Assistant Professor

Position Details

Birmingham Medical School, School of Medical Sciences, College of Medicine and Health

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £47,389 to £56,535 with potential progression once in post to £63,606

Grade: 8

Part Time 0.8 FTE or 0.6 FTE

Permanent 

Closing date: 21st October 2026

There are 2 positions available

Academic Development Programme - new Assistant Professors will undertake a 5-year development programme, at the end of which they are expected to be promoted to Associate Professor.  The programme consists of a variety of development opportunities and the time to reflect and develop. 

Background

Birmingham Medical School is one of the largest and most established medical schools in the UK, bringing together a diverse community of medical education specialists, clinicians, and non-clinical scientists. The Medical School delivers the undergraduate medicine programme (MBChB), alongside a range of postgraduate programmes, including Education for Healthcare Professionals (E4HP), which supports the development of educators both within the University and across our partner NHS Trusts.

As the School enters the first year of implementing Curriculum 2030 in 2026/27, sustaining the momentum of this transformative programme is essential. Key priorities include embedding innovative formative assessment approaches, fostering self-directed and lifelong learning, and enhancing the overall student experience to ensure graduates are equipped to thrive in an evolving healthcare landscape.

We are seeking two exceptional individuals at Assistant Professor level with substantial expertise in medical education, evidence in educational leadership, and extensive teaching experience. These appointments will play a pivotal role in driving educational innovation, supporting curriculum delivery, and ensuring excellence in medical education at scale.

Role Summary

We are seeking two exceptional individuals at Assistant Professor level with substantial expertise in medical education and who are expected to take on a combination of the roles described below. The allocation will occur after the appointment and will be dependant on the candidates’ expertise and experience.

1. will work closely with the Portfolio lead as her Deputy and provide significant input in portfolio development and delivery as well as being member of the portfolio review committee and helping to source a new portfolio platform. 
2. will support the Elective lead as her Deputy and provide significant input in managing and supporting students in identifying suitable areas for their electives (abroad or within the UK), assessing and reviewing students’ elective reports and risk assessments as well as help establishing an infrastructure to increase medical students’ mobility by exploring interesting alternatives and additional opportunities for students-either locally, nationally or internationally.
3. will act as Professional Support Tutor and will work collaboratively with the Wellbeing Team and other relevant stakeholders to support successful outcomes for students on MBChB. This includes reviewing students, act as the point of contact for queries related to reasonable adjustment requests, liaising with wellbeing and occupational health services and signposting them to other resources for support. They will be part of Health Support Committee and will be accountable to the Head of Professionalism. 
4. will be critically evaluating and continuously assessing the new curriculum with an emphasis on student experience and will, during the process, ensure engagement with different stakeholders (public, students) under the guidance of Curriculum Development lead. There will be the opportunity of improving the curriculum with innovative content creation.
5. will provide academic leadership at the MBChB undergraduate medical degree and will support colleagues through high-quality educational delivery of the current curriculum (e.g. Written Professional Comms module, ethics and law in clinical practice and others as directed by the Programme Director)
6. will be encouraged to engage in scholarship (Academic Development Program).

Main Duties

Education

1.           You will contribute across the range of teaching and learning activities: 

• contribute to leading curriculum development and/or renewal; 
• develop and manage approaches to teaching and learning that are best practice in the subject area or institution; 
• advise others on aspects of learning, teaching and assessment; 
• deliver (where appropriate to the discipline) specific professional programmes; 
• advance the practice of teaching in their modules and within the school, and play an important role in student academic support; 
• inform your teaching practice by discipline based research; 
• frequently update your subject expertise, and undertake personal professional development in teaching, including self-reflection on own teaching, using student and peer review feedback, to enhance own teaching and learning processes;
• you may play an important role in the recruitment and admission of students; and co-supervise doctoral students to completion.

2.           Using a variety of methods in teaching and advising individuals and groups of undergraduates, postgraduates, or CPD students, including (as appropriate):

• teaching and examining courses at a range of levels;
• planning and reviewing your own teaching approaches and encouraging others to do the same;
• designing contemporary, inclusive, engaging and academically challenging curriculum content;
• working collaboratively with colleagues to design and deliver teaching, learning and assessment;
• using digital resources/environments effectively to support learning and assessment;
• developing programme proposals and making substantial contributions to the design of teaching programmes more widely;
• where appropriate, undertaking and developing the full range of responsibilities in relation to supervision, marking and examining;
• developing and advising others on learning and teaching tasks and methods;
• developing and making substantial contributions to knowledge transfer, enterprise, business engagement, public engagement activities or similar on own specialism that enhances the student experience or employability and which benefits the College and University;
• devising and supervising projects, student dissertations and practical work.

Management/Administration

To contribute to Departmental /School administration. This may include:

• contributing to the administration/management of teaching across the Department/School; 
• where appropriate, leading and managing a team to devise and implement a new and/or revised process (e.g. new programme or a recruitment drive);
• advising on personal development of colleagues and students;
• making a contribution to administrative activities within the University (e.g. appeals panels, working groups);
• managing enterprise, business development, and public engagement activities;
• developing and making substantial contributions to knowledge transfer, enterprise, business engagement, public engagement, widening participation, schools outreach;
• actively manages equality, diversity and inclusion through monitoring and evaluation and actively challenging unacceptable behaviour in line with university policies.
• Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity duties document.

Citizenship 

Contributing to an inclusive working environment:

• pursuing your activities in a way that helps others to pursue their activities effectively and efficiently;
• demonstrating a willingness to be involved in a variety of activities supporting University life (e.g., participation in graduation, Departmental/School committees, Open Days);
• demonstrating support for colleagues, such as sharing resources, providing advice; 
• willingness to volunteer for one-off duties (such as supporting School, Institute, and Departmental projects);
• positively engaging in School strategic initiatives;
• proactive support and involvement in activities specifically contributing to a positive and inclusive community spirit across the School/College/University.

Person Specification

• Normally, a higher Degree relevant to the discipline area (usually PhD) or equivalent qualifications.
• Extensive teaching experience and scholarship within subject specialism.
• Proven ability to devise, advise on and manage learning.
• Skills in managing, motivating & mentoring others.
• Working well within a team of academics and members of professional service

Teaching

• Ability to design, deliver, assess and revise teaching programmes. 
• Extensive experience and demonstrated success in developing appropriate approaches to learning and teaching and advising colleagues. 
• Experience and achievement in knowledge transfer, enterprise and similar activity that enhances the student experience or employability.

Management Administration

• Ability to contribute to School/Departmental management processes.
• Ability to assess and organise resources effectively.
• Understanding of and ability to contribute to broader management/administration processes.
• Ability to identify issues with the potential to impact protected groups and take appropriate action.
• Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity knowledge, skills and experience document.

Further particulars can be found here

Informal enquiries to Professor Beverly Tsai-Goodman, email: (b.tsai-goodman@bham.ac.uk)

Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.