In your statement:
•• State how you meet the ‘essential’ criteria outlined in the person
specification, by giving examples from previous duties you have
undertaken.
• Include any of the “Desirable” criteria you also meet.
• Highlight the relevance of your skills, previous experiences,
qualifications, and training to the position.
• Your motivation for applying to the University of Reading and
specifically, this role
Some advice for you to prepare your statement effectively:
• Organise your statement in a systematic manner by addressing each
‘essential’ criteria in the same order as the Person Specification. Failure to
demonstrate alignment with ‘essential’ criteria can significantly diminish
the likelihood of being shortlisted for an interview.
• Use the criteria as headings to signpost what you are writing about. It
will be easier for the shortlisting panel to find each point that you are
addressing.
• Be specific by listing out specific projects or activities you have been
involved in.
• You could choose to give STAR examples for each criteria
• If you do not have direct experience, you can use transferrable skills
gained from outside of a work environment.
• If you are looking for a job-share, part-time and flexible working
arrangements, please include this in your Supporting Statement and it will
be reviewed in line with business needs
• Do a final check before you submit it. Copy and paste your statement
into a Word document and run a spelling and a grammar check. Proofread
it yourself, or ideally get a friend to read it too, sometimes they’ll spot
errors that you’ve missed.
You will have:
A doctorate in education / applied linguistics or a related discipline
Proven quantitative (e.g. experimental) research skills
Sound knowledge of statistical techniques for the analysis of quantitative
data (e.g. language test scores)
Experience working in schools (in a teaching and/or research capacity)
Knowledge of foreign language education in England
Basic knowledge of French and/or Spanish
Skills
•Good interpersonal skills and an ability to liaise with various agencies (I) Previous work
experience as EAP teacher, EFL Teacher, PhD researcher
• Ability to work as part of a team (I) Previous work experience as EAP teacher, EFL
Teacher
• Ability to work independently (I) PhD researcher
• Proven organisational skills (I & P) Worked part-time throughout PhD
• Ability to use Microsoft Office (A, I & P) PhD researcher
• Good written communication skills (I) Previous work experience and PhD researcher
• Ability to use SPSS (P) PhD researcher - used for own data analysis
Attainment
•PhD in Education/Applied Linguistics or other related discipline [or near completion] (A)
near completion
Knowledge
•Sound knowledge of statistics (I & P) PhD researcher
• Extensive knowledge of languages education in England (I)
• Basic knowledge of French and/or Spanish (A & I) No
Relevant Experience
•Experience of working in schools (in a teaching and/or research capacity) (A & I)
Taught in schools, research involved school students
• Experience of quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis (A & I)
Quantitative – Done at MA and PhD level
Desirable
•Experience conducting data collection with children (A & I) Grade 8 students though not
children
• Experience writing research reports or similar documents (A & I) Academic writing
experience
• Experience organising dissemination events (A & I) Conference organizer and attended two
conferences
Other
• Enthusiasm for research (I)
• Enthusiasm for languages education (I)
Willingness and ability to learn new techniques (e.g. of quantitative and qualitative data
analysis) (I)
• Self-motivated and hard working (I)
• Tenacity (I)
• Sensitivity (I)
• Some travel required, including travel to school locations not easily accessible by public
transport (I)
Include experience of conference organizer, data entry and coding in CV.
Missing pre-sessional experience 2024 Add conference presentations
More about PhD and MA project
Read Rowena’s latest articles
Essential Criteria Area Criteria Stage
Contribute to analysis of language test data, including: ©University of Reading 2025 Page 2
• work with the Principal Investigator to develop scoring systems for written and spoken
language data • prepare data for analysis, as directed by the Principal Investigator, including
the scoring of language tasks • be responsible for the entering of data for analysis, using
appropriate computer software such as Excel and for cleaning the datasets ready for analysis •
be responsible for data analysis using software such as SPSS and R using appropriate
statistical techniques (e.g. mixed effects modelling) Contribute to dissemination and impact
activities, including: • contribute to writing of academic articles based on research findings •
be responsible for the organisation and publicising of dissemination workshops for teachers •
assist in writing research report(s) and in disseminating the project findings • create and
manage content for the project website
Skills required
Ability to use Microsoft Office (A, I & P)
Attainment
• PhD in Education/Applied Linguistics or other related discipline [or near completion] (A)
Knowledge
Basic knowledge of French and/or Spanish (A & I)
Relevant Experience
Experience of working in schools (in a teaching and/or research capacity) (A & I) •
Experience of quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis (A & I)
Experience conducting data collection with children (A & I)
Experience organising dissemination events (A & I)
• Experience writing research reports or similar documents (A & I)
Professional Service
Conference Organizing Committee Member
Postgraduate Research Conference, [Your Institution], [Month & Year]
Drafted and distributed conference announcements and email communications,
including initial and follow-up calls for papers, to PhD and MA students.
Coordinated across multiple academic departments by liaising with student
representatives to ensure broad participation and engagement.
Managed abstract submission process and categorised presentations thematically,
using supervisor groupings to streamline scheduling.
Assisted in identifying and assigning appropriate Chairs and Auditors for each panel
session.
Supported the drafting of the conference schedule and programme in collaboration
with the committee.
Facilitated the review process by circulating the draft programme to supervisors and
presenters, and incorporated feedback into final adjustments.
Helped compile and distribute the official book of abstracts to all participants ahead
of the event.
Shared presentation tips and guidelines with presenters to enhance delivery and
academic impact.
Coordinated logistical arrangements including room booking, layout checks, and
technical readiness.
Organised catering services and conducted final pre-event checks to ensure smooth
operation on the day.
Conference Presentations
Honors and Awards
Teaching
STATISTICAL & METHODOLOGICAL SKILLS
Statistical Software: SPSS
Quantitative Analytic Skills: Multilevel Modeling, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM),
Psychometrics, Event-Related Potential Analysis (ERP)
Qualitative Analytic Skills: Thematic Analysis, Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR)
Focus group facilitator (Dec 2021)
Organising the focus group
Directing the conversation during the focus group
Writing brief summaries of the discussion
Data Entry Administrator (Jan 2022)
Enter data from 700 handwritten questionnaire responses onto an on-line
spreadsheet
Accuracy of data
Can decode difficult-to-read handwritten responses
teachers’ perceptions on the use of children’s literature in mathematics teaching
and learning
Coded a sample of question to match with the themes using deductive coding
