As part of the Department of Statistics' Student Engagement and Community strategic goal, the department is looking to recruit two students for two paid summer internships. The internships will last for approximately six weeks between approximately Monday 10th July 2023 and Friday 18th August 2022. These internship continue some of the successful work undertaken as part of the Statistics Student Internships 2022.

Background

The two internships focus on two areas:

1. Software development for the module evaluation process.
2. Inclusive education resource development.

Both internships will involve you learning new skills and you will be supported in developing these skills.

The first internship requires strong R-programming and software development skills. The second requires research that involves combining information and from this material creating new information resources.

This page sets out the background, roles, duties and responsibilities, skills, experience, and other particulars.

Those underrepresented in the mathematical sciences are strong positive role models and are encouraged to apply.

Internship 1: Module Evaluations

The Department of Statistics has recently completed a review of its module evaluation processes. A key part of this review is the need to utilise technology to improve the module evaluation workflow pipeline from student evaluation submission to collation. The department wants to improve the way student feedback is collated, processesed, analysed and then acted upon.

You will work with the department’s academic technology team and other staff to create an R-based solution that automatically processes collected feedback, presents a summary for the module leader, a global summary for SSLC and completes an automatic text analysis to identify themes from free text comments for departmental consideration.

In this role, you will work with departmental staff to use your R skills, develop skills in useability and user interface design that ensures the product you create includes complete documentation and fully documented code. For this reason, you must be able to use R autonomously and independently to deliver against stated requirements with minimalsupervision.

Responsibilities. You will

1. Create a R-based software solution to meet specified requirements.
2. Provide full documentation for the software solution suitable for those who have not used R previously.
3. Fully test and demonstrate your solution and where necessary respond to feedback to refine your solution.

Skills and experience. You must

1. Hold or expect to obtain a good honours degree in mathematical science.
2. Have the ability to work individually or collaboratively with others.
3. Have effective oral and written communication skills.
4. Have the ability to take the initiative to solve problems and work autonomously with limited supervision.
5. Have strong R development skills.
6. Have the ability to independently investigate and utilise new R-based methods to develop solutions to thematic analysis problems.

 As an employee the usage rights and the rights to further develop the code will move to the department and university upon project completion.

Internship 2: Inclusive Education Resource Development

In summer 2022, the department implemented two student internships covering inclusive education and decolonisation. The outputs from these internships fed into the creation of the department’s inclusive-education action plan. As part of this plan, we are offering a second summer internship, this time focusing on developing inclusive education resources.

Responsibilities. You will

1. You will review module material and assessments throughout the curriculum.
2. Review research and published materials to identify positive role models for both underrepresented groups and those from a range of backgrounds
3. Identify how statistics and probability is presented in a range of cultural context and present alternative viewpoints for the way in which probability and statistics is considered in different cultures.
4. Depending on the expertise of the individual, you will undertake one or more of the following.

• Create a bank of contexts and adapted problems for modules throughout the curriculum.
• Create a wide range a positive humanised success stories from multiple cultures and diverse backgrounds that will form part of the positive representation within modules.
• Commence initial development of a new blended modules on “Social and cultural aspects of probability and statistics”.

The specific responsibilities under 4 will be determined based on applications and the strengths of the successful applicant.

 

Skills and experience. You must

1. Hold or expect to obtain a good honours degree in mathematical science.
2. Have the ability to work individually or collaboratively with others.
3. Have effective oral and written communication skills.
4. Have the ability to take the initiative to solve problems and work autonomously with limited supervision.
5. Have the ability to qualitative analyse statistics educational information from multiple perspective to synthesis and create educationally valuable alternative formulations of current curriculum content.

Skills and experience you will gain or develop

The outcomes from these projects will have department impact and will strongly enhance your CV. You will gain valuable employability skills. You will develop skills in the following areas:

• Critical thinking. Your ability to analyse facts, data, information, and opinions to make judgements.
• Information literacy. You will develop your ability to search, select and manage information effectively. You will also produce knowledge that is robust and adds value to the current departmental knowledge base.
• Communication. You will develop your ability to convey and share ideas effectively.
• Teamwork. You will develop your ability to be productive and collaborate with others, including those outside the subject domain.
• Organisational awareness. You will develop your knowledge of organisational structures, operations and cultures and adapt to these systems.
• Professionalism. You will work to a high standard and demonstrate that you care about all aspects of your work by being autonomous, independent, and industrious and holding yourself to account for your actions.
• Problem-solving. You will work independently to identify and solve problems and present solutions.
• Ethical values. You will work with high moral standards through being honest, responsible, respectful, and compassionate.
• Self-awareness. You will recognise your own strengths, emotions, and your ability to learn and develop yourself.

Right to work, employment and payment

Right to work

The internships are open to all students. We have designed these internships so that the work can be completed in a 20-hour working week.

There are certain restrictions outlined below.

1. You must be in the UK throughout the duration of the project. We cannot pay you for any work undertaken outside the UK.
2. If you hold a visa then this visa may place restrictions on the number of hours you can work per week. This is usually 20 hours. It is your responsibility to check you can undertake this work and this will be checked by Unitemps before you can start work.

Before you can undertake the work you must complete right to work checks with Unitemps.

Working arrangements

This is a flexible position that can be undertaken remotely (provided you are working in the UK). You can manage your weekly working hours flexibly to deliver the role's outcomes, subject to any right to work restrictions. For example, Monday and Tuesday 7 hours and then Wednesday 6 hours, or 4 hours on Monday to Friday.

Rate of pay and employment

You will be paid a fixed hourly rate through Unitemps. The rate of pay will be £14.29 per hour (equivalent to an annual salary of £27,116, see note 1).

You will be employed by Unitemps and you will claim your hours worked through them. The maximum number of hours that can be claimed over the duration of the internship is 120 hours. The number of hours claimed will be checked and must be consummate with the work produced during the claim period.

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Apply

Please complete the online application. You may apply for both positions but the department will not appoint the same person to both positions. If you apply for two positions, then you must submit two separate applications.

 

Apply for Internship 1 (Module Evaluation)

Apply for Internship 2 (Developing inclusive education resources)

Note 1: This figure is based on rates currently posted by Unitemps and may be subject to minor amendments by Unitemps, but this will be the minimum rate. We do not anticipate any significant changes.