deselect candidates as appropriate. We interview those candidates who are the closest match to the identified criteria.

Closing dateThe closing date for the job is on both the advert and the Vacancy Information. Please ensure that your application reaches us by 5pm on the specified date, as late applications will not normally be accepted.

Acknowledgement of your ApplicationDue to the high volume of applications received by the University, we are unable to acknowledge receipt of individual job applications. Should you wish to receive an acknowledgement, please include with your application a stamped, self-addressed postcard, which we will return to you on receipt of your application. On the reverse, you should state the vacancy title and reference number for which you are applying.

Rehabilitation of Offenders/Criminal Records Bureau A criminal conviction will not necessarily be a bar to employment. Cardiff University complies with the Criminal Records Bureau’s Code of Practice and will consider the suitability of all applicants on merit and ability.

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 entitles people who have been convicted of a criminal offence carrying a sentence of up to 30 months’ imprisonment and who have completed the appropriate period of rehabilitation to regard their conviction as ‘spent’. ‘Spent convictions’ can then be regarded as never having occurred.

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, however, exempts certain types of employment from the provisions of the Act. So, if you are applying for a clinical post, a post in the Daycare Centre, a post which requires that you are a full member of one of the CCAB accountancy institutes, or any other excepted post, you are not entitled to withhold information about spent convictions.

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In addition, the Police Act 1997 requires Police checks for all posts that come into contact with under 18s and vulnerable adults on a regular basis. Appointment to all such posts will require the postholder to undergo checks by the Criminal Records Bureau before commencing any duties which could bring them into contact with children and/or vulnerable adults.

Any information disclosed will be kept in strict confidence and used only in consideration of your suitability for the job for which you are applying. If you fail to disclose relevant information requested at any stage of the recruitment process, then your employment could be subject to withdrawal of contract, dismissal or disciplinary action by the University.

Cardiff University’s policy on employing ex-offenders is available on request, as is the Criminal Records Bureau’s Code of Practice.

Vacancy NumberIt is important that the vacancy number is quoted on all correspondence. This is the 3 digit number used in the advert, or the last 3 digits of the number on the top right hand corner of this document.

Application Form

Please complete ALL sections of the application form. If a section does not apply to you, please just write ‘not applicable’ in the box.

If you wish, you may attach a CV to the fully completed application pack.

Incomplete forms and CVs sent without an accompanying completed form will not be accepted and will be returned to you.

If you need to attach a continuation sheet to any section, please ensure that your initials, surname and Vacancy Number are included at the top of the page. NB: If you are planning to submit your application electronically, all documents, including any attachments, must be sent in Microsoft Word format. We regret at this time that we are unable to accept any documents, including the application form, in any other format. If this is an issue for you please contact us.

Higher Education and/or Professional QualificationsPlease give us details of all relevant qualifications, including those for which you are currently studying. You will be asked to provide proof of qualifications achieved if you are offered employment at the University.

Membership of Professional Organisations/Registration DetailsYou should detail information on any relevant professional affiliations and/or registrations. Again, proof of membership may be sought prior to employment.

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Certificate of Sponsorship/Permit Free Training/Evidence of permission to work in UKPrior to being permitted to commence employment with the University, you will be required to produce documentary evidence of permission to work in the United Kingdom. You could provide for example, either a British passport, or a passport or National Identity Card from an EEA Country or Switzerland; or alternatively a document showing your permanent UK National Insurance Number and your full UK Birth Certificate; or a certificate of sponsorship and your passport.

A full list of acceptable documentary evidence is available on request. Original documents must be seen before you start working for Cardiff University.

For further information please refer to the Home Office website www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk.

Useful information on living and working in the UK can be found at www.britishcouncil.org/eumobility

Registration DetailsPlease complete this section if you are applying for a clinical post, including those jobs which require you to be registered with the General Medical Council, the General Dental Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and all allied health professionals.

Employment/Work ActivitiesPlease give us details of your complete work history. This should include information on your current and past employers, job title, dates employed and salary, together with salary scheme and spinal point where applicable.

PublicationsPlease give us a full list of your publications with bibliographical details in chronological order. You may continue on a separate sheet if there is insufficient space. Where applicable, please also provide us with the web addresses of your publications.

Please do not send copies of your publications. Any received will be returned to you.

Additional InformationThis section is designed for you to give us details of any activities and/or significant achievements which are not documented elsewhere in your application and which you believe will enhance your contribution to the University.

Special teaching and research interests and other factors, such as consultancy work, should also be detailed in this section.

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Statement in support of your applicationIn this section, you need to demonstrate clearly how your experience, knowledge, skills and abilities match those required in the job, as detailed in the Person Specification. Where possible you should give examples of when you have used specific skills and abilities or needed to develop competencies in the relevant areas. You can draw on elements from any aspect of your life, such as education, work, home or community life, as long as you focus on its relevance in comparison to the needs of this job.

If you do not demonstrate that you meet all of the ESSENTIAL criteria then you will not be invited to interview. You do not need to demonstrate that you meet all of the DESIRABLE criteria in order to be invited to interview, though you should give us information where possible.

Meeting all of the essential criteria does not guarantee you an interview, however, as there may be other applicants who have demonstrated that they meet some or all of the desirable criteria, or that they meet the criteria to a greater depth and/or relevance. Essential criteria may be tested at interview stage.

ReferencesPlease give details of 3 referees who can comment on your suitability to do this job. At least 1 reference MUST be from your current or latest employer. It is University policy to request references prior to interview but if you do not wish for your current or latest employer to be contacted before the interview, then please make this clear on the application form. The University reserves the right to contact your current or latest employer following the interview and prior to offering a contract of employment.

In providing the names of referees, you are agreeing that the University may ask their opinions on your character in relation to this application. These opinions, given in trust, will remain confidential.

GeneralInterviews will be held as soon as possible. Please note that if you do not receive an invitation to interview within six weeks of the closing date, then you may assume that your application has been unsuccessful.

We reserve the right to invite applicants to apply and undergo the same recruitment process as that undertaken by candidates who have applied via an advert. These applicants may be introduced to the University via a Search and Selection Agency or some other method.

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Equal Opportunities Monitoring

Why do we ask for this information?Cardiff University is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to ensuring that all job applicants are treated fairly regardless of gender, age, disability, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation and religion or belief.

To ensure that this policy is working effectively, we need to collect information about people who apply for jobs in the University.

Who will see this information?Personal and Monitoring information will be retained in the Human Resources Division and will not be forwarded to the recruiter. It will not be used at any stage in the selection process.

What will happen to this information if you are not appointed to a job?Your personal information will be archived in hard copy in line with current legislation, after which it will be destroyed using secure means. Part or all of your application may also be held in a computer database and used to provide information for administration and reporting purposes. You will not be identified via any information contained in reports.

What will happen to this information if you are appointed to a job?This information will be used as the basis for your confidential personal data record and will be used to provide compliance and statistical information throughout the course of your employment. Your data may be held in hard copy and/or electronically.

How will we keep your information secure?Personal and Monitoring information is treated as strictly confidential and will be dealt with in accordance with the Data Protection Act (1998).

How is disability defined?The Disability Discrimination Act (1995) defines a disability as a physical or mental condition which has a substantial and long-term (ie more than 12 months) adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. You may still be considered to be disabled under the terms of the Act if you are not currently adversely affected but it is deemed that the impairment is likely to recur. Conditions such as diabetes, depression and cancer are included.

Fitness to PracticeFor all clinical posts that require an honorary contract, Cardiff University needs to establish if you have been subject to any fitness to practice proceedings. If you answer ‘Yes’ to this question, you must provide details, on a separate sheet, of the nature of the proceedings undertaken, or contemplated, including approximate date of proceedings, country where proceedings were undertaken and the name and address of the licensing or regulatory body concerned.

Who can I contact if I need help in completing the form?Please contact us on 029 2087 4017 or email Vacancies@cardiff.ac.uk

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Please return the completed application pack to: HR Division, Cardiff University, McKenzie House, 30-36 Newport Road, Cardiff CF24 0DE. Alternatively, you may email the pack to vacancies@cardiff.ac.uk

Please note that if you apply via email, you must complete both the signature tick-box and the signature section of the pack. By doing this, you are confirming that the information you have provided on all documentation is correct. Any incomplete or incorrectly completed forms will not be accepted and will be returned to you.

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Section 6 - Information on School/Directorate

School of Medicine

Mission

The mission of the School of Medicine is to pursue the highest standards of research, education and training, in medicine and related subjects, so as to enhance the health and wealth of the people of Wales and the wider world.

Profile

The School of Medicine at Cardiff is one of the largest in the UK, employing nearly 500 academic and 300 support staff with over 1000 undergraduate and 1100 postgraduate students currently enrolled on medical and science courses. The School has an annual financial turnover of over £50M of which nearly half comes from competitive external research funding. Teaching

The School’s major Undergraduate Programme is the MBBCh in Medicine. This is a modern integrated five-year curriculum based on the guidelines of the General Medical Council (GMC) publication ‘Tomorrow’s Doctors’. It is delivered in partnership with the School of Biosciences with additional contributions from Psychology and Social Science. Clinical placement teaching occurs in partnership with over a dozen NHS Trusts and over 150 General Practices, covering the whole of Wales. This ‘hub and spoke’ model gives a unique diversity of clinical learning experience in both hospital and community settings.

More recently, the School has begun a 4 Year Graduate Entry Programme in partnership with the University of Swansea, at which Graduate Entrants carry out a problem-based, accelerated two-year initial phase, after which they join Year 4 of the 5 Year Programme in Cardiff.

Other Undergraduate contributions are to the Honours BSc Programme in Pharmacology and to the BDS Degree in Dentistry.

A wide range of Post-Graduate Taught (PGT) Schemes is also offered. Indeed the School is the largest provider of medically related PGT courses in the UK. These include both conventional and, increasingly, “distance learning” (e-based) teaching. Many courses are aimed specifically at qualified doctors and health care professionals such as the Diploma in Practical Dermatology and the MSc in Psychiatry.

Research

Research in the school is now focused on interdisciplinary themes, each of which spans the spectrum from basic science to clinical practice in either hospital or community settings. The underlying aim is to ensure the optimum “translation” of fundamental knowledge to patient benefit.

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Six such Interdisciplinary Research Groups (IRG’s) exist at present namely Infection, Immunity & Inflammation (I³), Metabolism Repair & Reproduction, Cancer Studies, Cardiovascular Sciences, Neuroscience & Mental Health and Community Health Sciences Research. Cancer Studies and I³ gained the highest possible rating (5*) in the last Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) in 2001 and all six groups are now producing forefront international research. This is also reflected in a sharp upturn in external grants and awards, which for the year ending July 2006 exceeded £23 million per annum.

Innovation and Engagement

Innovation & engagement (formerly “Third Mission”) is also a rapidly growing part of the School’s activities and covers a wide range of areas from “contract research” with pharmaceutical companies through provision of policy advice to local and UK Government on health-related issues, to initiatives in public understanding of science.

School Structure

Each of the three main missions is delivered by staff from a wide range of biomedical disciplines. However all staff are affiliated to traditional, clinically-based Departments. In addition to maintaining a single line-management structure, this has the advantage for clinical academics of preserving the identity of their clinical discipline which has major value in strengthening links with the NHS, for medical teaching, professional development and recruitment purposes. Heads of Department are directly responsible to the Dean of Medicine (Head of School) for their overall line management, and for undergraduate teaching activities report in addition to the Dean of Undergraduate Studies (Deputy Head of School).

Location

The School of Medicine is largely based on the Heath Park Campus of Cardiff University alongside the University Hospital of Wales. Teaching is also carried out in the neighbouring Cathays Campus (School of Biosciences) and the second teaching hospital in Cardiff at Llandough.

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Section 7: Working for Cardiff University

Vision – To be a world-leading universityMission –To pursue research, learning and teaching of international distinction and

impact

The success of Cardiff University depends largely upon the commitment, energy and enthusiasm of the people working here. We are keen to provide excellent working conditions and policies, a selection of which are listed below:

Holidays - Generous leave entitlement (minimum of 32 days’ holiday plus statutory days) from your first day of employment with us.

Pension – Contributory final–salary pension scheme.

Hours – a standard 35-hour working week applies to the majority of jobs in the University.

positiveBenefits – The University operates positiveBenefits for staff, a scheme which enables you to reduce the amount of income tax and/or National Insurance contributions you pay, thereby increasing your take-home pay. positiveBenefits incorporates schemes in relation to pension, childcare and cycling. For further information please visit:

positivepensions@cf.ac.ukpositivechildcare@cf.ac.ukpositivecycling@cf.ac.uk

Work/Life Balance Policies – Reasonable working hours are complemented by a comprehensive package of work/life balance policies:

Flexible working Maternity PaternityDependants Career break AdoptionParental leave Childcare Special leaveSick pay scheme Civic and public duties

Continuing Personal Development - We provide excellent training and development opportunities and all staff are encouraged to acquire the knowledge, skill and motivation to fulfil the potential of their current work and to realise their personal career aspirations. Staff Development and Performance Management policies underpin this area.

Equality and Diversity - The University has a long-standing commitment to equal opportunities. In support of this, we have adopted, and work within, Equality & Diversity and Race Equality Policies.

Induction – Comprehensive induction process for all staff.

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University Facilities - A wide range of facilities are available, including: state-of-the-art computer services; libraries; sport and recreation facilities; public concerts and lectures; a wide range of catering facilities; a social Staff Association; discounted private medical insurance and an eye clinic.

Health, Safety and Security - We are committed to the maintenance of safe and healthy working conditions for our staff and a safe and secure working environment. We have a professional Security Patrol that provides 24-hour cover and back-up for any emergency.

Please note that the contract of employment will provide definitive details on provision of the above.

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