I have outlined the primary tasks and responsibilities according to the three components of the role; teaching, research and administration.
Each is emphasised quite strongly; DCU has strong links with industry and good reputation for producing graduates who are well equipped for the workplace. It also places emphasis on research output. Doing both well has led to its ranking among the top 300 universities worldwide this year.
Teaching - Designing and delivering lectures at undergraduate and postgraduate level.
Typically this is undertaken for three courses a term;
- Designing and marking assessments;
- Supervising students who are undertaking a degree through research, or who have to complete a research project at the end of a taught degree
Research
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Undertaking research.
This is really about asking and answering question. So for example, my PhD research explored who takes responsibility for initiation, leading and implementing service-improvement in hospitals. It also looked at the cause of problems which arise in implementing service improvement.
To do this I interviewed people in a number of hospitals. The people I interviewed included representatives of senior management, middle management, consultants, nurses and the allied health professions. I am about to begin to liaise with those involved to prioritise and develop action plans on the basis of the findings. I did my doctorate myself, but lots of research projects are done by teams of researchers, sometimes within DCU, but also with collaborators in other universities.
I am fortunate to be in a highly active research group, associated with the Learning Innovation and Knowledge Research Centre, so there are lots of opportunities for collaborative research in DCU.
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Publishing research findings in journals or books.
As a preliminary or development phase in the publication process, papers can be presented at conferences
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Gaining funding for research is an increasing marker of the quality of the research and facilitates larger scale projects. As a result, applying for funding is an important research-related task.
Administration - Any administration associated with teaching or research duties.
I am tutor for a group of students, who are allocated to me in their first year in DCU. I am their point of contact for issues arising throughout their time in DCU.
I organise the Learning, Innovation and Knowledge research seminar series with Professor Patrick Flood. This entails organising seminars by academics from DCU and internationally;
Other activities as required.