Junior AI Specialist - Hybrid

Hours: 35 hours per week

Contract: Permanent

Location: Hybrid - A blend of working from home and your nominated hub office, we have hubs in London, Bristol, Manchester and Oxford. Specific patterns for working in the office are not mandated, and the frequency of time worked in the office is agreed with your manager. Meeting in person is something we value so you may need to travel on occasion to any of our hub offices.

About Jisc: Our vision is to lead the UK tertiary education, research and innovation sectors to be pioneers in the use of digital technology and data. We’re on a mission to harness the power of technology and data, to transform how knowledge is shared, applied and enhanced.

About the role: This is an exciting opportunity to support universities and colleges in enhancing their Artificial Intelligence maturity. Our focus is on delivering practical assistance and guidance to facilitate AI adoption across the tertiary education sector, along with leadership and influence on AI in education policy and direction in the UK. As a Junior AI Specialist, you will be instrumental in supporting the development and application of deep AI knowledge and expertise within the education sector. This role requires a strong interest and understanding in AI technologies and a keen awareness of their potential applications in educational settings. You will leverage this knowledge to facilitate AI integration across universities and colleges, working alongside experts and senior professionals, contributing to impactful projects and gaining valuable experience in this rapidly evolving field.

Responsibilities will include:

• You will develop and maintain a broad technical understanding of the latest artificial intelligence techniques, including approaches such as LLMs, diffusion models, multi-modal modes and retrieval augmented generation. Be able to explain these concepts to a non-technical audience.
• You will develop and maintain expertise in specific areas of artificial intelligence and how they can be leveraged in universities and colleges, communicating your technical findings into actionable insights through presentations, reports, and blogs, both internally and externally.
• Developing and disseminating practical, impactful guidance on emerging trends in AI educational technologies and adoption strategies for a diverse array of stakeholders.
• Working collaboratively with team members, explore the effectiveness of AI tools and techniques, and support universities and colleges through the process.
• You will be assessing the feasibility, effectiveness, and appropriateness of innovative AI ideas and proposals within the educational sector.
• Organising and managing both internal and external meetings and events to support and achieve specific organisational objectives.

Key Skills and Experience:

• You should have a strong interest in Artificial Intelligence and how it can benefit colleges and universities.
• You will be able to extract key arguments and main findings in articles and research papers and summarise and translate effectively for a non-technical audience.
• Able to communicate effectively at external events, ability to explain complex issues to different audiences.
• You will be committed to continuous learning to stay up to date in fast paced environment.
• Willingness to share knowledge and experience across the team and broader.
• Have the ability to seek help when needed.
• Able to maintain a consistently positive and flexible attitude, contributing to a motivational work atmosphere across a distributed team.
• Skilled in engaging constructively with stakeholders to develop professional relationships and advance project goals.

If you have a good degree and/or relevant professional qualification this would be advantageous.

Why work for us? At Jisc, every role is vital, and every person matters. We want you to feel like you’re part of something bigger. We support learning throughout your career and offer chances to grow, develop new skills, and make a real difference in education and research. We believe that balancing your personal and professional life is key to happiness and fulfilment. We embrace flexible working, focusing on results rather than hours spent at a desk. It’s not about where you work, but how you create a flow that energizes both your work and home life.

Take a look at our fantastic benefits! We offer:

• Flexible work pattern, which can adapt to suit your schedules and personal commitments.
• 31 days annual leave (plus bank holidays) that includes three closure days over Christmas plus the opportunity to buy up to an additional 5 days leave during the flexible benefits window.
• A comprehensive 24/7 mental health support package, including coaching and appropriate counselling or specialist therapy, with no predetermined limit on the number of sessions you can access.
• Annual Jisc performance award.
• A range of wellbeing lifestyle benefits including company paid health care cash plan, mental health first aiders and support.
• A company culture of continuous learning with access to thousands of LinkedIn Learning courses, and lots of resources and opportunities to support your development.
• Allocated allowance of up to £250 to equip your home office.
• Financial well-being support including access to preferential loan and savings plans, mortgage advice, will writing tools and support and resources to help you make the most of your money.
• The opportunity to donate to charity tax-free with our Payroll Giving benefit.
• Salary sacrifice - Electric Car Lease Scheme, Cycle to work and SmartTech (buy the latest technology and white goods products, spreading the cost over up to twelve months, direct from your salary and interest-free) subject to terms and conditions and available upon request.
• A wide range of discounts and cashback from retailers and big-name high-street stores.
• Family friendly policies including enhanced parental, maternity and paternity and co-parental leave as well as opportunity for career breaks.
• Support your volunteering with up to 3 days volunteer leave.
• Specsavers corporate eye care scheme including free eye test vouchers and up to £70 towards new glasses for VDU use.
• Life assurance cover.

Equity, diversity and inclusion: Jisc believe our people make all the difference in cultivating an inclusive culture that welcomes ideas, encourages innovation, and values belonging. We work hard to create an equitable experience for our candidates and workforce which embraces all aspects of their identity including race and ethnicity, religion and belief, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, trans identities, age, class, disability, neurodivergence, or veteran status.

Application process: Please let us know how we can best accommodate you throughout the recruitment process. We’re committed to making our process accessible and comfortable for everyone - just tell us what works best for you. Just so you know, we review CVs as soon as we can and aim to provide an update on your application within 4 weeks of receiving it. However, you may hear from us a lot sooner, so please keep an eye out for our emails or calls! We’re really looking forward to getting to know the real you.

While we encourage the use of AI tools to help you get started on your CV or cover letter, we encourage you to review your application before submitting. Make sure it truly reflects your own voice, experiences, and personality.

If you are currently a Jisc employee, please apply through your Dayforce Employee profile. We have a thorough background screening process that verifies the details you share with us in your CV and your application. Any inaccurate information supplied during the application stages can lead to a job offer being withdrawn.

Sponsorship: Jisc has an active sponsor licence to recruit on a Skilled worker visa basis. Candidates wishing to apply who require sponsorship should determine the likelihood of obtaining a Certificate of Sponsorship for the role by assessing their circumstances against the relevant Home Office criteria. Jisc does not offer any financial re-imbursement towards the applicant costs, such as re-location, skilled worker visa and dependant costs or the immigration health charge.

No agencies please.