Psychometrician/Statistician

New opportunity not to be missed. NFER is looking to recruit an enthusiastic Psychometrician/Statistician to join the team based in Slough. You will receive a competitive salary of £29,517 – £45,425 per annum. The placement is on scale according to qualifications and experience; for those candidates with relevant experience the post will be at a senior level.

Due to NFER’s continued expansion we are looking to recruit an additional Psychometrician who can help maintain and develop the Foundation’s capacity and knowledge. This post will also be of interest to Statisticians who wish to specialise in this area.

Talented and enthusiastic, Psychometrician/Statistician candidates will be keen to further develop their psychometric knowledge within an organisation at the centre of educational research and assessment in the UK.

We are interested in applications from individuals who are capable of carrying out high quality, complex analyses, and who can work on many of the Foundation’s test development projects.

As our Psychometrician/Statistician, we will give you:

- The opportunity to work in the UK’s leading independent research organisation

- A career path to develop your knowledge and expertise

- The opportunity to make a difference

- An interesting and varied schedule of work

- The opportunity to attend training

We need you to:

- Be well qualified in psychometrics or statistics, or a highly numerate subject; preferably with a higher degree in a relevant discipline

- Have an understanding of classical test theory, equating, linking and item response theory, or a willingness to learn

- Be an experienced user of statistical software, ideally SPSS but including  other statistical packages such as STATA, R and MPlus or other IRT packages

- Have an ability to ensure the quality of all statistical or psychometric outputs

- Have a practical and well-organised approach to the analysis of data

- Have an ability to communicate analysis findings to a variety of audiences

- Have an ability to work flexibly as a member of a team with an interest in education or general social science research

For a senior position additional essential qualities are:

- Experience in designing test development sampling strategies and in conducting psychometric analyses

- An ability to draft psychometric components of proposals and contribute to income generation activities

- An ability to lead projects and other Statisticians within project teams

- An understanding of assessment concepts, such as test validity and reliability

- At least 3 years relevant work experience.

Reporting directly to the Lead Psychometrician, the successful Psychometrician/Statistician candidate will be involved in a number of psychometric, statistical and strategic areas; these could include impact evaluations, for example using randomised controlled trials or quasi-experimental designs. From time to time they will be expected, to work closely with a variety of different research teams across NFER, including statisticians in the Centre for Statistics and researchers in the Centre for Assessment,

To be successful at the higher end of the indicated salary range, candidates will need to demonstrate an ability to take the psychometric lead on assessment projects and assist in the further development of the Foundation’s psychometric capabilities.

NFER is a registered charity and an equal opportunity employer welcoming applications from all sections of the community. Benefits include 30 days paid leave per year over and above Bank Holidays and discretionary days, generous pension arrangements and good support for staff development.

Applicants for this post should note that it is exempt from the “Rehabilitation of Offenders Act”; further details of NFER’s Disclosure & Barring Service (“DBS”) checking procedure are in the attached “Further Particulars” for this post.

Closing date: Friday 6th January 2017

Interviews: w/c 16th January 2017

If you have an enthusiastic can do mentality and a willingness to challenge yourself in order to push your learning and progress your career as a Psychometrician/Statistician please click ‘Apply’ below.

No Agencies please, if you are an agency please respect our policy of no cold calling.