FLEXIBLE ACADEMIC - Part-Time Teacher / Teaching Assistant (tutorials) - Grade 6 in North East

We welcome applications from candidates with disabilities, neurodiversity and long‑term health conditions, and we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process.

Applications are invited from postgraduate research students in their second or later year of a programme within the Department of English Studies, Durham University, or from outstanding part‑time teachers who are no longer registered students but have recent experience of teaching within the Department.

Modules:

• Romance and the Literature of Chivalry
• Epic and the Literature of Legend
• Introduction to the Novel
• Introduction to Drama
• Introduction to Poetry

Teaching Details:

Level‑1 groups have five tutorials per year, spread across the Michaelmas and Epiphany terms. Students must submit one formative essay in Michaelmas, and tutors provide written feedback. Tutorial groups normally consist of 15–17 students, though final group size will be confirmed once registration numbers are finalised. Teaching assistants receive support from a teaching mentor and the Director of Undergraduate Studies, and they report to the Department Manager. The rate of pay is £17.16 to £20.71 per hour (Grade 6, spine point 22‑29, as at 1 August 2025), dependent upon the number of years of teaching experience in the Department.

Hours Breakdown:

• Delivery: 5 hours per tutorial group
• Preparation: 5 hours for the first group, 2.5 hours for each subsequent group in the same module
• Formative marking: 6.8 hours per group (1 max. 1,200‑word essay – 20 minutes per 1,000 words, 0.4 hours per student, 17 students per group)
• Office hours: 5 hours total (1 hour per week of teaching for Level‑1 modules)
• Feedback: not applicable (no requirement for Level‑1 tutorial teaching)
• Training: 4 hours departmental initial training, 4 hours university staff training (where applicable), 3 hours DCAD training (where applicable). Summative‑marking trainees receive additional payment for related training.

Application Requirements:

• Short CV (≤ 2 sides of A4) demonstrating that you meet the essential criteria listed in the Person Specification.
• Covering letter including:

• Preferred modules (in order of preference)
• Maximum number of tutorial groups sought
• Details of teaching and research experience
• For Tier 4 students: number of hours already committed to work per week (including paid, unpaid and entrepreneurial activities)

Applicants who taught in the Department during 2025/26 need not apply via Oracle; they should email Deborah Hobbs, Department Manager (d.j.hobbs@durham.ac.uk) and attach the same documents.

Selection Process:

Decisions are made by a small committee based on the criteria shown below. Preference is given to registered postgraduate research students who have not yet taught in the Department, but selection is subject to departmental teaching requirements, budgetary constraints and the impact on a student’s PhD completion. Students on Tier 4 visas must confirm the number of hours they are already committed to work per week before a contract to teach can be issued. The UK Home Office defines a week as any seven‑day period starting on a Monday and ending on a Sunday.

Person Specification:

• Registered on the second or later year of a postgraduate research degree programme within the Department of English Studies or outstanding part‑time teachers with recent teaching experience in the Department.
• Ability to organise own time and workload efficiently to meet deadlines.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Commitment to assist, where required, with summative marking for Level‑1 modules during the busy May/June examination period (additional payment applied).
• Up‑to‑date knowledge of the subject area.
• Ability to plan, prepare and deliver tutorials to small groups from an established module.
• Ability to maintain class registers and monitor attendance.
• Capacity to address student queries about content and delivery, providing materials where necessary.
• Ability to assess academic work in line with departmental policies.
• Ability to provide oral and/or written feedback to students as per departmental requirements.
• Commitment to attend mandatory postgraduate teaching induction sessions offered by Durham Centre for Academic Development (DCAD) when not already completed.
• Commitment to attend applicable mandatory departmental training sessions.
• Commitment to complete the University’s mandatory staff training.
• Support appropriate student conduct, implement the University’s code of conduct and report concerns to the Department’s Learning & Teaching Team.
• Monitor student welfare and report concerns immediately.

Disclosure and Barring Service Requirement: Not Applicable.