Project Officer, Physics Workforce

The IOP is a friendly and ambitious organisation. Inclusion and diversity are central to our work and we have a ‘work anywhere’ policy to make working at the IOP as flexible as possible. Looking after our colleagues and supporting them in life and work is our priority, ensuring they can live their best lives, with competitive salaries, professional development opportunities and generous benefits.

Our benefits include:

• Excellent pension scheme (up to 12% employer contribution)
• Private medical insurance, life assurance, dental insurance, healthcare cash plan (via salary sacrifice), eye care vouchers, annual flu vaccinations, long service awards, employee assistance programme
• Floating bank holidays (choose where to take your bank holidays throughout the year)
• Generous annual leave (starting at 25 days)
• Flexible working arrangements and much more!

The Role

What will I be doing?

As Project Officer, Physics Workforce, you’ll be part of the Education and Workforce team, supporting our mission to build a strong, diverse physics workforce for the future. Your work will help identify and address the skills needs of physics-powered sectors and highlight the vital role physics skills play in our economy.

You’ll support the delivery of projects, research and evidence-building activities that influence education, skills policy and practice, working closely colleagues across the organisation, members and other external stakeholders.

Projects you may work on include:

• Supporting research to map skills gaps in physics-powered industries
• Coordinating stakeholder networks across education, skills, higher education, and business sectors
• Helping to design and deliver events, research launches, and campaigns that drive engagement and impact
• Supporting the management of project processes including contracts, tenders, budgets and reporting

Who will I work with?

• Manager, Physics Workforce
• Colleagues across Education and Workforce, Policy, Communications, EDI, Public Engagement, and Membership
• Members, employers, education providers, and other key stakeholders in education, skills, and business.

What skills and experience do I need?

Essential criteria

• Experience working in an education or skills policy/strategy environment (STEM focus desirable, but not essential)
• Strong project management and administrative skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects
• Skilled in data collection, analysis and presenting research findings for different audiences
• Excellent relationship-building skills with internal and external stakeholders
• Strong communication skills – written, verbal and presentation
• Team player, proactive and highly organised

Nice to have

• Knowledge of STEM/physics education or workforce development issues
• A recognised project management qualification (e.g. APM, City & Guilds, Pitman)

The Institute of Physics is an open and inclusive organisation that welcomes and celebrates diversity. We know that not every candidate fits into a neat little box, and that's okay! So, even if your experience looks a little different from what we’ve identified but you believe you’d bring passion, creativity, and a willingness to learn, we’d love to learn more about you!  

Application

Alongside your CV, please ensure you include a cover letter stating how you meet the person specification. 

How will I be working?

The Institute of Physics is an inclusive employer, and our people are at the heart of our approach to delivery. Following the impact of COVID-19, we have developed a new, innovative and exciting trust-based model of flexible working called How We Work. This empowers our staff to choose both individually and as a team how, when and where they work to deliver the goals of the organisation, acknowledging that there will be occasions where in-person meetings, collaborations and events will help generate greater impact. The How We Work initiative is based on the principles of collaboration, trust, flexibility and agility. You will be allocated a ‘base’ office which can also be a chosen place of work. 

Why should I want to work at the IOP?

The IOP is the professional body and learned society for physics in the UK and Ireland - we seek to raise public awareness and understanding of physics and support the development of a diverse and inclusive physics community. As a charity, we’re here to ensure that physics delivers on its exceptional potential to benefit society. There’s never been a more exciting time to join the IOP - watch our film to find out more about our work. 

To apply for this role please click the link below, best of luck with your applications!

We recognise personal unique characteristics, should you require any reasonable adjustments to support you in your application and/or throughout the recruitment process please do not hesitate to reach out to us for support.