School and Student Projects Manager

At CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, physicists and engineers are probing the fundamental structure of the universe. Using the world’s largest and most complex scientific instruments, they study the basic constituents of matter - fundamental particles that are made to collide together at close to the speed of light. The process gives physicists clues about how particles interact, and provides insights into the fundamental laws of nature. Find out more on http://home.cern.

Diversity has been an integral part of CERN’s mission since its foundation and is an established value of the Organization.

This is your Quest. Deepen your knowledge and expertise faster than anywhere else on earth. Take Part!

Are you passionate about engaging students in science and inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers? Are you an enthusiastic science educator who feels comfortable interacting with diverse audiences in the framework of an international laboratory? Are you excited to design, execute, and evaluate programmes and projects for the next generation of scientists? Are you excited by Open Science?
Join CERN’s education team as a School and Student Projects Manager!

CERN has an opening as part of the Quest Programme in the Teacher & Student Programmes (TSP) Section in the Education, Communication and Outreach (ECO) group in the International Relations (IR) sector.

Within the CERN Education Team, several school and student programmes exist already, like the Beamline for Schools (BL4S) competition and the Hands-On Physics (HOP) project, a programme aiming at fostering physics teaching in middle schools. Other programmes, like the High-School Students Internship Programme (HSSIP) have passed their pilot phase and are currently being evaluated to derive possible future formats. All activities of the team are supported by Physics Education Research (PER).

As the manager of school and student projects you will:

• Coordinate the Beamline for Schools competition as Programme Manager, which includes the overall organisation of the competition and the hosting of the winning teams, in close collaboration with the Technical Coordinator and the Support Scientists;
• Manage CERN’s contribution to the core phase of the HOP project implementing learnings from its pilot phase;
• Empirically evaluate past and present programmes for school students to actively contribute to the Physics Education Research within the team.
• Develop CERN’s future high school student programmes, based on an approved proposal;
• Contribute to the Open Science initiative at CERN.

Eligibility criteria:

• You are a national of a CERN Member or Associate Member State;
• You have a Master’s degree and between 2 and 6 years’ experience or PhD with up to 3 years of relevant experience in physics education or other related field;
• You should have a working knowledge of English or French.

Skills and/or knowledge:

• Experience in physics education; experience in particle physics is an asset;
• Experience in communicating science to diverse audiences including young learners aged 5-19 years;
• Experience with enquiry-based learning approaches;
• Experience in science education research;
• Desire and ability to work in a team within a large international organisation;
• Fast learner capable of rapidly and effectively grasping new concepts.

What we offer:

• An employment contract of in principle 24 months, with a possible extension up to 36 months;
• On-the-job and formal training at CERN as well as in-house language courses for English and/or French;
• A monthly stipend ranging between 6050 and 6650 Swiss Francs per month (net of tax);
• Coverage by CERN’s comprehensive health scheme (for yourself, your spouse and children), and membership of the CERN Pension Fund;
• Depending on your individual circumstances: installation grant; family, child and infant allowances; payment of travel expenses at the beginning and end of contract;
• 30 days of paid leave per year.

How to Apply:

You will need the following documents to complete your application:

• A CV;
• A scanned PDF of your most recent relevant qualification;
• We recommend to add two recent letters of recommendation, giving an overview of your academic and/or professional achievements. You can upload these letters at the time of application if you have them to hand. You will also be provided with a link as soon as you have submitted your application to forward to your referees to upload their letters confidentially.

The earliest expected start date for selected candidatesis May 2023.

Ready to take part? Then please submit your application by 23 January 2023 at midnight (12.00 AM CEST).