Research Fellow (Quantitative Researcher) - School of Social Policy and Society - 108269 - Grade 7

Position Details

School of Social Policy and Society

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £36,636 to £46,049 with potential progression once in post to £48,822

Grade: 7

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to April 2029

Closing date: 29 th November 2026

Background

We are seeking to appoint a Quantitative Research Fellow to join the Women, Crime and Justice Research Group. The Group are committed to delivering high-quality research to improve outcomes for women involved in the criminal justice system and to build the evidence base on what works best for them.

As part of the Effective Women’s Centre (Phase III) project (JABBS Foundation), the role holder will work across multiple workstreams to turn research questions into analysis plans, carry out the analyses, and write up methods and results for reports and academic papers. In addition, the role holder will also be expected to develop their own lines of research enquiry within the group’s programme, with support.

The role holder will be hold, or be close to completing, a PhD in criminology, psychology, social policy, public health, or a related quantitative social science. They will have experience conducting systematic reviews and evidence syntheses, with a strong understanding of quantitative research methods and data analysis. Experience working with administrative or linked datasets, including within secure research environments, would be advantageous. The role holder will be confident in producing high-quality research outputs for a range of disciplinary audiences and have experience contributing to academic publications commensurate to your career stage. Given the policy focus of the Research Group's work, the role holder will be able to turn research findings into accessible briefings for policymakers, funders and practitioners.

Role Summary

- Design and undertake systematic reviews and meta-analyses on women in the criminal justice system, including gender-responsive interventions, diversion, trauma, and women’s centre outcomes.
- Conduct literature searches, study screening, data extraction, risk of bias assessments, and quantitative or narrative evidence synthesis.
- Work within specified research grants and projects and contribute to writing bids
- Operate within area of specialism
- Analyse and interpret research findings and results
- Contribute to generating funding
- Contribute to licensing or spin out deals with demonstrated commercial success (such as revenues, asset or company sales, IP generated) and/or public understanding of the discipline or similar

Main Duties

The responsibilities may include some but not all of the responsibilities outlined below.

- Design and carry out systematic reviews and meta-analyses on women in the criminal justice system, on topics such as gender-responsive interventions, diversion, women’s centre outcomes, trauma and risk/need assessment. This covers the whole review process: protocol registration, searches of academic and grey literature, screening, data extraction, risk of bias assessment, and synthesis of effect sizes (or structured narrative synthesis where studies are too varied to pool).
- Contribute to data access applications to trusted research environments (for example the ONS Secure Research Service, SAIL Databank and NHS England’s Secure Data Environment). This includes writing project proposals, data specifications and linkage requests, and handling information governance and ethics requirements. Once access is granted, prepare and analyse the linked datasets within these environments in line with data governance and disclosure control rules.
- Develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research, with assistance of a mentor if required
- Contribute to writing bids for research funding
- Analyse and interpret data
- Apply knowledge in a way which develops new intellectual understanding
- Disseminate research findings for publication, research seminars etc
- Supervise students on research related work and provide guidance to PhD students where appropriate to the discipline
- Contribute to developing new models, techniques and methods
- Undertake management/administration arising from research
- Contribute to Departmental/School research-related activities and research-related administration
- Contribute to enterprise, business development and/or public engagement activities of manifest benefit to the College and the University, often under supervision of a project leader
- Collect research data; this may be through a variety of research methods, such as scientific experimentation, literature reviews, and research interviews
- Present research outputs, including drafting academic publications or parts thereof, for example at seminars and as posters
- Provide guidance, as required, to support staff and any students who may be assisting with the research
- Deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines
- Fosters a fair and equitable workplace for all staff
- Identify and respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant university policies and procedures
- Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity duties document.

Person Specification

- A PhD relevant to the research area (or near completion), or equivalent PhD level qualifications.
- High level analytical capability
- Ability to communicate complex information clearly
- Fluency in relevant models, techniques or methods and ability to contribute to developing new ones
- Ability to assess resource requirements and use resources effectively
- Understanding of and ability to contribute to broader management/administration processes
- Contribute to the planning and organising of the research programme and/or specific research project
- Co-ordinate own work with others to avoid conflict or duplication of effort
- Knowledge of the protected characteristics and duties under the Equality Act 2010. Including fostering good relations and advancing the universities Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED).
- Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity knowledge, skills and experience document.

Desirable – Person Specification

- Experience of preparing or contributing to data access applications for administrative or linked data.
- Knowledge of research and policy on women in the criminal justice system, gender-responsive practice and trauma.
- Experience with dependent effect sizes (three-level models or robust variance estimation) and with certainty-of-evidence frameworks such as GRADE.
- Familiarity with criminology-specific appraisal tools (for example the Maryland Scientific Methods Scale) and with the Campbell Collaboration’s crime and justice reviews.
- Experience of realist synthesis or other theory-driven review methods.
- Experience of advanced modelling relevant to the group’s wider work: multilevel, count or survival models, structural equation modelling or psychometrics.
- ONS Accredited Researcher status, or willingness to obtain it, and experience with secure administrative data (for example Data First).
- Ability to develop and pursue your own coherent research plan that fits the group’s work on women and criminal justice, leading to independent and co-authored publications.

Informal enquiries to Professor Simon Pemberton, email: [email protected]

Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website .