Course Director- Learning Communities at Newcastle University

Company description:

We are a world class research-intensive university. We deliver teaching and learning of the highest quality. We play a leading role in economic, social and cultural development of the North East of England. Attracting and retaining high-calibre people is fundamental to our continued success.

Job description:

The Role

Accountable to the Board of Medical Studies, through the Office of the Director or Deputy Director of Medical Studies, to manage the development, delivery, and assessment of the Learning Communities strand of the MBBS curriculum. This is a flagship initiative of the MBBS programme forming a core component of our curriculum aim of developing doctors as “professionals” alongside their scholarly and practitioner skills. The programme is committed to developing student’s sense of identity and belonging within medical school and will shape and support students’ professional development.

Learning Communities will consist of small groups of students led by a clinical educator, who meet regularly through the degree programme. Clinical educators will facilitate the delivery of a curriculum focussed on aspects of the art of medicine and professional development that do not fall under a particular specialty or domain. The creation of longitudinal relationships with students and faculty will enable students to develop and grow within a supportive but challenging environment.

Learning Communities will be introduced to the MBBS curriculum in the academic year 2024/25 and the curriculum and course content is currently in development. It is anticipated the postholder will be responsible for recruitment and training of the faculty alongside development of course content. There will be opportunities for novel educational research in relation to Learning Communities, with plans for formal prospective evaluation and appointment of a teaching research fellow to work alongside the Course Director.

The postholder will work closely with the Year Leads, alongside primary and secondary care colleagues delivering the courses. The post is for four sessions to recognise the substantial nature of the role but there may be scope for job-sharing or discussing a different leadership model. They will be directly accountable to Dr Sharmila Jandial, Sub Dean for Professional Practice and work closely with a small team developing this new initiative.

This post is part time 0.4 FTE , fixed term for 3 years.

Informal enquiries may be made to Dr Sharmila Jandial via sharmila.jandial@ncl.ac.uk, Dr Emma Haagensen via emma.haagensen@ncl.ac.uk, Dr Richard Thomson via richard.thomson2@ncl.ac.uk or Professor Clare Guilding via clare.guilding@newcastle.ac.uk