Head of Quantitative Market Research

Role: Head of Quantitative Market Research

Location: UK, London

Applicants must have the existing right to work in the UK. This role is not eligible for visa sponsorship.

Job type: Full time, permanent – Hybrid

This position offers a hybrid work model, allowing flexibility between working from home and our office.. Employees are expected to work 2 days in the office per week.

Why QS?

At QS, we believe that work should empower you. That’s why we foster a flexible working environment that encourages every employee to own their career whilst flourishing personally and professionally. Our commitment to people development is recognised globally: QS is a Gold-accredited Investors in People organisation, placing us among the top 28% of workplaces worldwide. Our company values underpin everything we do – we collaborate, respect and support each other.

It’s our mission to empower motivated people around the world to fulfil their potential through higher education, ensuring that everyone has access to opportunities that change lives.

Our diversity makes us stronger. By sharing our experiences, we learn from one another and achieve more together, driving progress across the sector.

At QS, you’ll be responsible for implementing real change in the international higher education landscape. You’ll take on meaningful challenges that see a positive impact across the business and the wider sector.

We’re confident you’ll feel right at home here. QS was named as one of Newsweek’s Top 100 Most Loved Workplaces® in the UK (October 2023), recognising the respect, trust and appreciation that drive our culture every day.

As a Head of Quantitative Market Research, this is what you’ll be doing:

At QS, data is one of our most important strategic assets. As Head of Quantitative Market Research, you will lead the development, quality and future evolution of QS's survey based datasets, ensuring they continue to drive value across rankings, evaluations, intelligence products and commercial services.

You will own QS’s survey based datasets as strategic business assets, ensuring they remain trusted, differentiated, commercially valuable, and capable of supporting future product, intelligence and evaluation opportunities. You will be responsible for establishing QS wide standards and best practices for quantitative research, overseeing major survey programmes and developing new datasets that strengthen our understanding of higher education institutions, employers, students and other stakeholders.

Working closely with Product, Frameworks, Insights and Operations teams, you will help ensure that our data assets remain trusted, scalable and commercially valuable. This is an opportunity to shape some of the world’s most influential datasets in global higher education and help identify the next generation of intelligence products, assessment metrics and commercial opportunities.

Role responsibilities

- Lead the development of QS's quantitative market research strategy and survey asset roadmap.

- Establish standards, methodologies and best practices for survey design, sampling, weighting and quantitative analysis across QS.

- Transforming research programmes and modernising methodologies including incorporating the responsible use of AI where appropriate.

- Building the next generation of proprietary dataset to meet the needs of rankings, evaluations, intelligence products and other business functions.

- Develop new survey based datasets and research programmes that create future commercial opportunities and product innovations.

- Oversee the design, execution and quality assurance of key survey programmes and associated datasets.

- Improve data quality, response rates, market coverage and representativeness across all survey programmes.

- Collaborate with other teams to support the development of new metrics, indicators and assessment methodologies.

- Oversee the design, execution and quality assurance of qualitative market research studies.
Identifying emerging approaches and technologies including how AI should be used in analysis and how the outputs should be appropriate reviewed and validated to ensure datasets and insight is robust.

- Partner with other teams to identify new use cases and product opportunities.

- Develop robust governance, documentation and quality control processes for survey assets.

- Monitor emerging research methodologies, technologies and data collection approaches to strengthen QS's quantitative capabilities.

- Build strong relationships with external research vendors, partners and stakeholders.

- Provide strategic guidance to teams using survey based data across QS.

- Contribute to thought leadership, market intelligence and sector research initiatives.

- Lead and develop research colleagues, promoting methodological excellence and continuous improvement.

- Lead a small team of researchers and analysts, including effective management of performance, coaching, development, upskilling and future proofing team capabilities.

- Any other duties that fall within the purpose and scope of the role.

Key skills and experience

- Proven ability to design and manage large scale quantitative research programmes.

- Strong expertise in survey methodology, sampling design, statistical analysis and data quality management.

- Ability to translate complex data into practical business insights and strategic recommendations.

- Proven ability to develop and improve research methodologies and data assets.

- Experience working with large datasets and quantitative research tools.

- Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.

- Ability to balance methodological rigour with commercial and operational needs.

- Excellent analytical, communication and problem solving skills.

- Experience leading cross functional projects involving data, research and product development.

- Curiosity, innovation and a commitment to evidence based decision making.

- Experience of qualitative research methodologies would be advantageous, particularly where used alongside quantitative approaches to create richer market intelligence and future commercial opportunities.

Please note, if you don't meet all the criteria but believe you have the skills and passion to thrive in this role, we encourage you to apply.

So, who are we and what do we do?

QS is the world leader in higher education services, analytics, insights and intelligence. From consultancy to student mobility, academic partnerships to branding solutions, our services power both institutional and individual success.

We’re behind the world’s most widely read university rankings. With an 85% share of all Google searches for university rankings, the QS World University Rankings® reach hundreds of millions, shaping decisions and guiding futures.

Since launching in 1990, our impact and influence have only grown. Today, we work with more than 2,000 of the world’s leading higher education institutions, over 12,000 employers, and governments seeking change and socioeconomic development through higher education – while helping more than 75,000 students enrol each year.

Join QS and you’ll join an 800-strong community of problem-solvers, creators, collaborators and change-makers based in 40+ countries and 11 international offices, including Australia, Malaysia, India, Romania, Singapore, France, Germany, the USA and our headquarters in London.

With every talented new hire, business acquisition and bold initiative, we’re strengthening our reach and delivering even greater value to institutions and learners worldwide. Are you ready to shape the future of higher education?

We take investing in our people very seriously.

As standard you will have:

- Competitive base salary

- Access to an annual bonus scheme (for qualifying roles only)

- 25 days annual leave, plus bank holidays – increasing to 27 days after 5 years’

- Access to a Buy Holiday scheme allowing you to buy up to 5 additional holiday days per year

- Enhanced maternity and paternity leave

- Generous pension through Royal London

- Comprehensive private medical insurance and wellness scheme through Vitality

- Cycle to work scheme

- A vibrant social environment and multicultural and multinational culture

But that’s not all. Outside of these standard benefits we also offer resources to allow professional growth and wellness initiatives to nurture a healthy mindset:

- Free subscription to the Calm App – the #1 app for sleep, meditation, and relaxation

- A focus on welfare which is led by our global wellness team, with mental health first aiders globally

- Access to a variety of diversity and inclusion initiatives and groups

- Strong recognition and reward programs – including a peer-to-peer recognition platform, quarterly and annual QS Applaud Awards, Connect with your Career annual PD event

- Support for volunteering and study leave

- Free subscription to LinkedIn learning – with over 5000 courses and programmes at your fingertips

- Options to join our outstanding global Mentorship programme

Like what you’ve heard? Great, apply now!

As a candidate, we know the application and interview process can be daunting and so it’s important that you have a great experience with us. Our dedicated Talent Team will work hard to ensure you are fully informed at all stages and you are really excited by this opportunity to do meaningful work in the education space.

Equal opportunities

QS Quacquarelli Symonds is proud to be a fair and equal organisation where everyone has the same opportunity to achieve their full potential, irrespective of their background or personal attributes. We celebrate our diversity and believe through sharing our experiences we can learn from one another, be stronger together, and enable our business to thrive.

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