C-DICE short-term fellowship: Developing a hydrogen policy evidence base for HyDEX

C-DICE is delighted to offer a fantastic opportunity for a three- or six-month paid fellowship suitable for a postdoctoral or well-advanced doctoral researcher. This fellowship will be working on the HyDEX project, a three-year programme to support the development of a hydrogen economy across the Midlands. 

This position will be ideal for a researcher with a Political Science or Public Policy background that has experience of, or a high level of familiarity with, energy-related issues. An understanding of the hydrogen industrial economy in the Midlands would be a distinct advantage.

This post will be based within the Energy Research Accelerator (ERA team), which is a partnership across the Midlands Innovation universities (Aston, Birmingham, Cranfield, Keele, Leicester, Loughborough, Nottingham, Warwick) plus British Geological Survey and is based out of the University of Nottingham.

Job Purpose

The main task will be to undertake a review of the key policy barriers to the uptake of a hydrogen economy across the Midlands.  This will focus on a range of sub-sectors, including transport, heating, and use of hydrogen in industry.  The project will involve:

• A policy review including interviews with key stakeholders in the region and national policy makers to understand key barriers and opportunities. 
• The organisation of a policy engagement event for academics and others within the partnership that are interested.
• Provision of support to the production of hydrogen-related policy documents, e.g. POST reports, briefing papers, etc.

A key output will be the development of a policy engagement plan for Hydex.

Benefit to Researcher 

• Mentorship provided by the ERA team.
• Guidance from the Institute for Policy and Engagement at the University of Nottingham, including sessions on planning for policy impact and social media.
• The secondee will be part of a live Research England-funded project and will benefit from opportunities being involved in the project. 

Fellowship Details

Number of appointments: This advert is for one appointment.

Duration: The fellowship is three months in duration at 1.0FTE (i.e. full-time) or 6 months at 0.5FTE.

Location: University of Nottingham or Hybrid (remote + in-person). Ability to travel to Tyseley Energy Park, University of Birmingham and Keele University would be an advantage.

Salary: For a Post-Doctoral Research Assistant (PDRA), the university Pay Scale Spine 26 to 36 (£31,406 to £40,927 p.a. prorated for duration of post) will be used, depending on current PDRA salary. Please note that university overheads will not be paid due to the developmental opportunity this presents to the PDRA to be seconded to ERA. Expenses related to authorised travel for this fellowship will be covered.

In exceptional circumstances a doctoral researcher will be considered for this appointment. If they have submitted their thesis they will be paid as for a PDRA, otherwise they would be expected to take a leave of absence and work full-time on a project for 3 months, with the fellowship funding providing the student with an allowance for the leave of absence period at approximately £5000.

Special Conditions

This industrial placement is open to postdoctoral researchers based at C-DICE universities or for exceptional candidates PhD students at an ERA partner university. Postdoctoral researchers will be required to seek permission from their employing organisation to undertake the secondment. In cases where participation in this secondment would require a no-cost extension to an EPSRC grant, EPSRC has agreed to grant this automatically on request. PhD students are advised to liaise with their doctoral college or equivalent as they will be required to take a leave of absence from their student research and the date of their next progression board will be adjusted by the appropriate length of time. It is anticipated that during a leave of absence, fees will not be charged, and if they are in award of a stipend it will be ‘paused’.

The selection process is managed by the C-DICE Development Strand, led by Professor Chris Rogers and managed by Amy Beierholm at the University of Birmingham.

After the Fellowship

DocumentationC-DICE expects you to provide during or after the fellowship includes:

• Confirmation of expenditure.
• Outcomes (e.g., publications, engagement activities, policy engagement plan) for impact tracking.
• A report highlighting key findings – this may take the form of the policy engagement plan detailed above.
• The fellow may be asked to engage with C-DICE events (e.g. Annual Conference or Business Engagement Events) and to lead or co-lead a C-DICE training activity in their area of expertise.

Eligibility

Essential Criteria

• Political Science or Public Policy background with evidence of interest in energy issues.
• Report writing

Desirable Criteria

• Experience of interviewing
• Experience running workshops
• Understanding of the process to develop a policy evidence base

Timeline

Deadline for applications	17 May 2022 at 16:00 *deadline extended*
Confirmation interviews	18 May 2022 (afternoon) **or by arrangement if applicant is unavailable**

How to Apply

Applications may be submitted any time before the deadline. Should you have any issues with applying or any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Amy Beierholm at a.beierholm@cdice.ac.uk

• Sign up to Inkpath. Then link to C-DICE. For more details on how, click here.
• Apply via Inkpath using Activity Code DSAB0006 or click the button above.
• When you sign up for the activity, click the option “click here to join” you will then receive a link to the online application form.
• If you need additional assistance with completing an application or Inkpath, contact Amy Beierholm at a.beierholm@cdice.ac.uk
• You will need:
• Applicant details (education & employment background)
• Cover letter stating your available start date (max 500 words)
• A narrative CV. For guidance, click here

Supporting documents to be emailed to C-DICE at a.beierholm@cdice.ac.uk.

If you are successful, your PI/supervisor will be contacted for a letter/email of support.