FURTHER PARTICULARS
THE SCHOOL
The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine is one of Europe’s leading schools of Public
Health and a leading postgraduate institution worldwide for research and postgraduate education in
global health.
Part of the University of London, the London School is the largest institution of its kind in Europe
with a remarkable depth and breadth of expertise encompassing many disciplines. The School was
ranked one of the top 3 research institutions in the country in the Times Higher Education’s 'table of
excellence', which is based on the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). In 2009, the School
became the first UK institution to win the Gates Award for Global Health.
The School’s environment is a rich multicultural one: there are around 3500 students from 100+
countries following 24 taught masters courses delivered either in London or through distance
learning, and about 400 undertaking a research degree. Over 40% of these students are from nonEuropean countries. Alumni are working in more than 180 countries. The School has about 1600
staff drawn from over 74 nationalities.
There are research collaborations with over 100 countries throughout the world, utilizing our critical
mass of multidisciplinary expertise which includes clinicians, epidemiologists, statisticians, social
scientists, economists, molecular biologists, immunologists, ophthalmologists, anthropologists,
virologists, pharmacologists and nutritionists. At any one time around 100 School staff are based
overseas, particularly in Africa and Asia. We have a strong commitment to partnership with
institutions in low and middle income countries to support the development of teaching and
research capacity.
The School has expanded greatly in recent years. Its research funding now exceeds £67M per
annum, much of it from highly competitive national and international sources. The commitment of
staff to methodological rigour, innovative thinking and policy relevance will ensure that the School
continues to occupy a leadership position in national and global health, adapting quickly to new
challenges and opportunities.
Mission
To improve health and health equity in the UK and worldwide; working in partnership to achieve
excellence in public and global health research, education and translation of knowledge into policy
and practice.
THE FACULTY
The Faculty of Epidemiology & Population Health (EPH) houses a large group of epidemiologists,
demographers, statisticians and nutritionists working on issues of major public health importance in
the UK and globally. EPH has approximately 330 staff members organised into four research
departments.
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Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Department of Medical Statistics
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Department of Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology
Department of Population Health
The Faculty has a teaching programme consisting of ten MSc courses: Epidemiology, Demography
and Health, Medical Statistics, Public Health in Developing Countries (run jointly with the Faculties of
Infectious & Tropical Diseases and Public Health & Policy), Nutrition for Global Health, Reproductive
& Sexual Health Research, Veterinary Epidemiology (run jointly with the Royal Veterinary College),
Global Mental Health (run jointly with Kings College London - Institute of Psychiatry) and the
Distance Learning courses in Epidemiology and Clinical Trials. The Faculty also has approximately 150
research students studying for an MPhil, PhD or DrPH degree. The Dean of Faculty is Professor John
Edmunds.
In April 2013 the Faculty received an Athena SWAN Bronze Award. Athena SWAN awards recognise
and celebrate good practice in recruiting, retaining and promoting women in STEMM – science,
technology, engineering, maths and medicine - in higher education (www.athenaswan.org.uk).
THE DEPARTMENT
The Department of Population Health (DPH) aims to increase global access to effective treatments
and public health interventions, and is a centre of excellence in the measurement and analysis of
global consequences of population change. DPH is home to 5 major research groups: Nutrition
Group: addressing major nutrition and food-related problems that affect human development, with
expertise in under-nutrition, immunity & infection, maternal and child nutrition, nutritional genetics,
nutrition-related chronic diseases, and agriculture & health; Global Mental Health: conducting
research and capacity building in policy, prevention, treatment and care for people living with
mental, neurological & substance use disorders; Maternal & Child Health Intervention Research:
conducting intervention trials to improve maternal, new born & child survival, and child growth
development; Clinical Trials Unit: a fully registered CTU under UK Clinical Research Collaboration,
co-ordinating and conducting clinical trials in low, middle and high income countries; Population
Studies Group: conducting research in reproductive & sexual health, the demographic impact of
AIDS in Africa, family demography, health & ageing, and methodological work on measurement of
health and technical demographic analysis.
DPH hosts the network for Analysis of Longitudinal, Population-based data on HIV/AIDS in Africa
(ALPHA), the Cochrane Injuries Group, and the Transport & Health Group, and has strong links with
many overseas research groups. DPH provides world-class opportunities for postgraduate training;
offering four masters courses: MSc Nutrition for Global Health, MSc Demography & Health, MSc
Reproductive & Sexual Health Research, and the new MSc Global Mental Health.
The Head of Department is Dr. Phil Edwards.
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JOB DESCRIPTION
Post:
Lecturer in Public Health Nutrition and MSc Course Director for Nutrition for
Global Health
Responsible to:
Head of Department (Phil Edwards) and Taught Course Director (Craig
Higgins)
Grade:
Lecturer (AP7)
With the imminent departure of Claire Schofield, the long time Director of the internationally
recognised MSc Nutrition for Global Health (NfGH), an exciting 3-year fixed-term position has
become available for a Lecturer in Public Health Nutrition keen to establish a career in both highquality research and postgraduate teaching in international public health nutrition.
The successful applicant will be expected to divide their time equally between developing a research
programme in nutrition in line with the LSHTM strategic research plan and directing the MSc NfGH
course. The MSc NfGH has been delivered for nearly 70 years by LSHTM and is internationally
recognised for excellence. Information about the MSc is available at:
http://www.lshtm.ac.uk/study/masters/msphn.html
The MSc is taught by members of the LSHTM Nutrition Group. The list of Nutrition Group staff is
available at: http://www.lshtm.ac.uk/eph/dph/research/nutrition/staff/
Research and teaching in public health nutrition
The successful applicant will have some experience in the conduct and publication of nutrition
research and will be supported by senior Nutrition Group staff to develop a research programme
and attract competitive research funding. The research should support the LSHTM strategic plan
and aim to address one or more of the Nutrition Group priority themes:
- Reducing under-nutrition and adverse outcomes in children including research on nutrition
in humanitarian emergencies
- Maternal and child nutrition
- Nutrition, immunity and infection including HIV/AIDS
- Nutritional genetics
- Nutrition-related chronic diseases especially in low and middle-income countries
- Agriculture and health including research on food systems
Information about the research currently being undertaken by the Nutrition Group is available at:
http://www.lshtm.ac.uk/eph/dph/research/nutrition/research/
The successful applicant will also teach on the MSc Nutrition for Global Health. Teaching loads are
relatively low and amount to approximately 35 hours of face-to-face teaching per academic year
with additional tutorial support and supervision of student projects over the summer. The
successful applicant will also be expected to contribute to supervision of PhD students in due course.
The School provides a comprehensive educational development programme to support staff develop
their teaching skills including a Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching.
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DUTIES OF THE POST
1.
Lecturer in Nutrition
a) Research
- To develop, with support, an exciting and high quality research portfolio in an area of
relevance to the LSHTM Nutrition Group;
- To undertake and publish research in nutrition related to global health;
- To collaborate with members of the Department and School at large in research;
- To contribute to the development of research collaborations and funding applications;
- To contribute to research publications in high impact journals.
b) Citizenship
- To assist in the academic management of the Department, Faculty and the School by
accepting delegated responsibility for various tasks as required;
- To contribute to the life and reputation of the School by participating in committees and
other group activities as required;
- To participate in staff and person development training as required;
- To act at all times in accordance with the highest professional standards, and to ensure that
these are maintained in the delivery of all aspects of research and teaching.
2.
Course Director of MSc Nutrition for Global Health
The various tasks of the Course Director fall in three areas: Course Management, Course Delivery
and Student Support.
a) Course Management
- To be involved in the selection and recruitment of students on to the course;
- Advise prospective students and liaise with Registry and External Relations regarding
admissions procedures and scholarship application;
- To direct the work of the Course Administrator;
- To revise and update the academic content of the MSc Course Handbook and other MSc
related publications as appropriate;
- To allocate tutors, and advise on their role (including suggestions on possible training);
- To lead and actively participate in regular meetings of the MSc Course Committee;
- To be aware of the Course Director’s responsibilities within the School’s regulatory
framework.
b) Course Delivery
- To plan and implement the Orientation Programme and support the arrival of the new
students;
- To ensure that students have an appropriate provision and choice of modules;
- To provide feedback and advice to module organisers where necessary;
- To facilitate and respond to annual course evaluations and participate in in-depth MSc
course evaluations at the end of each term;
- To participate as an active member of the Exam Board (distinct from the role of the Chair of
the Exam Board);
- To keep the Taught Course Director informed and respond to his/her requests and advice;
- To lead, as Course Director and member of the Course Committee, the curriculum review
and implementation of agreed changes;
- To participate as a member in the Departmental Teaching Committee and the School-wide
Learning and Teaching Committee.
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c)
-
Student support
To ensure access to the Course Director or delegated deputy throughout the academic year;
To ensure that appropriate academic and pastoral support is available to MSc students;
To monitor the academic progress of MSc students throughout the academic year (incl.
summer projects/dissertations) according to MSc requirements.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Essential criteria:
- PhD in nutrition or related field;
- Interest in developing a high-quality research portfolio in public health nutrition within a
global health context;
- Experience in analysing quantitative or qualitative nutrition research data;
- Evidence of ability to write clearly and produce high quality written scientific outputs;
- An ability to communicate effectively with people from a wide range of backgrounds;
- Publications in peer-reviewed journals relating to public health nutrition commensurate with
level of research experience;
- Experience of teaching in a higher-education setting.
Desirable criteria:
- Experience of designing studies to collect relevant epidemiological data;
- Experience of co-ordinating research projects in low or middle-income countries;
- Demonstrated ability to attract research funding;
- A postgraduate teaching qualification;
- Experience of postgraduate teaching and supervision;
- Experience of developing postgraduate courses or study units.
SALARY AND CONDITIONS OF APPOINTMENT
The post is currently funded for a 3-year period. The appointment will be made on LSHTM’s AP7
Lecturer scale (£42,043 - £48,129) depending on qualifications and experience. The post will be
subject to the LSHTM terms and conditions of service. Membership of the USS Pension Scheme is
available.
APPLICATIONS
Prospective candidates seeking further information are strongly encouraged to discuss the post
before applying with Dr. Alan Dangour (head of the Nutrition Group: Alan.Dangour@lshtm.ac.uk) or
Craig Higgins (Taught Course Director: Craig.Higgins@lshtm.ac.uk). Applications should be made online via our website at jobs.lshtm.ac.uk. The reference for this post is CDNGH. Online applications
will be accepted by the automated system until 10.00pm of the closing date. Any queries regarding
the application process may be addressed to jobs@lshtm.ac.uk. The supporting statement section
should set out how your qualifications, experience and training meet each of the selection criteria.
The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine is committed to being an equal opportunities
employer
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