Job advert: Editor of the Constitution Unit Blog and Newsletter (As and When)

Grade: 4 

Salary: £11.46-£12.32 per hour, inclusive of London Weighting

Hours: As/When (Part Time - approximately 30-40 hours/month)

Duties and Responsibilities

We are recruiting an editor for the Constitution Unit's blog and four-monthly newsletter, Monitor. This post reports to Professor Meg Russell, the Director of the Unit, but also works closely with Dr Alan Renwick, the Deputy Director, and Rachel Cronkshaw, the Unit's Office Manager. We are seeking to recruit someone for approximately 30-40 hours per month, but the job requires flexible working in order to maintain a blog presence and produce the regular newsletter. Hours may be worked either in the office or off-site. Months in which the newsletter is produced are likely to require more hours, and quieter weeks for the blog may require fewer hours, but an average of 1 day per week equivalent across the year is expected. 

The current post holder is moving on after two years and said the following of his time in the unit: 

"I have found my two years as editor of the Constitution Unit blog and newsletter extremely rewarding. I had real responsibility from the beginning, have built a network of contacts that will be useful in my future career, and have taken great satisfaction from seeing the blog cited frequently in the press and elsewhere. On top of this the Unit has been an extremely friendly and supportive environment to work in, where I have made many friends. I am very sad to be leaving, but delighted to be moving on to a research position at the University of Cambridge." 

Key Responsibilities

• Editing the Constitution Unit blog. Organising rota of contributors and commissioning posts to ensure publication of roughly two new posts per week, copy-editing contributions once received, publishing through WordPress, disseminating through social media.
• Editing the four-monthly newsletter, Monitor. Collecting ideas for each issue, circulating a draft table of contents, setting deadlines for contributions, chasing contributors, assembling and copy-editing the whole, working with designer to produce final version for publication.
• Maintaining and extending networks of regular contributors to both blog and Monitor.
• Maintaining and extending audiences for both.
• Maintaining high editorial standards of accuracy, objectivity and reliable reporting, in terms of both content and presentation.
• Attending the Constitution Unit's fortnightly team meetings to report back, gather ideas for new posts and articles and keep abreast of the Unit's work.

Application process and further details

A job description and person specification can be accessed at the bottom of this page. To make an application please email Rachel Cronkshaw (r.cronkshaw@ucl.ac.uk) with the following documents:

• Your CV, including contact details for two referees.
• A covering letter of 1 to 2 pages stating why you meet the criteria in the person specification and, in particular, why you are applying for the role (including how this kind of part-time appointment fits with your other commitments and plans).
• A piece of written work, such as a recent blog post or short essay. 

Please note that referees will only be contacted if you are shortlisted. Please indicate whether we can contact your referees without further permission from you.

Closing Date for Applications

Closing date: Midnight, Thursday 30 November 2017

Interview date: Friday 15 December 2017

This appointment is subject to UCL Terms and Conditions of Service for Research and Support Staff.

We particularly welcome applications from black and minority ethnic candidates as they are under-represented within UCL at this level.

Downloads

• Job Description & Person Specification