Location
The Queen’s College, University of Oxford
Salary
£33,309 per annum
Hours
Full time (37.5 hours/week)
Contract type
Fixed-term for 5 years
Reporting to
The Governing Body of The Queen’s College
The College proposes to elect a fixed-term (non-renewable) Career Development Fellowship (CDF) in French for five years from 1st October 2022.
We are committed to fostering equality, diversity and inclusiveness. We particularly encourage applications from women, disabled people and people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, as these groups are currently under-represented in the College's academic staff.
The Fellowship is open to graduates of any University of postdoctoral or equivalent standing, who are engaged in research. The successful candidate will have a broad competence in two centuries of literature written in French during the early modern period: the seventeenth and either the sixteenth or the eighteenth centuries. Eligible candidates should normally have submitted their doctoral thesis and have no more than three years of post-doctoral research experience by the closing date.
The CDF will be required (i) to pursue a programme of advanced research; (ii) to teach six hours per week for the College or other colleges, either under an exchange arrangement or in return for tuition fees to be remitted to the College; and (iii) to examine, to play a full part in the admissions process, and to undertake such other duties as the Governing Body may direct.
The Career Development Fellow will be expected:
The primary teaching needs are likely to include:
Details of the Oxford undergraduate course in Medieval and Modern Languages—including the general Student Handbook, as well as specific handbooks for French for the first year (‘Prelims’) and for the second and fourth years (‘Final Honour School’)—may be found at https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/humdiv/modlang/
The Career Development Fellow will be involved in setting and marking college exams (‘Collections’) at the start of each term, will be responsible for report-writing at the end of each term, and will be expected to act as Personal Tutor to some of the students reading for an MML or Joint School degree including French. They may also act as College Adviser to any graduates in Queen’s reading for postgraduate degrees in MML and related fields. They may also be nominated for membership of the Sub-Faculty of French.
Selection criteria
The successful candidate will meet the following criteria. They will have:
If, for any reason, you have taken a career break or have had an atypical career and wish to disclose this in your application, the selection committee will take this into account, recognising that the quantity of your research may be reduced as a result.
Eligibility: The Fellowship is open to graduates of any University of postdoctoral or equivalent standing, who are engaged in research. Eligible candidates should normally have submitted their doctoral thesis and have no more than three years of post-doctoral research experience by the closing date.
Salary: The basic stipend will be on a scale starting at £33,309 per annum.
Research Allowance: a personal research allowance of £1,565 per annum is provided by the College for research activities such as conference attendance, research assistance, and the purchase of books and software.
Place of Work: The College will provide a non-residential study room on the main site in central Oxford.
The person appointed will be entitled to lunch and dine free of charge in the Senior Common Room and to bring a guest (upon payment) upon all occasions (other than Gaudies) when a Fellow may bring guests. The Fellow is entitled to one term of sabbatical leave, which should be taken during the third year in post. The Fellow will be automatically enrolled in the USS pension scheme unless they opt out.
The Queen’s College
The Queen’s College, founded in 1341, is one of the oldest Colleges in the University of Oxford and represents most aspects of the University community and its scientific and scholarly work. There are approximately 45 fellows, about 160 graduate students and about 330 undergraduates.
Modern Languages is represented by Official Fellows in French (Prof Seth Whidden), German (Dr Charlie Louth), and Spanish (Dr Laura Lonsdale), and graduates and undergraduates studying Modern Languages, both as a single honours subject or in combination with Classics, English, History, Linguistics, or Philosophy. The College admits 13 undergraduates students per year to read for Modern Languages, and adds between three and five postgraduate students in each year as well.
The College has one of the finest college libraries in Oxford, with around 50,000 volumes in the current lending collection—used extensively by students—and around 100,000 volumes in the antiquarian collection. French is particularly well represented with holdings from the fifteenth to the nineteenth centuries, with a particular emphasis on eighteenth- and nineteenth-century literature. The library’s recent expansion, completed in the spring of 2017, added new reading rooms, enhanced accommodation for its special collections, and more space for students and the working collection. The College regularly organises a symposium for graduate students and faculty to showcase their research and discuss their interests, it is one of the three Colleges that sponsor the annual Weidenfeld Translation Prize, it enjoys a longstanding relationship with Modern Poetry in Translation, and it is the home of the Queen’s College Translation Exchange, whose programme of translators-in-residence and activities for students, schools, and the public combines expertise in literary translation with outreach throughout the University, city, and country.
More information about the College can be found at: http://www.queens.ox.ac.uk.
About the University of Oxford
Oxford’s departments and colleges aim to lead the world in research and education for the benefit of society both in the UK and globally. Oxford’s researchers engage with academic, commercial, and cultural partners across the world to stimulate high-quality research and enable innovation through a broad range of social, policy, and economic impacts.
Oxford’s self-governing community of international scholars includes Professors, Associate Professors, other college tutors, senior and junior research fellows, and over 2,500 other University research staff. Research at Oxford combines disciplinary depth with an increasing focus on inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary activities addressing a rich and diverse range of issues.
Oxford’s strengths lie both in empowering individuals and teams to address fundamental questions of global significance, and in providing all staff with a welcoming and inclusive workplace that supports everyone to develop and do their best work. Recognising that diversity is a great strength, and vital for innovation and creativity, Oxford aspires to build a truly inclusive community which values and respects every individual’s unique contribution.
While Oxford has long traditions of scholarship, it is also forward-looking, creative and cutting-edge. Oxford is one of Europe's most entrepreneurial universities. It consistently has the highest external research income of any university in the UK (the most recent figures are available at www.ox.ac.uk/about/organisation/finance-and-funding), and is ranked first in the UK for university spin-outs, with more than 130 spin-off companies created to date. Oxford is also recognised as a leading supporter of social enterprise.
Oxford admits undergraduate students with the intellectual potential to benefit fully from the small group learning to which Oxford is deeply committed. Meeting in small groups with their tutor, undergraduates are exposed to rigorous scholarly challenge and learn to develop their critical thinking, their ability to articulate their views with clarity, and their personal and intellectual confidence. They receive a high level of personal attention from leading academics.
Oxford has a strong postgraduate student body which now numbers over 10,000. Postgraduates are attracted to Oxford by the international standing of the faculty, by the rigorous intellectual training on offer, by the excellent research and laboratory facilities available, and by the resources of the museums and libraries, including one of the world’s greatest libraries, the Bodleian.
For more information, please visit www.ox.ac.uk/about/organisation.
Click 'Apply Online' at the foot of this web page.
The form will ask you to upload the following documents:
Applicants are also asked to arrange for two letters of recommendation to be sent by their referees in pdf format to The Academic Administrator (sarah.mchugh@queens.ox.ac.uk) no later than midday on the closing date.
All applications and references must be received no later than midday on Friday, 14th January 2022.
Informal enquiries concerning the post may be made to the Senior Tutor, Prof Seth Whidden (seth.whidden@queens.ox.ac.uk).
Please direct any technical queries about the online form to vacancies@queens.ox.ac.uk.
Applications will be considered by a selection committee containing representatives from The Queen’s College and the Modern Languages Faculty. The selection committee is responsible for conducting all aspects of the recruitment and selection process.
Interviews
Interviews will be held in person in late February 2022.
Short-listed candidates will be asked to submit a sample of their research (between 5,000 and 6,000 words) prior to the interview. Further details will be provided for short-listed candidates.
As part of the interview, candidates will be asked to give a presentation of 10 minutes’ duration on an aspect of literature written in French during the early modern period, suitable for a second-year undergraduate audience. Further details will be sent to short-listed candidates.
All reasonable interview expenses will be reimbursed.
Note: Because of the number of applications received in such competitions, feedback will only be offered to shortlisted candidates.
Pre-employment screening
Please note that the appointment of the successful candidate will be subject to standard pre-employment screening, as applicable to the post. This will include right-to-work, proof of identity and references. We advise all applicants to read the candidate notes on the University’s pre-employment screening procedures, found at:
www.ox.ac.uk/about/jobs/preemploymentscreening/.
Diversity and Equal Opportunity at Queen’s
The Queen’s College embraces diversity and equal opportunity. Applications are particularly welcome from women and black and minority ethnic candidates, who are under-represented in academic posts in Oxford. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. The College invites all applicants to familiarise themselves with its equal opportunities policy, available on its Equality Information page: https://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/equality-information
The College also shares the university’s commitment ‘to fostering an inclusive culture which promotes equality, values diversity and maintains a working, learning and social environment in which the rights and dignity of all its staff and students are respected.’ The university’s full policy is available at: https://edu.admin.ox.ac.uk/equality-policy
We are committed to the principles of equal opportunities and respect for individuals in creating and maintaining an inclusive environment that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. We value and celebrate diversity and feel that is critical to achieving our strategic aims and long-term success. We work to recruit employees and admit students from a wide range of backgrounds and promote an inclusive culture in which:
All College meetings include consideration of its duties under the Equality Act 2010 as they pertain to the meeting’s actions and decisions. In formal and informal settings alike, the College endeavours to make decisions that afford equal opportunities to, and foster good relationships between, different groups of people.
In response to the Black Lives Matter movement, the College set up a working group, including students and staff, which made recommendations and took action in a range of areas where the College aims continuously to improve: in our outreach activities, in admissions, and in financial support, for undergraduates and postgraduates alike; in the procedures related to hiring and retaining academic and non-academic staff members of the highest calibre; in student support; and in all aspects of fostering an inclusive community in which everyone feels respected, valued, and heard. These actions continue, supported by improvements in monitoring and data.
Visa Applications
If the successful candidate requires a Skilled Worker visa, the College will cover the visa application fee, but not the immigration NHS surcharge.