Graduate Teaching Assistantship

The School invites applications for two Graduate Teaching Assistantships in the Department of Public Health and Policy. These represent a unique and exciting opportunity to undertake original research at doctoral level and to start an academic career through teaching.

Students will undertake PhD training related to the project listed below. They will receive training in general research study and transferable skills together with close support from a supervisor to develop and complete a PhD research thesis. The PhD will be completed in the time of the studentship, that is 4 years.

During the assistantships the students will provide teaching support (including lectures, seminars, tutorial support) for 10 hours per week (including preparation time, marking, etc.) on one or more Modules which form part of the School’s Masters degrees programme. The programme includes eighteen London-based masters courses together with four masters courses provided through distance learning. Students may be providing support on either or both programmes. Training, from an extensive Staff Development Programme (also available to students), will be provided to support the teaching requirements of the Assistantship.

Each Assistantship covers full tuition fees and a maintenance grant for up to 4 years. In the 2010/11 academic year, the maintenance grant will be £15,930. Students will be full-time, ready to start in September 2010. Up to two Assistantships are available.

Students will hold a staff contract of employment with the School.

Modelling the effect of prison stays on the transmission of Hepatitis C and HIV amongst injecting drug users – implications for the effectiveness of different prevention strategies. Many injecting drug users (IDUs) spend time in prison, either due to the illegal nature of drug use or their frequent involvement in other illegal activities to obtain money for drugs. The role that these stints in prison play in propagating the spread of HIV and HCV could be highly variable depending on the availability of drugs and injecting equipment in the prison setting. If drugs are not available then prison may reduce transmission, whereas if drugs are available but injecting equipment is not then prison may increase transmission. This project will use data from a forthcoming Scottish prison survey and ongoing large scale IDU surveys, and data from another non-UK setting, to develop and use a HCV and HIV transmission model to assess the role prison can have on the transmission of these infections in different settings. The project will explore such things as its relative effect for different durations and frequencies of incarceration, and levels of drug and syringe availability, and will also project the possible implications for the impact of a range of HCV and HIV prevention interventions. The project will involve: the development of simple and complex models; analysis of different data surveys to parameterise the models; use of analytical techniques to simplify complex model structures and produce analytical solutions to simple models; computer programming; use of Bayesian fitting methods to calibrate models to available epidemiological data; and close collaboration with epidemiologists and public health experts. Candidates should be numerically confident and have completed a undergraduate degree in a highly numeric subject such as Mathemtics, Physics, Engineering, Statistics etc. This project will be based in the Health Policy Unit, in the Department of Public Health & Policy.

Criteria for Selection

We are looking for outstanding students. Preference will be given to candidates who show the greatest academic potential, whose research interests most closely match the research areas listed and whose experience supports their choice of teaching area. In completing the statement on the Graduate Teaching Assistantship Application Form, applicants should be aware that there will be intense competition for these studentships and clear statements which show background, reasons for application and potential are very important.

Applicants must not already be registered as a current research student at the LSHTM.

Essential Criteria

Applicants should have:

• have, or expect to obtain, a UK first class or 2.1 honours degree or the overseas equivalent in a relevant discipline or area;
• demonstrable research interests and academic potential related to one or more of the requested Studentship Research Areas;
• sufficient experience (through discipline background, training or work) to provide teaching support in the selected teaching area;
• evidence of satisfactory English language ability. Details of the School’s English language eligibility criteria can be found by clicking here
• permission to study in the UK , either through permanent right of residence or entry clearance. Further information can be obtained from www.ukvisas.gov.uk

Desirable Criteria

It is preferable that applicants should:

• possess a relevant Master’s degree, with demonstrated performance at a high level;
• have experience of teaching, training or providing tutorial support, for face-to-face or distance learning students – preferably at Master’s level.

To apply:

Applications must be in writing and must clearly state which studentship you are applying for. Applications should consist of:

• Graduate Teaching Assistantships Application Form (152K)
• Research Application Form (112K PDF)
• Research Applicant Reference Form (106K PDF)
• Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form (168K PDF)
• a full, original, transcript of the applicant’s academic record
• CV

Please send applications to:

Registry, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, 50 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3DP, United Kingdom.
Tel: +44 (0)20 7299 4646, fax: +44 (0)20 7323 0638 or e-mail: registry@lshtm.ac.uk

Closing date for application: 12th March 2010.

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine is Britain’s national school 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. It is one of the highest-rated research institutions in the UK.

Its environment is a rich multicultural one: every year over 800 students come to the School from around 120 countries to study doctoral or masters degrees. The School has about 1000 staff drawn from around 45 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, molecular biologists and immunologists. At any one time around 60 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.

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