Staff
Five candidates will be given a full-time paid contract for two years as part of the programme aimed to support the development of early career academics in learning, teaching and research
Dubai, July 30, 2024: The Edinburgh Business School at Heriot-Watt University Dubai has announced the launch of a new training programme for those aspiring for academic careers.
Called the Provost’s Fellowship Programme, PhD students from across the world can apply for the two-year programme, which aims to support the development of early career academics in learning, teaching and research.
Announcing the launch of the inaugural programme, Fiona Robson, Head of Edinburgh Business School and School of Social Sciences, Heriot-Watt University Dubai, says it is designed to attract ambitious and talented individuals to the UAE and will play a key role in creating a pipeline that can help place the UAE among the best countries in global talent competitiveness indicators.
“As a university, we have always been committed to nurturing early career academics. With this initiative, we are excited to welcome enthusiastic and ambitious recent PhD graduates who do not have significant teaching experience and are aspiring for an academic career. The Fellows will join one of our three Business School Departments which are Management, Accounting, Economics & Finance and Marketing & Operations and work collaboratively as part of the academic teams as well as begin their academic careers with robust support and guidance,” adds Robson.
Fellows will undertake teaching undergraduate students, development of individual research plans, contributing to course content and design, and participating in professional development activities. In return, they will receive support for teaching skills, engaging and assessing students, research mentorship as well as being able to apply for research funding.
“This is a programme unique to Edinburgh Business School, Dubai which will help us to provide tailored support to candidates who have recently completed their PhD. In the current climate, it is no longer sufficient just to be good at learning & teaching or research, academia requires people who can do both. Academics are also expected to use their work for knowledge exchange to make a difference to practice and society. Our fellows will receive extensive training from highly experienced academics so that they can learn good practices and become well-rounded academics,” says Robson.
Applicants should have a PhD in one of the three disciplines offered at the School and though no teaching experience is needed, fluency in English is essential and candidates who have experience of working in culturally diverse teams will be preferred.
“Five Fellows will be recruited as part of the pilot programme, and if it is successful, we anticipate having an annual round of recruitment,” says Robson. According to her, the Fellowships will receive a two year full-time paid contract and join one of the three academic departments.
